Painter Quynh Thom – a familiar name in the genre of paintings depicting rural landscapes and memories of Viet Nam – has devoted more than two decades to preserving and conveying rustic and poetic beauty through painting.
Born and raised in a peaceful countryside, the natural scenery of his homeland has been deeply ingrained in his consciousness and has become an endless source of creative inspiration.
In recent years, the painter has continuously held solo exhibitions entitled “Rural Colours” at the Fine Arts Exhibition House at 16 Ngo Quyen, attracting the interest of the art-loving public.
At this exhibition, the painter continues to bring into play the strengths of his artistic style, harmoniously combining traditional subject matter with contemporary sensibilities.
The exhibition space is divided into two main sections. The first is the “rural colours” space, introducing paintings of the Vietnamese countryside with fields, village paths, rooftops, bamboo hedges, and simple yet vibrant moments of rural life that is gradually transforming.
The second space features Tet flowers, with works bursting with spring colours, expressed through a refined painterly language that both conveys the joy of the arrival of a new season and evokes personal memories of childhood, family and reunions in spring.
The highlight of this year’s exhibition is the connection between the two elements of Tet flowers and rural colours – the beauty of nature and tradition – creating a distinctive emotional flow. Flowers here are symbols of spring, vitality, growth and hope for new beginnings.
Each painting in “Tet Flowers – Rural Colours” seems to contain a story: the image of vibrant peach branches like a blessing for a prosperous year; the hues of simple folk flowers recalling days of Tet reunions; the green of newly grown grass and trees as a reminder of the continuity of time’s rhythm.
In the section depicting rural scenes, the lines and colour palettes open up a space of contemplation, where viewers can find a pause to listen to their own heartbeats. It may be a childhood memory in a corner of a village, the lively laughter of harvest days, or the image of a glowing hearth on the final nights of the year.
Many viewers said they found in Quynh Thom’s paintings a sense of familiarity and closeness to their own memories, even though each carries a different story about their homeland. The exhibition “Tet Flowers – Rural Colours” is expected to connect those who love beauty and who are always deeply attached to and concerned with traditional Vietnamese cultural values.
