Materials and arts of expression in traditional Vietnamese lacquer

Abstract

The material of traditional lacquer is Son Ta (“Ta”: paint lacquer). Son Ta material, with its preeminent features in terms of reason, is also a deep and warm "feeling". The art of expressing the beauty of the material in the work is also a firm and profound grasp of the specific characteristics and techniques of the material, making the material an irreplaceable element of the work. On the contrary, with the structure of the work through his visual language, the artist must affirm that only that material, only, conveys the voice of the image and techniques expressed in the work. In other words, the material is the content, and the art of expression is the form of the work. The content determines the form and orientation of the chosen form and conveys the language of expression. And vice versa, the form reflects the content, revealing and clarifying the content in the best and most effective way. This is a dialectical and interactive relationship. It is this relationship that makes up the whole of the work in traditional Vietnamese lacquer.