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Artist Mai Nhon with his works |
Dong Nai Province boasts a long tradition of making ceramics, with Bien Hoa Vocational School being the first ceramics training institution in Indochina, and many famous artists. In particular, artist Mai Nhon, who was born in 1960, in Tan Phong Ward, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province, has contributed to promoting Vietnamese ceramics to the world as many of his Mosaic ceramic paintings have been chosen by the Government as gifts to leaders of countries and territories in the APEC economy.
Upgrading Vietnamese ceramics
According to Mr. Mai Nhon, Mosaic ceramic paintings have long been known and used globally to decorate buildings such as churches, palaces, and tombs, but in Vietnam, very few artists make ceramic paintings for interior use. Mosaic paintings are incorporated in the architecture of the ancient capital of Hue, while the ceramic road in Hanoi is also a famous work of applying Mosaic techniques. Besides, Bien Hoa has a deeply-rooted and developed ceramics industry; therefore, artist Mai Nhon wants to infuse ceramics into his work in the most natural way, not only for creativity’s sake but also to preserve and promote Bien Hoa - Dong Nai culture.
The APEC Vietnam Summit 2017 marked a great milestone in bringing Vietnamese ceramic paintings to international friends when Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chose Mosaic ceramic paintings made by Mr. Mai Nhon and a group of Dong Nai artisans as gifts to leaders of 21 countries and territories in the APEC economy. The works, which portray leaders of countries participating in APEC and many other famous leaders, are the perfect combination of talent, intelligence, and ingenuity of Vietnamese people, and have attracted public attention in many countries around the world.
According to artist Mai Nhon, it is the process of firing these clay-based ceramic materials at high temperatures and kneading them in the most cherished way that has given birth to such glorious works. In other words, by giving Dong Nai ceramic paintings to leaders of other countries, the Vietnamese Government also expressed the sincerity of Vietnamese people to international friends.
A life-long pursuit
Bien Hoa Province has been home to three generations of artist Mai Nhon's family. Inheriting the artistic spirit from his father, artist Mai Nhu, Mr. Mai Nhon has been passionate about drawing since childhood. In 1978, when he finished high school, Mai Nhon chose to take the exam to the Department of Mathematics, University of Ho Chi Minh City (now Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City – University of Science). In 1982, he returned to Bien Hoa to work at the Dong Nai Import-Export Union after graduation. Working in the planning department, he often went to ceramic kilns in Bien Hoa City to inspect the goods as well as the process of ceramics coating. He was fascinated by ceramics colored in oil paint and came to the idea of mixing colors through fire. At this time, he also began to kindle the idea of infusing ceramics into paintings.
In 2005, when working as Deputy Director of the Department of Commerce of Dong Nai Province, artist Mai Nhon together with some biochemical engineers and artisans specializing in ceramics established a team to make ceramic paintings. At first, the team did not know where to start and how to produce, because at that time the Bat Trang ceramic villages, as well as other ceramic villages in the Central and Southern regions did not make Mosaic ceramic paintings. As a result, they had to do a lot of reading and researching regarding ceramic paintings.
Mai Nhon also learned through ceramic paintings in developed countries during his business trips to call for the promotion of foreign investment. One of the challenges was that he only saw the finished product while learning nothing about the masterful production process required. What was even more difficult was the process of mixing glaze as it required a great amount of materials and great diversity. As no ceramics manufacturers could provide the required enamel color, Mai Nhon devoted a great amount of time just to mixing the glaze, which took more than 10 years to produce 3,000 different colors required for Mosaic ceramic paintings.
Artist Mai Nhon considers drawing an indispensable part of his life and making ceramic paintings a life-long passion. He has produced hundreds of Mosaic ceramic paintings, whose creativity is highly appreciated by domestic and international artists, and sent them to many art exhibitions. People who purchase such paintings are mainly from Hanoi as well as other provinces and cities to decorate living rooms. Many still-life paintings featuring African forests, or religions are ordered by customers from the US, India, South Africa, and some churches in Europe at high prices. Some of the pictures take 4-5 days to complete, while others require a whole year’s commitment.
After the APEC Vietnam Conference 2017, Mosaic ceramic paintings by artist Mai Nhon increased in popularity. Some young people in the North and Ho Chi Minh City learned how to make and launched an institution to teach children to make Mosaic ceramic paintings. Meanwhile, artist Mai Nhon is going to establish a Mosaic painting institution in Bien Hoa City for disabled people, not only to create employment opportunities for these people but also to promote the Dong Nai Mosaic ceramic paintings.
