HCMC – Exhibition “Red”

Red paintings: 15 Feb – 11 Mar 2014, 12 am – 8 pm
Red project: 15 Mar – 15 Apr 2014, 12 am – 8 pm
The Observatory

From the organizer:

Come to the next exhibition “Red”, a monochrome exhibition in two parts.

Part 1 : RED PAINTINGS
15 February > 11 March
opening 6PM

Part 2 : RED PROJECT
15 March > 15 April
opening 6PM

Opening time : 12AM > 8PM

Artists: Henry Codax, Vương Tử Lâm, Le Brothers and Olivier Mosset

Monochrome painting has a long history, crossing continents and generations. This practice first appeared at the beginning of last century in the USSR (with artists like Kasimir Malevitch and Alexander Rodchenko), then moving to Europe (Yves Klein) and later to America (Alan Charlton, Marcia Hafif, Robert Ryman, Olivier Mosset etc.). The monochrome, always re-interpreted, is still one of the main subjects in abstraction and is a form that continues today, in a world of images, to resist.

In 1986, New York saw an important monochrome experience with “RED”, a collective show curated by critic/curator Bob Nickas, which had no theme or subject. It mixed radical paintings and sculptures with the taste of its author. When applied to the group show, the monochrome became the main driving force behind the gathering of pieces.

Almost thirty years after, the exhibition “Màu Đỏ” (vietnamese translation of the word “RED”) takes place in Ho Chi Minh City. While monochrome does not have a rooted presence or history in Vietnam as an artistic tradition, the red color has a specific impact and a real importance here in the context of the country and its culture. On the one hand, it is the color of the national flag, symbolic of communism and therefore used as a visual aid to communicate governmental information. On the other, it symbolizes many ideas for the people. For example, red could be the color of luck, enthusiasm and happiness but also death and sorrow. In each case this color is integrated into the daily life of Vietnam.

The first part of this exhibition is an introduction to the most radical type of abstraction: the monochrome painting. For the artists, the canvas is a way to isolate the color and to return it to a state of autonomy and neutrality. Here the color does not belong to any identity or any speech. The paintings are made to be seen just for what they are: form, shape, intensity and pure materiality. They are representations of fundamental colors that transcend gallery walls and borders.

In contrast to part one, the second part of the show (an installation mixing video and sculptures) is a reflection on the color red in Vietnam – a kind of experimental documentary in which artists, poets and writers are invited to express their points of view and share their feelings and memories.