[TGS – Introducing Artists] Lê Thừa Tiến & Huy Phan
The Grapevine Selection, was initiated by Hanoi Grapevine’s founder – artist Brian Ring in 2013. The exhibition series The Grapevine Selection is an initiative within Hanoi Grapevine’s mission plan, which is to promote Vietnam’s arts and culture at home and abroad.
In 2024, the Hanoi Grapevine team wants to focus on and promote the flexible perspectives and standards of pioneering organisers and individuals who invest in research and private art collections, each with their distinct perspective that is independent and full of aesthetics, as well as transcending the oppressive biases of the current society. Therefore, this year’s art advisory board is diversified, including art researcher/curator Do Tuong Linh, collector/head of an art organisation Ariel Pham, and international researcher/collector Sophie Huang.
With the vision of The Grapevine Selection exhibition as a contribution to the foundation of the creative industry and art market in Vietnam, the choice of space enhances the experience of contemporary works while also partly facilitating a dialogue between history and modernity, tradition and innovation.
ARTISTS: LÊ THỪA TIẾN
Lê Thừa Tiến was born in 1964 in Hue. He graduated from the Fine Arts University of Hue in 1988; undertook higher education at the Rijks Academy (The Netherlands) and received his MFA from the UNSW Art & Design (Australia) in 2009. He was a lecturer at Fine Arts University of Hue from 1990 to 2010.
Lê Thừa Tiến, referred to as “Painter of the post-Doi Moi era” by the domestic press, has demonstrated changes in artistic ideas and expression. While Tien’s earlier practice can be seen as an attempt to heal wounds from the past wars, his later work focuses on the human connections and identities using a range of materials such as painting, sculpture, installation, and community-based projects. Hence, his works balance sensibility and criticality, deeply engaging with both visual and conceptual aspects of art making.
On his lacquer artworks, Suzanne Lecht (Art Vietnam Gallery) said that they “open up deep, empty and monochromatic spaces, evoking nostalgia for ancient ruins which seem to be forever forgotten in the flow of history and time.”
ARTISTS: HUY PHAN
Huy Phan (b. 1985, Binh Dinh) graduated with a major in Oil Painting from HCMC University of Fine Arts in 2014. He is currently a lecturer in Painting at the same university.
Huy Phan works primarily with oil paint and does not limit himself to any particular artistic style. His work attempts to express emotions openly, as well as to explore color and line boldly. It initiates a soundless dialogue between the artist and the audience, allowing for multifaceted self-reflection on the issues he introduces.
Throughout his career, Huy Phan actively engaged in numerous group exhibitions hosted by the HCMC Fine Arts Association. His debut solo exhibition, “Gia đình tôi” (REI Art Space, 2022), features 14 selected pieces on his wife, son, and their family life – which has also been his primary inspiration for art making.
