Opening: Sat 09 Nov, 10 am
Exhibition: 09 Nov – 01 Dec 2013, 9 am – 6 pm
Related events (details below): Sun 17 Nov 2013
Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam
From Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam:
In celebration of the Japan – Vietnam Friendship Year 2013, the Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam proudly presents a lacquer painting exhibition “Japan In Me” by Saeko Ando in Hanoi.
Son Mai lacquer painting is a truly unique and original art form that is shared with the rest of the world by its Vietnamese creators. Saeko Ando, an artist from Japan – a country with a long and established lacquer tradition – has lived in Hanoi and pursued her passion as a Son Mai artist for 18 years and has mastered the art here in Vietnam.
Saeko’s works depict aspects of life in the natural world that people usually fail to notice. Her command of Son Mai techniques, use of rich colours and bold compositions, and creation of elaborate textures, enable her to transform these into enchanting characters each with their own stories.
She creates the illusion of texture using colours and materials that are built up in complex layers until they look almost three-dimensional. This layering suggests that traditional Son Mai paintings are impossible to sand to a flat finish, yet Saeko’s paintings are astonishingly flat. This is just one way in which she challenges established theory about Vietnamese lacquer work.
If I was an octopus…(3)
15.0 x 60.0 (cm), lacquer on wood, 2013
Saeko has a mission: to introduce the fascinating art of Son Mai to the world through her exhibitions, lectures, and the symposia she attends. Because of her devotion to the Son Mai craft and her profound understanding of Vietnamese culture, she has often appeared in magazines and on television in Japan and Vietnam. She is the first foreign member accepted by Hanoi Art Association and her “Vietnameseness” has always caught people’s attention.
At this exhibition – JAPAN IN ME – Saeko will offer a new insight into herself, proudly presenting, through her work, her Japanese side. For the first time, her “Japaneseness”, its philosophy and aesthetic, comes under the spotlight. Although the materials and techniques Saeko uses are almost all Vietnamese, art critics and fellow artists agree that Saeko’s Japanese Soul exudes from her work. Along with her art, the exhibition will offer a series of short essays Saeko has written to explain the secrets of her works.
Free admission.
UFO –Unidentified Floating Object
15.0 X 20.0 (cm), lacquer on wood, 2012
The opening will include:
– A congratulatory speech by Mr. Hideo Suzuki (Minister, Embassy of Japan in Vietnam)
– An artist talk by Saeko Ando
– Free coffee served by KOK Coffee
Everyone can attend the opening.
Related events
Date: Sunday 17 November 2013
Venue: The Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam
14:00 – 14:40
A lecture on “Japanese Lacquer Arts & Crafts: Its current status and artistry”
By Ms. Fumie Sasai (Japanese lacquer artist)
Japanese lacquer arts & crafts can be split into two distinct categories; handicrafts mainly made by artisans, and artworks mainly created by artists. Such handicrafts and artworks in contemporary Japan, along with the history of Japanese lacquer as well as its methods and techniques, will be explained. Concepts/messages in each work by each artist are effected as “expressions” resulting in the emergence of artistic value within the work, and it is this value which differentiates artworks from handicrafts. The meaning of artistry in arts & crafts will also be explored.
14:50 – 15:30
A talk on “JAPAN IN ME – Japan coming into sight through lacquer art”
By Ms. Saeko Ando & Ms. Fumie Sasai
Throughout history Japan and Vietnam have developed their own individual styles and techniques of lacquer as an established artistic medium. How is lacquer art from Japan, which developed in quite a different direction format from Vietnam’s, reflected in the eyes of the Vietnamese people? Despite using Vietnamese materials and techniques, Japanese sensitivity exudes from Saeko’s lacquer paintings. The secret, which Saeko will explain through her exhibition “JAPAN IN ME”, may provide a further hint to identify the individual characteristics of both Japanese and Vietnamese lacquer art. Fumie, who is active in the Japanese lacquer art scene, and Saeko, who is a lacquer painter as well as a researcher on lacquer art, will talk on the issue inviting the audience to think together.
Danu
60.0 x 60.0 (cm), lacquer on wood, 2000
15:30 – 16:30
A tea party – Enjoying the tea ceremony with original teacups by ceramic artists participating in the exhibition “Art of KOGEI, Spirit of KYOTO – 2013”
Presented by CHIKUYO Tea Ceremony Club (School of Yabuuchi）
– All related events will be delivered in Japanese with Vietnamese interpretation.
– All related events are also free admission, no registration is required.
For more information, visit Japan Foundation’s website.
Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam
27 Quang Trung
Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
Tel: 3944 7419
www.jpf.org.vn
Source: Hanoi Grapevine
Also See
