“What stories could these walls tell?” I often wonder about Hoang Nam.
Hoang Nam Viet is more than just a name. It represents a talented artist from Ho Chi Minh City. He was born in 1985. Hoang Nam Viet paints his friends with affection. This affection only comes with tender familiarity. His earlier works placed characters in surreal settings. He captures them in a candid way.
The emotive blues and golds are indicative of his shattered summer. They are slowly subsiding in his new works. Its remnants are akin to forgotten memories. Hoang Nam Viet’s updated palette uses brilliant blue. This color conveys the warmth of human connection. It speaks to a lack of cynicism on the artist’s part. It’s an earnest portrayal without performance.
Hoang Nam Viet experiments with found images. He diversifies his portfolio with paintings of friends. He paints colleagues and customers who frequent his café. He finds faded photographs from markets. These markets sell war memorabilia. He finds older issues of international publications too. These photographs picture those whose stories will be lost. Time treats them brutally. Through his brushstrokes, he reimagines their lives. He reimagines their spirits and even their names. It is a hopeful act. He grasps onto who they may have been.
Hoang Nam Viet is a self-taught artist. He honed his practice across various disciplines. He participated in comic book workshops. He worked in advertising. He worked for Saatchi & Saatchi Vietnam. He also worked for Ogilvy & Mather and Hakuhodo.
He is the founder of Hoang Thi café. This café has become a popular gathering spot for creatives. It served as the venue for his first solo exhibition called Cuffed in Freedom. Hoang has participated in several group exhibitions in Ho Chi Minh City. These include Lunar Breccia and Alluvium.
Hoang Nam Viet’s work reflects his bohemian artist’s diary. It captures expressions that shift toward dream-like worlds. It generates a strange air of melancholy. This makes his work peculiar. He evolves with ease in the contemporary Vietnamese art scene. He succeeds in perpetuating the spirit of former circles of Vietnamese artists and intellectuals.
So, when you look at Hoang Nam’s art, remember the artist. Remember his friends. Remember his dedication to capturing the human spirit.