Masterpieces of Vietnam Fine Arts 2023 are on display at the Hanoi Museum, numbering 300, of which 27 most outstanding works were awarded prizes. The first prizes went to Le Nguyen Chinh from Ho Chi Minh City for the work entitled Rose, and Vu Quang Sang from Hanoi for his Phong Ba Tree. In addition, six artists won second prizes, ten third prizes, and nine consolation prizes.

Organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Department of Art, Photography and Exhibition, the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, and the Vietnam Fine Arts Association, the event showcased artworks created by Vietnamese painters and sculptors over the past three years.

A lacquer by Le Nguyen Chinh wins first prize.

It is intended to be a watershed moment for the country's fine art sector, celebrating creative accomplishments and inspiring painters and sculptors to create a new works with rich content and art to promote Vietnam's fine art market and expand the cultural business.

In more than four months of searching for the most representative pieces for 2020-2023, the organizing committee received 3,825 works from 1,513 authors from 63 provinces and cities. Among them, the Art Council selected 292 works, including 74 sculptures, 218 works of painting, printmaking and other forms, for exhibition.

Sculpture Phong Ba (Heliotropium foertherianum) Tree by Hanoi artist Vu Quang Sang. Photo: Le Trung/The Hanoi Times

Ta Quang Dong, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, emphasized that the 2023 Vietnam Fine Arts Competition and Exhibition aims to take stock of artistic creations from 2020 to 2023 and showcase the most outstanding works of Vietnamese artists.

According to him, the 2023 Vietnam Fine Arts Competition and Exhibition faithfully depicts the current Vietnamese artistic landscape, including artists' thoughts, concerns, and reflections on contemporary life; changes in artistic concepts; and continuity between generations of artists.

The exhibition showcases excellent  works of art created since 2020. Photo: Le Trung/The Hanoi Times

"The works selected for the exhibition have strong artistic and ideological significance and carry clear messages. There is a variety of forms of expression, materials and techniques with new experimental research, rich creative thinking and diverse style visual language," Dong said.

The artwork is reminiscent of the social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Le Trung/The Hanoi Times

“A generation of young artists has been growing up with new creative thinking, efforts to explore and experiment with materials, combining tradition and modernity, national identity and world trends. We can hope for the further development of Vietnamese fine arts with many high-quality works in the coming years," he said.

Vietnam Fine Arts Exhibition 2023 will run until December 20. The works are displayed online at website http://ape.gov.vn.

Visitors at the exhibition. Photo: Le Trung/The Hanoi Times