The Artist

“Real painters do not paint things as they are… they paint them as they themselves feel them to be.” Vincent Van Gogh

Reserved and contained, Vinh has always been on his own unique solitary path.
In the artist’s early years he was evacuated to the countryside and lived in the house of a woodcarver. He saw the woodcarver’s son’s sketches of the battlefield. These drawings ignited his interest and as he regularly wrote his mother he began to include small drawings of his own.

His early drawing studies feature objects–– a replica of the statue of David and other relics from the French system. Film, poetry, literature, ballet and classic Russian art were all influences on Vinh’s early work. At university he met his fellow Gang of Five members.

Their gatherings provided light during an otherwise dark period in Vietnam’s history. The war was over but the country was decimated. The loss of the support of the Soviet Union and the subsidized economy it had provided plunged Vietnam into extreme poverty. Food was scarce and people were starving. Every family had to use all of their collective resources to survive. These young men would meet at Vinh’s family home where they would exhibit their work and invite fellow artists, friends, poets and writers to come and critique. During this difficult time, the young artists would make friends with Nguyen Tu Nghiem, Nguyen Sang, and Bui Xuan Phai, revered masters who guided and inspired them, offering insight not only into art making but also in the art of making do.

Despite the period’s financial difficulties, it was also a formative time when the artists were young and free and met often to have open exchanges with others. The main hindrance was the lack of access to international information. However, as Vinh explains, “Everything has two sides. With the lack of information, we have to find more inside, we have to look deeply, … Only those who have the true gift of an artist will progress [in these conditions] and find their own direction.”

In 1997 shortly after Vinh’s success in The Changing Face of Hanoi exhibition in Hong Kong, Kim Dong offered him a position as Deputy Director of the eponymous publishing house. Six years later, Vinh had succeeded to the position as Director. While effectively ending his own personal career as an artist during this time, it could be said that Kim Dong Publishing and their children’s books became his art.

The artist’s works from the beginning have revealed the complex character of the man.
Bold, concrete while vague, visible and yet invisible, throughout his works a strong sense of self prevails. While the output remains limited, the impact is memorable.

Art critic Duong Tuong relates to Asian Art News in 1994, “Pham Quang Vinh’s palette rings with symphonic quality; his half figurative half abstract style is enhanced by a strong compositional sense.”

1960 Born in Hanoi, Vietnam

1982 Graduated from the Hanoi Industrial Fine Arts College

2003 Director of Kim Dong Publishing House