Điềm Phùng Thị
Điềm Phùng Thị (August 18, 1920 – January 28, 2002) was a Vietnamese modernist sculptor, considered "one of the masters of Vietnamese modern art."[1]
After training as a dental surgeon and moving to France, Điềm developed an interest in sculpture in midlife and gained recognition in both Europe and Vietnam for her work.
Early life and education[edit]
Điềm Phùng Thị was born Phùng Thị Cúc in 1920 in Huế.[1][2][3] As a child, she traveled throughout Vietnam with her father, a government bureaucrat, which was her first exposure to her country's native sculptural traditions.[3]
She studied dentistry at Hanoi Medical University, becoming one of the first women to graduate from the university in 1946.[1][3] She subsequently spent two years fighting against the French in the First Indochina War.[1] However, in 1948 she suffered from paralysis and was brought to France for treatment.[1][4] After recovering, she remained in the country and obtained a doctorate in dental surgery in 1954.[1][5] As part of her graduate studies, she researched the tradition of chewing betel leaves in Vietnam.[1]
Sculpture[edit]
Điềm did not begin sculpting until she was nearly 40 years old, in 1959.[1][6] After abandoning her dentistry career and attending art school in Paris, she studied under the sculptor Antoniucci Volti from 1961 to 1963.[1][2][3][6] In the first decade of her artistic practice, Điềm settled into an abstract style, abandoning figurative sculpture.[3] Her signature style focused on what she called "seven modules," a set of seven shapes that could form seemingly infinite combinations.[1][3][7] She experimented with a wide variety of materials, including terracotta, stone, metal, wood, lacquer, polyester, and even scraps of B-52 bombs.[2][3][5] She drew inspiration from her memories of Vietnam and her experiences as a woman.[7][8] Điềm has been described as "one of the masters of Vietnamese modern art"[1] and "Vietnam’s answer to Louise Bourgeois."[9]
Her work was exhibited widely across Europe, beginning with a 1966 exhibition at Paris' Bernheim-Jeune gallery.[1][2] She also held exhibitions in Vietnam, with her first one in 1978 considered one of the country's first exhibitions of abstract art.[1][2][4] Additionally, she produced jewelry, as well as art for installation, including at the Vietnamese Embassy in France and the library of Bayeux.[2][4]
Death and legacy[edit]
In 1992, Điềm returned to Vietnam, settling in her hometown of Huế.[1][3][6] She died there in 2002, at age 81.[1][2][3][6] Much of her work was donated to the city of Huế, where it is displayed at the Điềm Phùng Thị Art Museum.[1][3]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Điềm Phùng Thị". The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Diem Phung Thi". Benezit dictionary of Asian artists (1 [edition] ed.). Oxford. 2012. ISBN 978-0-19-992301-4. OCLC 796933183.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b c d e f g h i j Phan, Thao Nguyen (2022-01-18). "Thao Nguyen Phan on Diem Phung Thi: The Metamorphosis of Signs". Cobo. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
- ^ a b c Zesiger, Carey (1995-06-03). "An Artist Takes Vietnam to the West and Back Again". International Herald Tribune.
- ^ a b Nelson, Roger (2019-08-31). Modern Art of Southeast Asia: Introductions from A to Z. National Gallery Singapore. ISBN 978-981-11-4725-8.
- ^ a b c d "DIEM PHUNG THI, sculpteur d'origine vietnamienne". Le Monde (in French). 2002-02-12.
- ^ a b "Art Places – Diem Phung Thi Art Exhibition House, Vietnam". ARTESSERE. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
- ^ Gansel, Mireille (2017-11-20). Translation as Transhumance. Feminist Press at CUNY. ISBN 978-1-936932-08-5.
- ^ Egan, Maura (2009-09-25). "Essentials Hue, Vietnam". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-31.