Artist Thanh Chuong: From war sketches to the work 'The girl who opened the road'

I made an appointment to meet artist Thanh Chuong because I knew he was the author of many valuable battlefield sketches. Thanh Chuong made his mark in fine arts and was known to art lovers at home and abroad with his lacquer and gouache works on many subjects, but he rarely painted about war. Therefore, his battlefield sketches show a very different Thanh Chuong…

Artwork "The Girl Who Opened the Road" (lacquer, 90x150cm)

Artist Thanh Chuong has “digitized” his battlefield sketches. When I wanted to see them, he opened his phone and gave me a set of sketch postcards that he had printed. The paintings became more realistic when artist Thanh Chuong recounted each place, each story, and each character inside and outside the sketch.

These are sketches drawn from around 1967 to 1972, on the battlefield of Route 9, Ha Tinh, Quang Tri..., signed with the pen name Truong Thanh. At the age of 76, artist Thanh Chuong recalled: “In the late 1960s, my family had a place for my child to study in Germany, but I thought, the youth of Ho Chi Minh's generation, when the Fatherland was in a state of turmoil fighting against invaders, how could I choose a leisurely, peaceful path to go abroad? I was determined to put everything aside to volunteer to go to the South to fight. When I decided not to go abroad, I told my father, writer Kim Lan, and he was speechless. As a father, everyone has plans for their children. He took me to the Army Literature Magazine, where Uncle Chinh Huu was, to work as an artist for the Magazine. I definitely did not agree. He intended to introduce me to the Military Region 3 Art Troupe. But I did not change my mind. I wrote a letter in blood asking to go to the South to fight. Therefore, I was assigned to the 239th Engineer Corps. I went to the battlefield for 9 years straight, working as an engineer to clear mines, guide ships and ferries, Vehicles entering the Southern battlefield at Linh Cam ferry (Ha Tinh) until the day of liberation. I witnessed, experienced and recorded many stories during those 9 years of fierce bombing and bullets in my sketches.

Trench.

Afternoon on Road 9 (Cam Lo, 1972).

Entering Tra Ki (1970).

Dong Ha pontoon bridge (1972).

When artist Thanh Chuong shared these war sketches, some people wondered, how could a fierce battlefield have time to draw so many and sketch so carefully? Asking that question means not understanding artist Thanh Chuong. Since childhood, Thanh Chuong has had a talent for painting. When he was a student, the teacher asked each person to draw a picture to submit for grading, Thanh Chuong drew and submitted 40, equal to the number of the whole class combined. "The battlefield is fierce, but there are also quiet moments. I quickly sketch the main lines, then, in the quiet moments, I complete some other details of the sketch" - artist Thanh Chuong said.

As a soldier who has gone through the war, the author of the 14.5m high Victory Monument at Bach Mai airport serving the exhibition of the entire military on the occasion of the end of the war of destruction in the North by the American empire on December 22, 1969 - a victory monument built at lightning speed in just over a month, but throughout his artistic life, painter Thanh Chuong decided not to delve into this topic. He chose the Vietnamese countryside with peaceful images of shepherd children, of buffaloes, of moonlit nights... to affirm his unique painting language. “I drew many war sketches but I hate war. War is too fierce, there is nothing but loss and pain. When peace is restored, I find every moment of peace precious, precious moments of peace. If I hadn’t lived and died in the bombs and bullets of the battlefield for 9 years, I wouldn’t have been able to draw a peaceful life with such deep emotions. Therefore, I keep one thing in mind: Never use my art to praise war,” Thanh Chuong said, adding: “In my entire life as an artist, up to now, I have only painted one picture on this topic. That is the painting “The Girl Who Opened the Road”. I think that the young female volunteers during the war and even when the country is at peace, they are always the ones who have to endure the most hardships, sacrifices, sadness and disadvantages. They deserve to be honored.”

I had the chance to see the work “The Girl Who Opened the Road” by artist Thanh Chuong. It is a lacquer painting measuring 90x150cm. He painted it in 2021 and was soon bought by a famous collector in Ho Chi Minh City for his personal museum.

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the country's reunification, we would like to introduce some battlefield sketches and the lacquer painting "The Girl Who Opened the Road" by artist Thanh Chuong.

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/hoa-si-thanh-chuong-tu-ky-hoa-chien-tranh-den-tac-pham-co-gai-mo-duong-10304640.html