Adam's FINE ASIAN ART 28th,29th,30th Preview June 2022

58 would wander the countryside with easels and sketch- pads in hand to draw landscapes and bewildered local sitters. Although Nguy ễ n Mai Th ư doesn’t appear in the graduating lists of the École, we can undoubtedly see the impact the school has had on his practice and that of his generation. Perhaps the most characteristic and the most evocative of all Vietnamese arts is the art of lacquer. Quintessential to Vietnamese craftsmanship and arts throughout history, lacquer knows a revival in the early 1930s thanks to a few teachers and early students of the École des Beaux-Arts d’Indochine. By virtue of tireless experiences on materials and processes, artists were eventually able to express a different range of canons and a whole new visual vocabulary. On the dish attributed to Hoàng Tích Chù (1912-2003) & Nguy ễ n Ti ế n Chung (1914- 1976) and the box signed by Tr ầ n Phúc Duyên (1923-1993) one can easily note a certain Impressionist interest asso- ciated with Chinese and Japanese influences, particularly evident in compositions and effects. They display luxuriant landscapes where nature reigns unchallenged. The inhabitants of those dreamy sceneries surely appear in harmony with their surroundings; hous- es and fences all made from local vegetation. The dish and the box are a testimony of Vietnamese rural symbi- osis and the lacquered wood technique itself illustrates this centuries-old principle. The elegant palette is limited to shades of brown and red combined with compelling bright gold. With his important six-panels screen, Lê Qu ố c L ộ c (1918-1987) shows that this chromatic restraint does not prevent any atmospheric executions nor texture render- ings. Proving his astounding mastery, the artist poetically represents a costal village seen from the top of a hill. The two trees in the foreground frame the scene and create a strong sense of space and depth, reaching as far as the horizon. Despite the numerous individuals busy with their daily activities, Lê Qu ố c L ộ c’s work remains quiet. Too far from the village, all one can hear is the breeze through the branches and the dark river susurrating. A tribute to nature, to community and to lacquer. Monu- mental in its format and carefully studied in its composi- tion, the artist really delivers a masterpiece of Vietnamese modern art. Amongst the few who participates in this new momen- tum known by the medium, appears teacher Alix Aymé (1894-1989), a French artist trained in the art of lacquer by a Japanese master. One can quickly notice the vari- ations lacquer can offer when comparing her majestic work, Young Girl with Flowers, with the ones previously mentioned; the use of the matter and the treatment of colours could not be more different and yet one is no less appealing than the other. The artist has represented a seated young woman, her face showing a very soft smile. The size, exceptionally large for Alix Aymé, does not fail to establish a firm connection between the seater and the observer she decidedly looks at. While the background displays an abstract gold surface somehow reminiscing of Japanese Kano art, a naturalist dimension is also at play. Aymé has represented with precision a bouquet of flowers in white and red lacquer, even including the very rare and very new blue lacquer. The animated charm of the flower motif is echoed by the white ruffle collar of the young woman’s dress, a detail evoking fashions of the late 1930s as much as 16th century portraiture. The shadow on the red stool anchors the seater and gives her a true pres- ence, further emphasising the actuality of this otherwise almost ethereal scene.