Exhibition “Puzzle of Life” by Hoang Nguyen Khanh Linh

Opening: Sat 21 Nov 2015, 5 pm
Exhibition: 21 – 30 Nov 2015
Exhibition Hall
29 Hang Bai, Hanoi

From the organizer:

You are invited to exhibition “Puzzle of Life” by young talent artist Hoang Nguyen Khanh Linh.

Hoang Nguyen Khanh Linh can be considered a “blossoming young painter” as she opens her first exhibition with more than thirty oil artworks, painted from the age of 15 to 17.

She views the outside world with the optimistic eyes of a youngster, with a bright future as an artist ahead of her. She is following the path of generations of Vietnamese artists with both accolades and challenges at the same time. Khanh Linh chose the same road as her farther, painter Hoang Dinh who accomplished in both graphics and painting. It is likely that Khanh Linh has inherited her father’s artistic genes! She has not gone to any art school nor art courses, but paints with her instincts. This highlights her exceptional gift as a painter.

The thirty works by Khanh Linh all display traits of a natural gift. They promise great talent in the future if her passion and determination are nurtured through the process of training.

In all forms of arts, artists will have to make a painful journey in order to rise to the top. For painters, the journey is particularly challenging. Apart from possessing an artistic soul, the painter should have deep knowledge of graphics, composition and specialized techniques. These techniques take much time and effort to master, while the painter “wrestles” with the “tools of trade” such as colors, canvases, frames, easels and brushes.

A vibrant artwork requires many different elements, ranging from the composition, colors, lines to shapes. However, the most important and difficult, perhaps, is to portray space. Real but unreal, unreal drawn from real. Although Khanh Linh still needs time to develop her techniques, the “space” is always filled.

Five paintings have been selected to form her “five blessings”. These are “Life in the Suburbs”, “River from Homeland”, “Wild Nature”, “Parched Fish” and “Midnight City”. In the two paintings “Life in the Suburbs” and “River from Homeland”, Linh depicted the Nature so vividly just like a professional artist. The painting “Wild Nature” is also a beautiful piece, which has both abstract and realistic elements, which are now used by many professional painters. The “Life in the Suburbs” is unique. In fact, few artists would dare to paint such a landscape since there is nothing “special” about two monotonous apartment blocks covered with tin roofing, a yard wet in rain, and a rising sun. She has used dark and bright tones for the roofing, while highlighting some drying laundry and an electricity pole in the background for this simple urban scene. But the work has a strong focus with Khanh Linh’s use of black brushstrokes for the two doors. The yellowish sky is freely dotted, giving the painting charm. The painting “River from Homeland” is romantic. The river has a familiar touch; it could the Cau River or the Nhue River. Bamboo borders the wharf, while water plants “Luc Binh” float on the water.

Although Khanh Linh has a child’s playfulness with her brushes, she infuses her soul in her paintings, which gives them maturity far beyond her years. These initial successes will lay a springboard for her future. Natural gifts, once activated and nurtured will definitely grow into real talent.

(Artist NGO QUANG NAM, Former Director of the Department of Fine Arts, Ministry of Culture and Information)