Rich in themes and materials, the young generation of artists is diligently recreating the mountainous space with a new spirit, both nostalgic and contemporary. In the bright colors, the silhouettes of people, streams, roofs... are the aspiration to find the balance between humans and nature, between memories and the present.
Faced with the challenges of nature, many young artists have chosen to interact and listen to the resilient life that is reviving. They paint the highlands with deep vitality and faith, turning art into a voice full of hope. An interesting trend can be seen in Vietnamese fine arts: more and more young artists are returning to the mountains as a journey of emotions, aesthetics and community responsibility.
From the terraced fields in the ripe rice season, the stilt houses hidden in the mist, the austere yet kind faces of the ethnic people, the young artist has seen in them a reserve of emotions and pure identity. That makes the works no longer in the state of "painting about the mountains" but "living in the mountains", drawing from the breath, the rhythm of life, the veins of the land, the souls of people.
Along with that, contemporary art also opens up the scope for young artists to express the mountains through bright, strong, even abstract color palettes in new ways of expressing the transformation of mountains and forests.
With the work "Peace" (oil painting), artist Tran Cuong chose to recreate spring flowers and leaves on a small mountain road, where white flowers bloom on the treetops, the winding road leads the gaze deep into the depths. The colors in the painting are light and bright, with the warmth of new life. "Peace" carries a soft inner force, like a heartfelt word of comfort sent to the highlands after the storm and flood. The artist used delicate oil paint, thin layers of color, creating transparency, making the viewer feel like they are breathing the air after the rain, when the mountains are still wet with dew but people's hearts have stopped worrying.
"Afternoon Sunlight" (oil on canvas) - another of his works brings a picture full of contemplation and expressive depth. With a vibrant yet restrained color palette, he depicts the image of a flower shining brightly in the sunlight but bowing its head to the mother earth as a humble gesture, evoking a philosophy about life and origin.
Each brushstroke is imbued with human emotions about beauty from the bowing posture, towards the place of birth. Tran Cuong's use of light is both powerful and delicate, highlighting the harmony between pride and peace when a "grain of sunshine" also brings human warmth in the mountains after the rain.
In the two latest works of artist Vu Thuy Mai, "The garden in the clouds" (watercolor on silk) and "A morning on the top of Ta Xua" (watercolor on silk), viewers encounter a painting world that is both real and dreamy, and the nature of the mountainous region is recreated with a feminine, gentle, yet powerful gaze.
"The Garden in the Clouds" is like a clear love song about the highlands. Bauhinia flowers, raspberry trees, distant mountain slopes... appear softly through the transparent silk, creating a feeling of mist and smoke, containing the warm breath of life. Vu Thuy Mai remains faithful to the "heritage" style, using silk as a material that evokes memories, evokes the breath of time. She puts into her work a feeling of cherishing and healing when beauty rises from fragility.
"A morning on the top of Ta Xua" is a prelude to the sunshine. Also on silk, the artist opens up a vast scene of clouds, hidden stilt houses, bright red banana flowers, and rustic ceramic vases - details that are both familiar and stylized with a modern feel. The blend of national identity and contemporary aesthetic sense makes Vu Thuy Mai's paintings different. Clouds and flowers, land and people melt into each other in a pure light, making viewers feel like they have returned to the pristine and steadfast beauty after the storm.
Artist Pham Thi Hong Sam takes viewers into another romantic space with "The Realm of Clouds" (acrylic on canvas). There, clouds are the realm of the mind. White and blue streaks float over the mountains, over memories, creating a dreamy, shimmering light. Hong Sam's paintings have a special evocative power, inviting viewers to enter the realm of emotions when clouds are a shelter for the soul.
Looking towards the highlands with a compassionate gaze, Nguyen Ngoc Diep presents "Guiding the Hand" (ink, mineral color on silk). A small but deeply moving painting. The image of a baby with hair flowing like grass and trees, clear eyes as if needing all love and support. On a thin silk background, the artist looks towards the soft light. "Guiding the Hand" is also the guidance of art to lift people from sadness, from the ashes of natural disasters to find the warmth of humanity.
Different from the etherealness of soft palettes, male painters tend to bring a sense of returning to the spirit of the land where, after the flood, mud remains but green shoots have sprouted.
Painter Nguyen Van Hung presents "Peace" (oil on canvas) which is a very peaceful painting. The little dog sits on the porch, its eyes looking towards the distant light where there is a patch of sunlight and in the distance is the silhouette of the Mong people's flared skirt. There is no tragedy or disaster, just an everyday moment that stirs up human emotions. In the stillness of the mountains, he creates a daily peace of a way of life that continues to flow.
Also from the perspective of nature, Do Van Tiep chose a special image in "Dolphin's Beak" (oil painting). The sharp mountain peak stands in the sky, the strong and strange color evokes the image of both forest and sea. The artist does not describe the scene but sculpts the standing position of the land, where the mountain is like a living being facing forward. From that mountain peak, the viewer seems to see the endurance and pride of the borderland, the land that despite many challenges still stands tall in the shape of mountains and people.
Doan Xuan Tung's "Cloudy Days" (oil on canvas) brings back a pure, vibrant feeling. The entire canvas is filled with green, from the leaves to the mountain ranges, like a symphony of hope. His paintings recall the enduring optimism of the mountain people: after all the difficulties, trees grow again, people sow seeds again and clouds still drift like a silent, powerful message.
In "Father's Back" (oil on canvas), artist Nguyen Manh Cuong depicts a mountain ridge amidst a sea of clouds - a metaphor full of emotion. The mountain's shape is strong and curving, evoking the image of a father carrying the entire village on his shoulders. It is both a landscape image and a symbol of tolerance and a spirit of responsibility. Through painting, the artist depicts the personality of the land and the steadfast but loving mountain people.
“The Road to the Village” (oil on canvas) by Nguyen Tien Dung brings an image that makes anyone far away feel like they are returning home. The winding road, the sunlight on the roof, the lingering smoke from the kitchen… blend together to create a feeling of reunion. The artist actually painted the memories of many people who have left the mountains but still carry in their hearts the smell of the earth, the sound of the flute, the warmth of the evening fire.
Looking more broadly, it is easy to see that today's young generation of artists is forming a valuable direction: They live with what they paint. The artists in the "May May" group mentioned above, as well as many other groups of artists, have gone to the mountains together, both creating and organizing fundraising activities, awarding scholarships, and donating paintings to schools and children in the highlands. Their journey with the brush is not separate from life but becomes part of the revival after natural disasters, sowing faith with colors and lines.
It is from that professional activity, through each village, mountainside, river and stream still muddy after the flood... that they find artistic material and more importantly, the meaning of being an artist. Each painting is born to extend the sharing, comfort, bringing people to touch each other in love and hope.
Source: https://nhandan.vn/mien-nui-khong-gian-sang-tao-ly-tuong-cua-the-he-hoa-si-tre-post917050.html
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