By living and making art in Vietnam I am able to lift the veils in order to get strong and also to climb into my mountains for being with the Gods. Phan Cam Thuong, a Buddhist scholar and author of several books on Buddhist art and the ancient sculpture of Vietnam, is another spirit immersed in the world of the ancients. He draws upon this wealth of knowledge for the images he portrays, frequently using themes and images from ancient folk tales in Vietnam, feeling that only when the viewer is presented with historical, political and religious contexts can they truly understand the true nature of Vietnamese art. The Vietnamese character and ego of the people has not changed from the past up to the present. With the advent of development in Vietnam today, I see many sides of life, some good and some bad.
Life always has two faces, beautiful and ugly, good and bad, light and dark, yin and yang.
In my works I often paint one person who always has a mask, depicting another face of him. Although widely different in their styles and techniques, these three artists are each intrinsically moved by the same spirit. Possessed by a reverence for the mystical in life, each pays homage to ancient tradition within a sense of quiet awe of the beauty of the sacred. Nguyen Cam and Maritta Nurmi are artists in residence at Pacific Bridge during July. Exhibition July 15th through August 14th.