Intense and fierce, suffocated and breathless, are the depictions of women in the works of artist Ngo Hai Yen. Her constitution is gentle and weak, her life is less turbulent, but for her, “every time I put down my brush, it returns to the image of constrained, suffering women.”
Intense in the shimmering hue of lacquer
Ngo Hai Yen is as feminine as any other woman, always appearing elegant and dressed in elegant clothes. But the woman in the painting rarely smiles, always suffering from her own feelings that are difficult to share with anyone. The composition of Ngo Hai Yen’s paintings is very tight. She likes strong shapes, the woman’s body seems to melt under a very strong force. The bright images in her paintings are only tiny, such as flower earrings, but the colors are intense, the bright red of the lipstick contrasting with the deep black of the paint material.
I don’t mean to exaggerate, but Ngo Hai Yen’s paintings leave a very strong visual impression. She does not follow the usual way of depicting women, soft and feminine with ao dai (Vietnam’s national dress) and flowers. The women in her paintings are fierce, dare to live and love, always have the desire to be liberated and free. Ngo Hai Yen uses lacquer as a material for unique creations. The sparkling, regal colors of the golden and silver support Ngo Hai Yen’s fierce, unique creations. Even in paintings that are apricot yellow and gentle like a woman’s nature, the fierce element is not diminished. Bodies in pain, writhing because of love or uncertain life, blend in the shape, in the rich, noble colors of lacquer.
Hai Yen is a follower of Buddhism. She has read many books about Buddhism, and realized many things, among which she was imbued with the philosophy “Life is a sea of suffering”. And Ngo Hai Yen also knows that life will be more cruel if people do not know how to live more gently, with less anger and hatred. But when painting, she still cannot stop pursuing the narrative quality in her paintings. The woman in her painting seems unable to find happiness when she is tied to herself, tied to her own narratives and monologues. Wandering thoughts and cool sadness create a distinct line of women’s paintings by Ngo Hai Yen.
Đợi (Waiting)
Bold
“Every time I sit in front of the painting and put my pen to paint, the images of sad, suffering women haunt me.” Slowly moving from layer to layer of paint, images of writhing bodies gradually appeared in surprise to herself. A painting is a person, Ngo Hai Yen admits that she has the personality of a man. When her husband and children go to sleep, she is still busy composing. Ngo Hai Yen confided that she was fortunate to receive great support from her husband and family. She is free to do the work she loves and pursue her passion since she was young. But women who make art are often multi-faceted. There are things that cannot be shared with anyone, which she can only express in her work.
Previously, Ngo Hai Yen used to teach at Hanoi National University of Education. If she had remained content to be a lecturer who attended class regularly every day, the name Ngo Hai Yen would not have been known to art lovers. She confided, “Everyone has one life to live, so live it with passion.” Bearing this thought, she boldly became a freelance female artist. Living with passion and having a lot of time to take care of her husband and children, Ngo Hai Yen works from early morning to night but she feels happy with her current life.
Hai Yen’s paintings are difficult to read but are sought after by collectors because of their unique shapes. Fulfillment from family life and finding love in painting, Ngo Hai Yen revealed that in the coming time, her paintings will be clearer and gentler, not moody or miserable like before. However, these thoughts were just fleeting, as she did not know if she could ever stop pursuing her instinctive and feminine narratives when drawing.
Author: Phạm Thu Hương | An Ninh Thủ Đô News