Vietnamese Crafts Wall Art

Rice paper drying on bamboo racks, silk on a wooden loom, red lacquer panels and silk lanterns make up these Vietnamese crafts paintings, along with a boat hull taking shape under thatch. Workshops in Da Lat, Hanoi and Hoi An provide the settings. Each work is a hand-painted oil painting or an archival canvas print.

Silk, thread and stitching in the workroom

Thread runs through several of these paintings. One square scene puts a weaver in a grey blouse at a wooden loom, with other figures handling thread and pink cloth beside her and dyed yarn hanging at the back. In a Da Lat workroom of warm wood and dark blue, a stitcher in a conical hat works at a hoop, while panels of pink lotus and white cranes hang around her. That stitching scene also hangs in Culture & Traditions.

Lacquer, lanterns and a hull in the rain

The Hanoi lacquer studio is built from red, black and gold: one woman leans over a folding screen while another kneels to wipe a red table, with trays and boxes lining the shelves. In Hoi An, figures in blue and red tunics work on silk lanterns beside spools and bamboo strips, with lights hung across the roof in loose, glowing brushwork. A horizontal painting gathers five craftsmen in conical hats around a wooden hull under a thatched roof, one small lantern lighting it, with grey mist and teal water around brown planks. A sunlit courtyard holds a steaming pot, a woman with a ladle of batter, and round rice paper sheets set out on tall bamboo racks. That everyday workday scene is also part of Daily Life.

Putting craft scenes on a wall

On a pale wall, the lacquer studio brings strong red and black with gold trim, while the boat builders bring grey mist and teal water to a quieter corner. The amber steam of the rice paper courtyard gives a wall a sunlit centre, and the square weaving scene fits a narrow stretch of wall.