Memories of Hanoi in Truong Ngoc Hien's paintings

More than 50 works, mostly painted on silk and Do paper, are both a tribute to Hanoi and her homeland, and the voice of a female artist who has gone through many historical changes.

At the age of 80, painter Truong Ngoc Hien still passionately sits in front of the easel, her hands shaking but her eyes bright when talking about flowers, streets and memories of Hanoi. For her, painting is not only an artistic path, but also a breath, a way to send love to life.

Born in 1946 in Yen Phu, a village on the West Lake, Truong Ngoc Hien grew up in a family that loved art. Her father, Truong Van Hieu, a famous dancer in Hanoi, was close to many artists such as Nguyen Sang, Bui Xuan Phai... The art discussions with her father's friends planted in little Hien a seed of fine art that soon blossomed.

At the age of 12, she began to hold a brush and learn to paint from her first teacher, Pham Viet Song. Later, she continued to be guided by names such as painters Nguyen Duc Nung and Nguyen Sy Ngoc. Her artistic path opened up when she passed the Vietnam College of Fine Arts in 1963, studying with many talented female painters such as Do Thi Ninh, Dang Thi Khue, Le Kim My...

Graduated from the College of Fine Arts in 1966, she worked at the Animation Studio, then worked at the Propaganda Department, Hanoi Department of Information for 34 years. That was a long and diligent life with propaganda paintings, an art genre that directly served the resistance war and socio-political life. During this time, she went to work but continued to study at the Hanoi University of Fine Arts from 1975 to 1979, to continue to improve her knowledge of painting.

The work "On the way to liberate the Northwest" (silk).

After years of being responsible for her work, deep in her soul, she still yearns for a world of her own - the world of flowers, streets, and memories. She often says: “I paint flowers like I paint you. Looking at flowers makes my heart soften, I see purity, I see comfort.” Perhaps because she lives in Nghi Tam, where Quang Ba flower market is just a few steps away, flowers have become an endless source of inspiration for her.

The third solo exhibition of artist Truong Ngoc Hien, titled “Street and Flowers” (from September 11 to 20, 2025, at the Exhibition House 16 Ngo Quyen, Hanoi), includes more than 50 works, mostly painted on silk and Do paper. Among them, there are paintings imbued with femininity and gentleness such as “Autumn in Hanoi”, “Narcissus”, “Purple Orchids”, “Dance of Water Orchids”... But there are also paintings with epic tones such as “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers Return to Liberate the Capital”, “On the Road to Liberate the Northwest”... It is this parallelism, between lyricism and epic, between flowers and streets, that has created Truong Ngoc Hien’s artistic personality.

Artwork "Mountain Fragrance" (color powder).

Painter and art critic Phan Cam Thuong once commented: “The artist chooses subjects close to him with a special concern for women: simple, direct, with deep emotions. Truong Ngoc Hien does not pursue any “style” of painting, but tries to express the warm, realistic beauty of modern life, with color blocks and compositions that beautify the nature and people of Vietnam.”

Not only is she a painter, she is also a witness to the history of Hanoi's fine arts. From the first days of holding a brush, through the war, the ups and downs of social life, until today, this woman still has a soft heart for art.

Her three solo exhibitions in 1994, 2001 and now 2025 all opened on September 11. A strange coincidence, like her life itself - quiet, persistent, but always with its own mark.

With her contributions, artist Truong Ngoc Hien received the First Class Resistance Medal, the Medal for the Cause of Mass Culture, and the Medal for the Cause of Fine Arts. But perhaps the greatest reward is the harmony she finds in viewers, when they stand before a flower painting and recognize somewhere the silhouette of Hanoi, gentle, proud, and close.

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Artist Truong Ngoc Hien is also a well-known author of propaganda paintings. She has won many awards in the field of propaganda paintings such as First Prize and Third Prize in the propaganda painting contest “HIV - AIDS: the disease of the century” (1998); Third Prize in the propaganda painting contest “A birth interval of 3 to 5 years helps you have health, beauty and happiness” (1997); Fourth Prize with the painting “French on Earth like a sail full of wind” (1988); Encouragement Prize in the painting contest “Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of War Invalids and Martyrs Day” (1997)… and many paintings on the theme of the Party, Uncle Ho, the army, the nation, and children that have been printed and widely distributed. Her works are kept at the National Museum of History and the Vietnam Fine Arts Association.

Some typical works of painter Truong Ngoc Hien: