Sai Gon, cay xanh và do nat” (Sai Gon, Trees and Destruction), a gouache sketch by Freddy Nadolny Poustochkine (Photo courtesy of the organiser)HCM City (VNA) – An art exhibition titled “Nhua cay van chay” (TheSap Still Runs) opened at Millennium Masteri Building in Ho Chi Minh City onApril 24, featuring works by Freddy Nadolny Poustochkine of France and TruongCong Tung of Vietnam.
The exhibition, held by the FrenchInstitute in Vietnam, takes its conceptual inspiration from a picture of afelled pine tree in the Cévennes of France, an incident Poustochkine encounteredby chance.
When he learned about the devalued rubbertrees in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai from Tung, both artistswanted to bring the fallen trees’ sap which bore the spirit of the trees intoart works.
Comic book artist Poustochkin presents acollection of gouache sketchbook and video diaries capturing his memories oflandscapes in urban areas and nameless faces that he saw in Ho Chi Minh Cityand Buon Ma Thuot city in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak over theyears.
Poustochkin, a graduate of École Supérieuredes Arts Décoratifs (School of Decorative Arts) in Strasbourg, France, has beenfascinated by Vietnam since 2002.
In 2011, he was awarded a writing grantfrom the Centre National du Livre to spend a year in Vietnam and createsketchbooks, graphics and videos about his experiments in the country.
Tung, a native of Dak Lak province, introducesan installation using a seared tree root, a string of wooden praying beads, andan image of insects on a wing made of steel.
The work depicts an ethnographic text onindigenous beliefs from the Central Highlands, and images of the fragilehighland forests.
Born in 1986, Tung graduated from the HCMCity Fine Arts University in 2010 with a degree in lacquer painting.
His works are a combination of video,installation, painting and found objects that reflect his personal thoughts,social changes and the issue of race, religion and politics.
The exhibition willclose on May 21.-VNA
VNA
