Nguyen Van Phuong

Nguyen Van Phuong studied at the National Fine Arts College in Gia Dinh Province (annexed to Saigon in 1975) in the 1950s. From 1959 to 1975, he actively took part in numerous exhibitions, including those held at the Information Hall of Saigon and Asian Cultural Association Headquarters. Technically, Nguyen Van Phuong used a palette consisting of the five fundamental colors of Vietnamese folk art: blue, red, white, yellow and black. His style highlighted people and objects in his paintings with bold, dark located about 30km north of Hanoi, known for its rich history with a history of woodblock prints. Nguyen cleverly combined Western techniques with those of Vietnamese folk art, developing a unique style over his entire lifetime. The majority of his work depicts traditional country scenes, and the two works featured in the H&S collection represent two icons of Saigon, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame and the People’s Committee.