Exhibition “Perfect Reality” by Luu Tuyen

Opening: Tue 05 Jun 2018, 5 pm
Exhibition: 05 – 11 Jun 2018
Vietnam Fine Arts Museum

From the organizer:

You are invited to the solo exhibition “Perfect Reality” by artist Luu Tuyen. Luu Tuyen’s solo exhibition features 30 artworks using mixed media on canvas and two sculptures, spanning five years of working and mastering the use of epoxy resin in art.

Epoxy is an organic compound with a plastic composite base and a special composition that makes the material far more water- and heat-resistant than many other media. Due to the low shrinkage and excellent adhesion, epoxy resin, when mixed with various active ingredients, can form adhesives with many superior properties and at the same time create durable, yet beautiful, surfaces. Epoxy is widely used in construction and shipbuilding, where it is used to coat underwater surfaces.

To master this material in art is a major challenge for any artist. After a chance encounter with the use of epoxy resin as a glaze on the surface of oil paintings, both as a clear protective layer and a top coat that creates a different visual effect to the finished artwork, Luu Tuyen learned to apply epoxy not only to the surfaces of paintings but also to create forms in sculptures.

As the top layer in paintings, epoxy is not only a protective coat, but a deliberate artistic medium where its shape-forming characteristic can be deployed. The artist uses epoxy in applications similar to lacquer so that it can adhere to the canvas and oil paints, inlaid with gold and silver leaves, carved, engraved, sanded, polished or cracked. Once finished, the surface of the artwork is glossy; however, the clear surface contains several layers of colors, paints and particles, creating an alluring depth through which the original oil painting on the canvas underneath the resin surface becomes more mysterious and beautiful as a result of this special visual effect. The layers in Luu Tuyen’s epoxy paintings also represent the complex levels of emotions his works exude. There are three major series in his repertoire, namely still-life, landscapes and people – his inimitable dolls.

Nonetheless, for this series, the dolls have been created using a new process, and therefore carry different social and symbolic meanings. Similarly, the sculptures displayed in this exhibition are the result of a long, challenging and lonely journey as the artist strived to master a new artistic medium through a fresh creative process representing a different way to experience arts.

With Luu Tuyen, the process of exploring resin is not only a process of mastering his art, but also a journey of self discovery. His artworks portray isolation, self-doubt, apprehension, and the juxtaposition of the self, objects and spaces around him. Yet Luu Tuyen’s works do not impose the artist’s beliefs on his audience; viewers are drawn into multi-dimensional dialogues, each fitting their subconscious perceptions and aesthetics.

A statement from the artist, Luu Tuyen: “Art is a mirror on which one reflects and grows (perfects oneself, improves oneself). My art reflects my anxieties, torments, and questions about a present-day reality where time-honoured values ​​have been replaced with false, superficial values and even falsehood. In that context, core values ​​must be preserved.”

Free entrance