La Quy Tung and the question “What Is Abstraction?
For lovers of contemporary Vietnamese art, artist La Quy Tung often conjures up visions of bold abstract paintings, vivid color fields, and the recurring motif of “zero” as a visual signal throughout his works. Rather than spelling out a narrative from start to finish, his art often provides only hints, inviting viewers to seek their own answers. In doing so, the question “What is abstraction?” in La Quy Tung’s paintings no longer calls for a single, definitive answer.
About artist La Quy Tung
La Quy Tung was born in 1966 in Ho Chi Minh City. He attended Ho Chi Minh City University of Fine Arts in 1986 and is a member of both the Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Association and the Vietnam Fine Arts Association. La Quy Tung lives and works in Ho Chi Minh City. His work has been featured in Retour du Vietnam 1 in France (2013), the Young Artists Annual exhibition, Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Association from 1992–1999, as well as numerous workshops in Vietnam, France, and Spain. He has also helped organize the Cu Chi Plus Zero workshops in 2012 and 2017.
In addition to painting, La Quy Tung has contributed his talents to set design and art direction for film, with credits including Cyclo, The Vertical Ray of the Sun, The Quiet American, Clash, Bi, Don’t Be Afraid!, and Landmark 23.
Although film and fine art may seem worlds apart, La Quy Tung serves as a bridge - his creative mind is visually driven in both spheres. He once quipped, “Making films and painting are two different jobs, but both require you to pick up a brush.” This simple statement reveals how cinema and painting are not separated into distinct chapters in his life. Whether building cinematic worlds for the screen or crafting painterly spaces on canvas, the artist’s central concerns remain: space, rhythm, tone, and visual emotion.
Portrait of artist La Quy Tung
La Quy Tung and his interpretations of abstraction
Vietnam Fine Arts Magazine describes abstract art as work that employs texture, color, form, and line to build a visual rhythm that stirs the emotions and spirit. Free from strict representational codes, an artist is granted the freedom to conjure anything on canvas. For this reason, some mistakenly believe abstract painting is effortless - just random marks labeled as art. But is the creative process truly so simple?
Several leading names in Vietnamese art, including Nguyen Gia Tri, Tran Hong Duc, and La Quy Tung, have explored abstraction. Each brushstroke carries an artist’s personal reflections and insights, inviting viewers to feel the weight of line, form, and composition. No work emerges entirely at random, even when sparked by the playful interaction of color or the seemingly chaotic arrangement of shapes. Painting, like all art, is ultimately a dialog between creator and connoisseur - a search for meaning, emotion, or experience that transcends style.
To better illustrate this, Green Palm draws on the words of The Thao Van Hoa newspaper on the artist:
With a veteran name like La Qui Tung, he understands better than anyone the power that art can bring to those who love it. As a talented filmmaker who has appeared in evocative films such as “Cyclo” and “Bi, Don’t Be Afraid”, La Qui Tung has mastered the technique of “Show, don’t tell” in movies. He applies this spirit to his paintings, when he does not prepare a full tray for viewers but only places the best ingredients so they can “cook” their unique visual feasts.
Every year, he releases a work revolving around the number 0. Among the thousands and thousands of intertwined zeros fighting endlessly on the canvas, viewers can decide whether the zero they choose is a beginning or not. Ultimately, one can also be curious to guess how the artist chose the number 0. Together with La Qui Tung, viewers can continue writing unfinished stories from the starting point.
Besides stamping lines deep into the viewer’s mind, La Qui Tung also leads viewers on walks with unruly colors. Sometimes, it is a harmonious combination of warm shades; sometimes, it is an orderly chaos of vibrant colors, thereby bringing unique and sensual experiences. Not only does it affect the visual aspect, but the colors in his paintings are also like a sparkling stream spilling out of the canvas, far beyond the eye, gently falling into the hands of those who have not yet awakened to what they see. Art can touch your soul.
Abstract art is always challenging for those new to art. “What does this painting want to convey?” But when we come into contact with many works, we suddenly find the answer. Although no one knows right from wrong, the viewer can find a connection to the artist’s story. That is the greatest success for both artists and audiences when art is a bridge that connects all individuals only through the eyes.
During 40 years of making art, La Qui Tung has continuously discovered new ways to connect with art lovers. For him, there is no need to bother answering the question, “What is abstract?” Because the answer is not just one, but lies in countless unique experiences in the soul of the viewer.
Experience selected abstract works by La Quy Tung
Plus O on Pink & Green
“Plus O on Pink & Green” is an acrylic on canvas, measuring 150 × 115 cm. This work centers on a familiar motif in La Quy Tung’s artistic practice: the letter O (or the number zero). While zero is a true numeric value, when rendered by La Quy Tung it becomes an abstracted visual - a closed circular form that both encloses a void and frames a space. It can represent ‘nothingness,’ but equally a point of origin.
In pairing pink and green, the artist engages color as much as shape. These hues can complement, contrast, or intensify one another. However, La Quy Tung does not simply juxtapose them - he skillfully layers and interweaves color fields to add vitality to the canvas, opening up multiple layers of meaning depending on the viewer’s perspective.
The artwork “Plus O on Pink & Green” explores the recurring zero motif in La Quy Tung’s abstract vocabulary
Sunlight in the Ocean
“Sunlight in the Ocean” is another acrylic on canvas, sized 90 × 75 cm. Despite the evocative title, there is no evident sun, no clear horizon, nor any easily recognizable waves depicted. Instead, shimmering swaths of color and subtle gradations allow the viewer to sense sunlight gently cast upon golden sands, creating a seamless boundary between pure sky blue and the darker, mysterious depths of the sea.
Rather than insisting viewers recognize a specific landscape, “Sunlight on the Sea” leaves open space for personal interpretation. From their own memories and emotions, each viewer may conjure an image of sun and sea in their own way. This is the magic of abstraction - not replicating reality, but evoking the echoes and sensations that linger in memory and imagination.
“Sunlight in the Ocean” invites personal memories of the sea’s beauty from each viewer
White in Multiple Colour
In “White in Multiple Colour,” an acrylic on canvas measuring 150 × 180 cm, La Quy Tung impresses first and foremost through his deliberate handling of color on a grand scale. In most works, white is a supporting background; here, it claims center stage, drawing the eye, with the surrounding vibrant tones playing a supporting, contrasting role.
These color fields defy fixed order; they contract, expand, and overlap in ever-shifting layers. What first appears spontaneous gradually reveals a nuanced calculation of rhythm and balance. Across the sweeping canvas, the colors seem to be liberated from stasis, creating a sensation of constant, playful interaction.
Color itself seems to be in motion in “White in Multiple Colour”
In the end, seeking the answer to “What is abstraction?” through La Quy Tung’s art is less about arriving at one academic definition, and more about learning to slow down and truly experience color, shape, and void. Some images resist being named, and not all artworks tell just one story. For those eager to experience more of artist La Quy Tung’s abstract works, explore his collection at Green Palm Gallery.
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GREEN PALM GALLERY Gallery in Ha Noi: 39 Hang Gai, Ha Noi, Viet Nam
Gallery in HCM City: 49 Mac Thi Buoi, HCM City, Viet Nam
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