9X artist wins 500 million VND prize for painting depicting immigrant life

A lacquer painting depicting the lives of migrant workers titled 'Temporary Connection' by artist Cao Van Thuc won the UOB Painting of the Year 2025 award in Vietnam.

Artist Cao Van Thuc wins UOB POY Award 2025, qualifies for international competition

Photo: Organizing Committee

The 3rd UOB Painting of the Year (UOB POY) Awards Ceremony in Vietnam was held in Ho Chi Minh City on October 8, with the participation of Mr. Ma The Anh, Director of the Department of Fine Arts, Photography and Exhibition (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism).

Cao Van Thuc won the 'Established Artist' award at UOB Painting of the Year

Artist Cao Van Thuc (30 years old) won the highest prize in the Established Artist category, receiving a cash prize of VND500 million. His work will continue to compete with winning works from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand for the prestigious UOB POY Southeast Asia 2025, expected to be announced at the awards ceremony held in November in Singapore.

Cao Van Thuc’s work, titled Temporary Connection , was created using lacquer and acid etching techniques on aluminum alloy. The artist depicts a group of workers on the back of a truck. The gestures of hugging and clinging to each other express both protection, connection and fragility in a foreign land. The shape of the group forms a square in the center, but one corner is missing as a metaphor for the precarious life in the journey to make a living.

Cao Van Thuc's work Temporary Connection is highly appreciated for its emotional depth, technical creativity and strong social message.

Photo: Organizing Committee

The work expresses the 30-year-old artist’s deep sympathy for the working class, while depicting the displaced statuses in the struggle for survival, the spirit of human solidarity and the urbanization process in big cities, through the lens of contemporary materials and techniques. This is the first time Cao Van Thuc has painted with lacquer and acid etching techniques on aluminum alloy. Previously, he often painted with lacquer and oil.

Artist Cao Van Thuc shared: “I want to express the quiet beauty and enduring strength of migrant workers with deep respect through the work Temporary Connection. The painting is also a reminder of the social gaps that still exist in urban life, especially for those from remote areas who come to the city to make a living. The lack of community connection can easily lead to a feeling of isolation and social stratification. I hope this work can inspire people to reflect and contribute to narrowing those gaps, towards a harmoniously developed city, based on understanding, tolerance and empathy."

Author U.60 won the Promising Artist award for his debut work

In the Emerging Artist category, Nguyen Ngoc Thuan won the Most Emerging Artist of 2025 (Vietnam) award with his debut work , Self-Portrait, 2025 (Life Takes Root in Me in the Shadow of a Tree). The painting was painted in acrylic on canvas, inspired by a chest X-ray and the ICD (cardiac defibrillator) device that had been implanted in his body for the past decade.

The work reflecting Nguyen Ngoc Thuan's journey of survival and personal identity won the Most Promising Artist of the Year award.

Photo: bTC

Nguyen Ngoc Thuan (53 years old, from Lam Dong ) is a former student of the Ho Chi Minh City University of Fine Arts, a highly regarded writer and a member of the Vietnam Writers Association. He is known for his literary works such as Opening the Window While Closing Your Eyes and Basically Sad . With the UOB POY competition in 2025, he returns to the journey of creating paintings for the first time.

“This work is a reflection on survival and transformation. When I started painting my first work at the age of 53, I wondered if it was too late. This award has given me the answer that it is never too late if we start,” Nguyen Ngoc Thuan shared.

Mr. Victor Ngo (8th from left) with the judges and winning artists of the UOB Painting of the Year 2025 in Vietnam

Photo: Organizing Committee

The finalists of the UOB POY 2025 (Vietnam) competition, including the winning entries, will be on display at Chillala House of Art, Ho Chi Minh City. The exhibition is open to the public free of charge from 10-27 October.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hoa-si-9x-thang-giai-500-trieu-dong-tu-tranh-khac-hoa-doi-song-nguoi-nhap-cu-185251009090910712.htm