Some features of Hai Duong propaganda paintings

The line of paintings carries the responsibility of conveying information.

Propaganda paintings are considered to have more meaning than a normal work of art, as they are mainly responsible for conveying information and encouragement. It is currently unclear exactly when propaganda paintings appeared in Hai Duong, and which artist painted them. However, according to some summary articles, propaganda paintings in Vietnam appeared in the context of the nation's resistance war in the early 20th century. Currently, the Hai Duong Provincial Museum is preserving a number of propaganda paintings, but they are only 19 and 20 years old, promoting the 22nd SEA Games in which Hai Duong hosted the table tennis event and the painting "April 25, 2004, the election day for People's Council delegates at all levels for the 2004-2009 term". According to Mr. Truong The Dung, who worked for many years at the Provincial Exhibition House, propaganda paintings in Hai Hung (before the province was separated) appeared around the early 70s of the last century. At that time, the artists did a very good job of creating sample paintings and slogans and sending them to localities in the province to copy on village and commune bulletin boards. The content at that time mainly encouraged the war against the American imperialists, aroused the patriotism of the people, increased production to serve the war, encouraged young people to go to war... The propaganda paintings in Hai Hung were very famous at that time, known as "The land of propaganda paintings of the North".

At the launch and organization of the first propaganda painting exhibition held at the Exhibition House (Department of Culture - Information of Hai Hung province) about 30 years ago, the public had the opportunity to access a series of works by authors in the province. Notable examples include artists: Pham Tri Tue, Nguyen Duy Truc, Nguyen Trong Nguyen, Ho Duy Phuong, Le Huong Quy... These are the senior artists who painted propaganda paintings, opening a movement of creating propaganda paintings for later generations of Hai Duong artists.

Among the leading artists of propaganda paintings in Hai Hung in the past and Hai Duong today, we must mention the late artist Pham Tri Tue. He was born in 1942 in Vu La village, Nam Dong commune (Nam Sach), now Nam Dong ward (Hai Duong city). In his career, he spent most of his time creating propaganda paintings during the anti-American period and later periods. These were "The enemy destroys us, let's go" in 1968, "Exercising the right to be the master" in 1976, "Exploiting many sources of fertilizer to increase rice productivity" in 1978, "Election of the 10th National Assembly" in 1997...

After that generation, some Hai Duong artists became known to the public through propaganda paintings. A typical example is artist Ha Huy Chuong - whose works have won many domestic awards. At present, he is one of the few artists in Hai Duong who are still attached to this genre of painting.

Around the end of the 80s of the last century, propaganda paintings were strongly developed to encourage the entire Party, the entire people, and the entire nation to strive to compete in building and developing the country. At that time, conditions were still limited, and Hai Duong's propaganda artists had many difficulties. However, every time they prepared for major events of the country and the province such as the National Party Congress, the Provincial Party Congress, the election of National Assembly deputies, People's Council deputies, etc., a series of quality works were born. "The image of artists lying on large panels to paint propaganda paintings spoke to the enthusiasm and passion of the artists at that time," said Mr. Truong The Dung.

Lack of next generation

Although propaganda and encouragement paintings have many differences, propaganda paintings are closely associated with art paintings. Propaganda painters are often good at creating art paintings.

In Vietnam, the artists who created early propaganda paintings were all masters of art painting, such as Nguyen Do Cung, Luong Xuan Nhi, To Ngoc Van, Nguyen Sang, Mai Van Hien...

In the past, creating a propaganda painting was a feat for artists. Apart from ideas and sketches, all other steps had to be done manually. To have a large propaganda painting of several dozen square meters, artists had to assemble small pieces. Although the colors of propaganda paintings were mainly the main colors, they were not as rich as they are now. The propaganda lines in the paintings had to be drawn by hand by artists...

Nowadays, composing propaganda paintings is much easier because many stages are supported by machines. According to Mr. Truong The Dung, in the past, before a big event like the Party Congress, artists had to draw a sample propaganda painting and send it to the districts for copying, but now a painting can be printed in large quantities. However, fewer and fewer artists are participating in composing propaganda paintings. The propaganda painters in Hai Duong are all old, the next generation can be counted on the fingers. On the other hand, propaganda paintings are very selective of viewers, there are not many formal training schools and students are not enthusiastic about this type of painting. Previously, at Hanoi University of Culture, students majoring in information and propaganda in the Faculty of Mass Culture were taught to compose propaganda paintings, but by the end of the 5th course (2003), this major was no longer available...

Propaganda paintings are characterized by bright, sharp, and strong colors, creating a strong, direct visual propaganda effect. During the resistance wars and difficult periods of the country, it can be said that propaganda paintings have successfully completed their task of conveying information. In the current period, launching and organizing exhibitions are more concerned, but in reality, they are only limited to a few artists, with almost no new creative faces appearing. This is what propaganda artists always worry about!