In collaboration with A2Z, one of the foremost French galleries representing Asian artists, Asia Society France is pleased to extend the first vernissage of Vietnamese artists - Danhôo and Trần Trọng Vũ. Danhôo invites us to become fully aware of the ecological crisis we are facing and the urgency of reacting to it; Trần Trọng Vũ's figurative works oscillate between traditional Vietnamese motifs and the expression of words revealing his poignant sensitivity. Titled “Les couleurs des Maux (Mots),” the two artists hope to align audiences with a desire for change to make the world a better place. For those of you who missed the vernissage, make sure to join us on September 8th! 

Trần Trọng Vũ

Né en 1964 à Hanoï, Vietnam/ Born in 1964 in Hanoï, Vietnam

Vit et travaille à paris, France/ Lives and works in Paris, France

Trần Trọng Vũ est diplomé de l’Ecole des Beaux-Arts de Hanoi, il y a enseigné de 1987 à 1989. Il a reçu en 1989 une bourse d’une organisation non-gouvernementale française pour venir travailler à l’École Nationale des Beaux-Arts à Paris. Depuis, il vit et travaille entre la France et le Viêt Nam. 

Son oeuvre reflète ses observations de la société et les transformations historiques qu’il mêle à son histoire personnelle et familiale. De par un style satirique qui lui est propre, il veut instiller dans les yeux du spectateur le doute en renversant les conceptions habituelles et tromper son regard en jouant sur la matière et les proportions. 

Trần Trọng Vũ was graduated from Vietnam University of Fine Art and taught here from 1987 to 1989. He received a scholarship from the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Paris (1989). Since then, he has lived and worked between France and Vietnam.

His work often presents social observations and historical upheavals, interwoven with his personal and family stories. With very typical satirical styles, he wants viewers to be curious and skeptical about what they see by overturning common visual concepts and deceiving the eye with materials and sizes.

Danhôo

Né en 1966 à Ho Chi Minh Ville, Vietnam/ Born in 1966 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Vit et travaille à paris, France/ Lives and works in Paris, France

En 1983, Danhôo a quitté Saigon, sa ville natale au Vietnam, pour s›installer en France, à Paris. Avant de devenir lui-même un artiste, Danhôo a commencé à travailler pour une célèbre maison de fournitures pour artistes. En livrant du matériel aux artistes, il saisit l›occasion d›apprendre et a commencé à les aider sur le plan créatif, ce qui a marqué le début de sa propre carrière artistique. Très vite, il se rapproche de certains des principaux artistes parisiens de l›époque : Olivier Debré, Zao Wou-Ki, Paul Rebeyrolles, Vladimir Veličkovič et Ernest Pignon-Ernest. Il assistera ensuite Erró, Robert Combas ainsi que Lee Ufan avant de se consacrer à sa propre carrière artistique. 

Bien que né au Vietnam, Danhôo a des ancêtres chinois, et il imprègne son travail de la pratique ancienne de la calligraphie. Inspiré par ailleurs par le grand expressionniste abstrait américain Jackson Pollock ainsi que par la libre circulation du Qi (l›énergie vitale), Danhôo utilise la technique du dripping, combinée à d›autres influences européennes. Matière, signes et symboles s›entrelacent, créant de vastes champs de couleurs et d›énergie. 

In 1983 Danhôo left his birthplace Saigon in Vietnam and moved to France, settling in Paris. Before becoming an artist himself, Danhôo began working for a well-known artists’ supply house. While delivering materials to artists, he seized the opportunity to learn and began to assist them creatively, hence shaping the beginning of his own artistic career. Soon, he became closely acquainted with some of the major leading Parisian artists of the era: Olivier Debré, Zao Wou-Ki, Paul Rebeyrolles, Vladimir Veličkovič, and Ernest Pignon-Ernest. He would later assist Erró, Robert Combas as well as Lee Ufan before devoting himself to his own artistic career.

Although born in Vietnam, Danhôo has Chinese ancestry, and he infuses his work with the ancient practice of calligraphy. Inspired moreover by the great American abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock as well as the free flow of Qi (the vital energy), Danhôo uses the Dripping technique, combined with other European influences. Matter, signs and symbols interlace, creating vast fields of colours and energy.