Renowned Vietnamese artists collaborate on unique porcelain artworks

The 'Hoa Trên Hoa Kết Tinh' (Flowers On Crystallised Flowers) exhibition features 13 crystallised porcelain artworks. Photos courtesy of the centre of Vietnam Quintessential Handicraft

An exhibition featuring unique porcelain artworks resulting from the first-ever collaboration between two Vietnamese artisans will be on display at CHỌN de l'Art, located in the centre of Vietnam Quintessential Handicraft at 28 Bát Tràng Street, Gia Lâm District, Hà Nội, from March 25 to 28.

Titled Hoa Trên Hoa Kết Tinh (Flowers on Crystallised Flowers), the exhibition will showcase 13 crystallised porcelain items created by Lê Ngọc Thạch, a famed artisan based in Bát Tràng, and painted by the internationally-acclaimed overseas Vietnamese artist Hồng Đức Thanh.

The much-anticipated event, jointly organised by CHỌN de l'Art and the centre of Vietnam Quintessential Handicraft, is expected to draw porcelain art enthusiasts from all over.

Thanh, also known as Hồng Mễ Xuyên, has garnered international acclaim for his pursuit of the art of porcelain painting, which the Lingnan school influences.

This is the first time that artist Hồng Đức Thanh paints on crystallised enamel on ceramics crafted in Bát Tràng Village.

The 65-year-old artist, now based in Norway, has won many prestigious awards at international exhibitions in the US, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Japan, and China.

Collaborating with mainland Chinese and Taiwanese artists, he has created paintings on thin, light porcelain products with an elegant shape and shiny enamel colours, which have stunned art enthusiasts. One of his notable artworks is performed on the world's thinnest porcelain bowl in Taiwan, currently on display at the Shanghai Museum in China.

Thanh is also passionate in spreading the art form to the younger generation. He was invited to teach at Folkeuniversitetet, and then at other schools around the world such as Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark, Japan, and Italy.

He is currently running a class in his studio, Art Thanh Hong AS in Brumunddal, Norway.

Artisan Thạch is the 16th generation descendant of a family with a tradition of crafting pottery products in Bát Tràng Village, Gia Lâm District in Hà Nội. His passion for the craft has begun since a very young age.

After graduating from the Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, Thạch has regularly come into contacts and collaborated with other renowned artisans and big brands, in addition to attending many famous ceramic fairs in the world.

His enriched knowledge, experiences, desire and chances to witness the development of world ceramic craft have inspired him to create artworks of with his own ambitions that inherit the values ​​of the predecessors but also integrated with global elements.

The exhibition resulted from the first collaboration between Bát Tràng artisan Lê Ngọc Thạch (left) and Norway-based artist Hồng Đức Thanh.

After several meetings at Bát Tràng Village, which produces one of the most beautiful porcelain works in northern Việt Nam, they decided to have a joint exhibition at CHỌN de l'Art.

According to the organisers, the theme of the exhibition – Flowers on Crystallised Flowers – implies the crystallisation of two Vietnamese artistic souls travelling elsewhere and then gathering again right in the homeland.

This is the first time artist Thanh painted on crystallised enamel on porcelain crafted in Bát Tràng, which marks his beginning in conquering the material.

His vivid flower artworks, performed on blooming porcelain, have winged Thạch’s dreams,

“Crystallised enamel takes us on journeys to paintings,” he said.

“Through this exhibition, I hope to spread the values of the distinctive porcelain type of Bát Tràng and inspire the next artisan generation’s interest in the art form,” Thanh said.