St. Joseph's Cathedral in the heart of Hanoi has been decorated for Emmanuel 2024. Streets everywhere are twinkling to welcome the festive season. In line with this atmosphere, the artist group G39 presented the exhibition Gratitude with 32 works inspired by Christmas.

The exhibition features 32 works by 11 artists on the theme of the Christmas season. Photo: Ngo Minh/The Hanoi Times

The exhibition brings together 11 artists including Le Thiet Cuong, Binh Nhi, Nguyen Hong Phuong, Nguyen Quoc Thang, Nguyen Minh, Nguyen Thanh Quang, Pham Tran Quan, Lam Duc Manh, Doan Hoang Lam, Chu Hong Tien, and Do Dung.

As each artist has a style, the exhibition brings different perspectives on many materials such as oil paint; acrylic on rice paper; acrylic on canvas; synthetic; colored powder; canvas covered with do (poohnah) paper; and gouache on old newspaper.

They share the same view of the festival season: "Religion has been associated with festivals, customs and traditions. The boat of art has carried the teachings of the Bible far and wide among the masses."

Sitting in his Gallery 39 on Ly Quoc Su Street, artist Le Thiet Cuong, leader of G39, noticed that St. Joseph's Cathedral, Ly Trieu Quoc Su Pagoda and Phu Ung Temple are all within the same area, only a few meters apart, which is the embodiment of different religions coming together in harmony.

A painting by Le Thiet Cuong, curator of the exhibition.

About six months before Christmas, he invited artists in the G39 group to reflect on the themes of Christmas, peace, and gratitude for an exhibition he curated.

"If the Roman numeral clock on the forehead of St. Joseph's Cathedral were an eye, in a hundred years it would remember how many people stood in front of the cathedral to pray, recite or just admire its beauty. Not to mention a little cold, a little love, the soft melody of Ave Maria, the sound of prayers and the midnight bells... all these are inspirations for art," said artist Le Thiet Cuong.

He believes that God creates creation and artists create art, all the ideas and artistic inspirations at the exhibition will create a dream, giving each person the strength to do something good for each other, to think of each other more".

Nguyen Minh's painting "Little Stories".

Nguyen Minh, who contributed three artworks to the exhibition, said that Christmas is no longer a holiday for Christians only, but has become a cultural feature of the Vietnamese people, a chance for everyone to sit together and pray for good things.

Minh is a non-believer, yet he admits to having personal feelings when he stands in front of time-honored churches and contemplates spiritual values for people today.

The exhibition will last until December 25 at Son Art & Culture Space, 20C Phan Dinh Phung Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi.

The work "Place of Peace" by Nguyen Hong Phuong.