Present Encounters : Papers from the conference of the Second Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, 1996

Dang Thi Khue Vietnamese Women Painters - Their Role , Characteristics andArtistic Creative Potential If the h istory of art is conceived as that of world visions, then this Asia-Pacific Triennial can be considered as a gathering of such world visions through the presence of individuals of our human community. The Asia-Pacific Triennial proves that humanki nd's capabilities are not exclusively concentrated in long-established cultural centers, but that outside of these centres are time-honoured art traditions no less remarkable and distinct. It is through these cultures that humankind has manifested the powerful vitality and spontaneity of soul as well as an unexpected sensitivity towards differing outlooks. Cultural intercommunication shou ld be looked for i n marg i nalised societies. It is here that diverse traditions of d ifferent cu ltu res commonly complement the larger formulae through that which is at once fami l iar, new, and personal. Th is also proves that inbo rn creative capacity and intellect are not the prerogative of the male half of humankind , but also lie deep in the artistic personality of women artists. I would now like to tal k about the role of women artists i n Vietnamese visual arts and characteristics of women artists and their creative potential. The Role of Women Artists in Vietnamese Visual Arts In Vietnam, women have taken part in creative activities since the earliest foundation of the nation. This is evidenced by archaeological findings, h istorical books, and legends. The cult of goddesses, of women founders of trade villages, still evident today, prove that women played an important role as both material and cultural preservers of Vietnam. Over t he centuries Vietnamese women have maintai ned a consistently unique psychology, cha racter and gestures. After a long period of anonymity which characterises the h istory of Vietnamese art, only a few women's names remain engraved on statues and ancient ceramics. However, there is a strong belief that women have always played an important part in the development of Vietnamese art. Only two years after the French established the Ecole Superieure Beaux­ Arts d'lndochine (now known as the Hanoi University) in 1 925, Le Thi Luu was enrol led as the first female student. In 1 939, Nguyen Thi Kim was enrolled to study sculpture . These were the fi rst women to undertake the new-style education in European scientific aesthetics. They belonged to those ind ividuals who experienced the colonial intellectual excitement of the enlightenment of industrialised civilisations, and were keen on both petty-bou rgeois romanticism and also on the historical past of Vietnam. Under the i nfl uence of realism and impressionism , they applied classical Western principles on an Eastern silk surface , creating anatom ically correct forms on the surface of conventional space. They laid the fou ndation for a new art. After 1 945, complex h istorical circumstances led to a split: some artists went abroad to make a living, while others joi ned the revol ution and resistance . A second generation of women artists were trai ned in t he anti-French resistance . Many became military artists with a h ig h sense o f immed iate social mission. Their activities included various duties, mainly involving the graphic arts, woodcuts and l ithographs, presenting sketches of daily life and themes of resistance . After 1 954, with t he conditions o f peace in t he northern half o f t he country, art institutions gradually took shape along with different aspects of the arts. A number of women artists became lecturers at art schools, while others were sent abroad to art schools in socialist countries for further studies. Such contact with the cultu res of these socialist countries inevitably infl uenced methods of creation and content of work: they depicted new subject matter, and were more conscious of social issues and civic obligations. Formalist techn iques were realistic and impression istic in style, and were deeply i mbued with lyricism and humanism. The 70s and 80s saw the development of a larger artist population than ever before. Education was more consistent as it took place u nder peaceful conditions. Most women graduated , becoming professionals in their early years. They were assigned jobs i n various areas, d ifferent specialisations, in disparate regions of the cou ntry . They made positive contributions to significant changes in Vietnamese art. A good number of them were 1 1 0