Coming to painting was like a chance encounter, yet that relationship with Colonel Truong Van Thuan has been strong for nearly 30 years now. His wife - circus artist Anh Tuyet - often teases: "Sometimes I want to turn into a painting for him to look at all days."
Experiencing many positions, from Chief of Staff, Captain of the Criminal Investigation Team of the Police Investigation Department (PC16) to Deputy Chief of District 7 Police, Deputy Chief of Police of Binh Chanh District, Deputy Chief of Police Office Ho Chi Minh City, then worked at the Office of the Ministry of Public Security until his retirement. Colonel Truong Van Thuan always made his teammates admire him for his dedication and devotion to his work, and achieved many excellent achievements. But after busy working time, he returned to his paintings to enjoy moments of peaceful relaxation.
To friends and colleagues, Colonel Truong Van Thuan is an art expert. If someone wants to learn more on drawing art, just ask "Thuan for advice". A friend bought a painting from an artist but didn't know if it was real or fake. Hearing about the painting, no matter how busy he was, Truong Van Thuan tried to arrange to advise him. When he arrived, he knew that this was a precious painting by a famous artist, but because his friend did not know how to preserve it, the painting was severely damaged, and he regretted it. Out of respect for his friendship, he did not hesitate to buy the painting to repair it.
Since childhood, little Thuan has loved painting. Thuan is responsible for all activities at school and class related to decoration and drawing such as making wall newspapers, drawing class diagrams, drawing maps for Geography, drawing pictures for biology.... Because of loving beauty, he likes to look at and buy paintings, especially Dong Ho folk paintings to decorate the house during Tet festival (new lunar year). When studying at Security College, Thuan had a very powerful camera. He loves taking pictures of landscapes and charming mountains and rivers. When he was young, he was only interested in art, but he did not think that one day his life would be related to it.
In 1991, while helping, by chance, a family of artists and collectors, to solve some problems, Truong Van Thuan was fascinated by art paintings. He bought a few pictures to hang in his house. After looking at it for a long time, he felt interested and curious about the person who painted the picture, about the question of what is a beautiful painting, what style of painting does this painting belong to... That curiosity grew, leading him to engage in art and become a deep love without knowing it.
When he first started collecting paintings, he also encountered many obstacles. Many experienced collectors have been in trouble when buying fake or counterfeit paintings. Truong Van Thuan is no exception. Because he did not have much professional knowledge and had no experience or knowledge in appraising real or fake paintings, many times he bought so expensive or brought back fake or counterfeit goods. In particular, he was also confused when collecting paintings by famous but deceased artists. But with his love for art, if he was unlucky to buy a fake painting, he would destroy it all himself.
The deeper he fell in love with the artist, the more he was startled to realize that if his knowledge of painting remained stagnant like this, it would be dangerous and would harm him and everyone. So he "paired up" to get to know the artists. He said that, this is the most practical way to learn. Through his meetings with artists to collect paintings, he discovered something very important: meeting artists and sculptors is not only to exchange and learn about their own works, but also an opportunity to learn and to gain more knowledge to help him to enjoy the beauty of a work, as well as to realize the truth or falsity of that work
Truong Van Thuan was truly a close friend of many painters and sculptors of many generations, all over the country, especially in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City such as: Huynh Van Thuan, Tran Luu Hau, Mai Long, Dang Hoai Nam, Bui Quang Ngoc, Lam Kim, Truong Van Y, Van Tho, Tran Khanh Chuong, Nguyen Trinh Thai, Nguyen Lam, Ho Huu Thu, Hoang Vuong, Ta Quang Bao, Tran Tuy, Le Lien, Xuan Viet , Xuan Thao, Luong Xuan Doan, Pham Minh Hai, Truong Lo, Nghiem Xuan Hung, Nguyen Tan Cuong, Nguyen Xuan Tiep, Do Phan, Hoang Ha Tung, Xuan Chieu, Trinh Minh Son, Hua Thanh Binh, Do Hoang Tuong, … Up to now, his house on Nguyen Thien Thuat Street, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City has become a familiar meeting and exchange place for artist friends.
“I collect paintings that I like.” Truong Van Thuan's way of playing paintings is so simple. He did not choose paintings according to any separate school, theme or era. But because of good knowledge on art so the paintings he likes are all excellent selections. At the exhibition "A Love of Painting" that took place in June 2017 to celebrate his 60th birthday, Truong Van Thuan displayed many beautiful works, including works by artists, whose works is still quite unfamiliar to art lovers. That's his advantage. He looks for beautiful paintings, not by the name of the author. All styles, from abstraction, realism, impressionism to cubism, romance... of artists from the "Indochina" period (i.e. Indochina School of Fine Arts), "Gia Dinh" (Gia Dinh School of Fine Arts ) or contemporary artists are all respected by him.
Every painting he collects, he carefully takes photos and makes a certificate of originality for the artist, sculptor or their relatives to sign. This method proves the origin of the painting. He also manages the works himself as a museum employee, meticulously collecting and adding author and work information. Truong Van Thuan dedicated two floors to store and displays his collection. There is a space here for him to repair damaged paintings.
Painter Dang Kim Long confided: "Artists love Mr. Thuan because he is very demanding and constantly learning. His love for art is boundless and without calculation. To us, he is as sincere as friends, cherishes artistic labor, and sees the creative value of fellow artists. Therefore, we consider Mr. Thuan as a source of support and promotion, encouraging us to feel secure in composing."
In 2011, Truong Van Thuan organized a painting exhibition titled "Autumn Gathering" for a group of artists of many ages (three of the artists participating in the exhibition were no longer alive). He even actively sought out promising young artists to buy paintings in the hope of creating motivation for their talent to shine in the future. For him, artists are his guides on the path to completing his painting collection.
What's special about the exhibition "A Love of Painting" is that about half of the displayed works are statues and portraits of himself and his family members by artists and sculptors. . Ms. Ma Thanh Cao, former Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts, said that if looked at in this aspect alone, this is a unique and rare collection in Vietnam. Unlike circus artist Anh Tuyet, who has sharp, charming features that make him easy to use with his brush, Truong Van Thuan's portrait is difficult to draw. Yet from the conversations and meetings, with the love of friendship, the artists painted him and his family. The number of these works is up to hundreds of paintings.
Colonel Truong Van Thuan confided that the most important thing in a collector is passion that never runs out. The more he learned, the more fascinated he became by color. His love for paintings all days and nights made even his wife jealous. But she also works in art, so she understands her husband's passion. Collecting paintings is not simply an elegant hobby. It is difficult and complicated, requiring many factors from the collector. Loving paintings and having financial are not enough; collectors also have to be meticulous, persistent and knowledgeable, knowing how to filter to find gems amidst buried sand.
According to vnca.cand.com.vn
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