Phan Cẩm Thượng is a well-known artist recognized for his paintings on Dó paper and silk. He is also a respected critic and cultural researcher with a profound love for Vietnamese heritage. His works, such as Nghệ thuật ngày thường, Tập tục đời người, and Văn minh vật chất Việt Nam, are essential readings for those interested in understanding Vietnamese culture.
Over nearly five decades of cultural research, Phan Cẩm Thượng has often wondered why contemporary Vietnamese artists rarely draw from their rich traditional culture, choosing instead to look to the West for inspiration.
Vietnam’s cultural heritage, with over 2,000 years of history, is a treasure trove that should not be overlooked. Could it be that this heritage isn't as immediately visible in books as Western culture, but rather a hidden gem that demands deeper exploration to fully appreciate?
Going Far Away To Appreciate One's Root
Born into a family with a strong artistic tradition, Phan Cẩm Thượng showed a natural talent for painting from a young age. He taught himself the traditional Chinese ink style and continued his practice even during his time in the military. At 22, he was accepted into art school, where he studied Western painting techniques.
However, after exploring various aesthetic styles and different art cultures all over the world, Phan Cẩm Thượng found his true passion in traditional Vietnamese art.
This love was likely nurtured during his years of wartime evacuation, when he was deeply impressed by the statues and horizontal lacquered boards in temples and pagodas across Vietnamese villages. He spent nearly 20 years traveling to many villages to investigate and document Vietnamese village culture.
Phan Cẩm Thượng believes that Vietnamese people have a strong arts culture, evident in the architecture of communal houses and pagodas, as well as in the folk songs of Quan họ and Xoan, which are integral to Vietnamese life.
Sometimes, beauty lies within our homeland, in the simple, familiar things around us. Unlike the more overt expressions found in Western culture, this beauty requires time and effort to uncover and appreciate.
This concept is also relevant to contemporary society and young people, who are easily exposed and accessed to foreign cultures through media.
Consequently, contemporary artists may draw inspirations heavily from the foreign, while disregarding their traditional roots. However, if we take time to investigate, research, and build a foundation in national culture, a treasure of almost 2,000 years of unique and rich legacy is there to offer long-term creative material for the future.
Suffering Can Not Be Ignored, In Art Or In Life
Phan Cẩm Thượng also points out a significant issue in contemporary Vietnamese art: the lack of relation to current social realities.
While Thai or Indonesian artists depicts societal events in their works, contemporary Vietnamese art tends to favor the beauty of landscapes and portraits, which can gradually result in a disconnect between arts and realities.
The pursuit of beauty in art may be an approach to run away from expressing suffering, something indeed undeniable. Pain could be a great source of materials for art creation.
This philosophy applies not only to art but also to everyday life. Suffering is an unavoidable part of life; the more we strive to escape it, the less capable we are of overcoming our obstacles. However, when we learn to turn our pain into strength, we gain the resilience and wisdom required for success.
Creativity Is Innate In Everyone
Phan Cẩm Thượng believes that creativity is a crucial component of life. It is not confined to people working in arts or media field; rather, everyone is creative in their unique way, regardless of occupation. The difficulty, however, is our tendency to stretch ourselves too thin, trying to do well at everything, which may compromise our focus and limit our creative potential.
Thus, when deciding to pursue a specific path, it is critical to focus our efforts on studying and cultivating it from the most fundamental parts. When Phan Cẩm Thượng chose to study ethnic culture, he dedicated himself to understanding the village life, a defining element of Vietnamese culture.
Once understanding ethnic culture, you can grasp the customs and practices of the Vietnamese people across different eras. Today, social media communities act as the "villages" of the modern age, continuing this cultural thread.