Memories of the alley 1998-99
Oil on canvas
Diptych: 135 x 195cm (each)
Collection: The artist

Nguyen Trung Tin has developed an artistic style that combines abstraction with photorealism. His themes are usually inspired by everyday life and make reference to Vietnamese history and contemporary society. The diptych Memories of the alley recalls the traditional games once played by Vietnamese children in the narrow streets of the city. The traditional toys of To he dolls and lion’s heads, represented in the diptych, are used as symbols for a culture that could be lost. The artist states: ‘The present young generation who will be the inheritors of our country in the future have to face the fact that this traditional game is disappearing and will soon only be known through our memory.’

Artist's statement:

With simple style and simple theme, my works aim to express my observation and my thinking about the normal every day life. Honest nature is most important for me, when all technologie discoveries and liking were discovered in the world. Artist should go back with the so-called their private property.

My works have a general theme which expressed what happened in the past but your exhibition's theme has future theme. I think they can be in accord.

In the set of paintings (It includes 2 paintings)

- The first one's title is Street's Memorial which expressed old artists selling dolls (made by wheat flour), Vietnamese name "To he". This is a former game which has disappeared nowadays. The present young generation who will be the owner of country in future have to face with the past game that has being gone to the past and became memorial.

- The second one has the same title with the first one but it has move composition (the first one has still composition). It represented people who sold lion's head (it is a game in mid Autumn night). With the quite movement and the children was turning round to look, the painting created a question about future's existence.

In the third painting, its title is childs game it expressed children's honest looking about beauty in poor hamlet. They are simple and chaste and every day they have to be faced with worries about their lives.