artLIVE – With the vision of cultivating a creative and cultural space for young Vietnamese talents, Annam Gallery joins hands with Rue Miche L’edition to present ‘Kaleidoscope – The Dreamscape of Self’, an evocative dialogue between fashion and art.
The group exhibition gathers eight artists — Tran Hanh, Khanh Van, Vu Tuan Kiet, Thao Phuong, Cao Van Thuc, Nguyen Pham Dinh Tuan, Daos501, and Do Ha Hoai — each contributing a distinct artistic voice that together compose a vivid, multidimensional symphony of expression.
A surreal visual symphony from emerging artists
Tran Hanh (born 1996, Binh Dinh) graduated in Oil Painting from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Fine Arts in 2019. She now lives and works in the same city, continuing her quiet yet persistent dialogue with art.
For Hanh, painting is the language of the soul. Through gentle layers of color, she captures fleeting moments of daily life and the subtle whispers of emotion within.
Khanh Van (born 1997, Hanoi) holds a Bachelor’s degree in Art and Art History from Centre College, USA. Her works are rooted in expressive realism, reflecting on the identity and place of Vietnamese women through a deeply personal lens.
Van’s use of contrasting tones creates paintings that seem to breathe — raw yet tender, intense yet full of compassion for the women who have shaped her story.
Vu Tuan Viet (born 1992, Hanoi) graduated from the Vietnam University of Fine Arts in 2016 and became a member of the Vietnam Fine Arts Association a year later. As both painter and curator, he was nominated for “Active Artist of the Year” at Hanoi Grapevine’s Finest 2023.
At the age of 33, Viet stands out among a generation of artists devoted to Cubism. His paintings traverse a journey from uncertainty and solitude toward enlightenment. Cool color palettes and sharp, deliberate lines form a visual language rich in existential reflection, mirroring the complexity of the inner world.
Dao Thao Phuong, a graduate of the Academy of Finance in 2014, found in painting a path back to her truest self. As a member of Studio42, she has participated in projects such as “Mo Xuong 42:2”, “GOI-MO”, “Nhip Boi Sai”, “Muoi Bon” (Aqua Art), and “Ky uc cua chung ta” (O AT Festival).
Her works reveal an ongoing exploration of form and movement. Each brushstroke flows seamlessly, embodying a dialogue between the tangible and the abstract, the inner and the visible.
Cao Van Thuc (born 1995) graduated from the Vietnam University of Fine Arts in 2020. His lacquer painting “Temporary Bonds”, portraying the lives of migrant workers, earned the top award at the UOB Painting of the Year 2025.
Thuc’s art speaks with compassion. His depictions of everyday people are simple yet profound, infused with empathy and a quiet understanding of human resilience.
Born in 1987 in Quang Nam, Nguyen Pham Dinh Tuan graduated from the Hue University of Arts and now lives in Da Nang. His practice revolves around the human form — not only as a figure but as a vessel of emotion and lived experience.
His works employ bold hues and dynamic contrasts that evoke the restless transformation of urban life. Figures and structures are often slightly off balance, suggesting the friction between tradition and modernity, stability and change.
A pioneering force in Vietnamese graffiti, Daos501 has spent nearly two decades redefining street art in Vietnam. Every wall he paints becomes a cultural narrative, a reflection of contemporary life told through rhythm, movement, and instinct.
Beyond his own creations, he has inspired a new generation of artists, expanding the boundaries of urban expression and carrying forward the spirit of creative freedom.
Do Ha Hoai (born 1994, Gia Lai) graduated in Sculpture from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Fine Arts in 2018. His work draws from observation and experience, blending personal emotion with social and environmental reflection.
Since 2017, Hoai has continuously explored new artistic forms — from sculpture and painting to installation — in pursuit of transformation. His fascination with expanding foam, a material both unpredictable and versatile, has become central to his artistic language: fluid, spontaneous, and ever in motion.
‘Kaleidoscope – The Dreamscape of Self’ – The intersection of fashion and art
Following “Duality” — a contemplative duet by Lap Phuong and Trinh Cam Nhi — this second chapter, “Kaleidoscope – The Dreamscape of Self”, unfolds as a visual concert of emotion and imagination.
The exhibition recreates a kaleidoscopic realm, where mirrored fragments reflect diverse inner worlds through dynamic compositions and shifting colors. As each element expands and converges, the invisible self gradually takes shape — trembling, awakening, and alive.
At first glance, the paintings appear playful and radiant. Yet as one lingers, the surface gives way to depth, revealing hidden narratives that quietly drift between layers of pigment.
Some artists invite tension through visual dissonance, allowing perception to vibrate between harmony and chaos. Others soften the scene with translucent washes, creating an ethereal three-dimensional space where color breathes and light dissolves.
In this realm, color is no longer a passive element. It becomes a living presence — colliding, conversing, and resonating through the air. Abstract forms and emotional gestures spill across the canvas, drawing the viewer inward, toward a moment of confrontation with the self.
The exhibition reminds us that beauty and truth exist not only in stillness or simplicity, but also within the vivid, untamed multiplicity of life. It is within these contradictions — between serenity and turbulence, clarity and chaos — that one may find the most authentic return to the pure essence of being.
“Kaleidoscope – The Dreamscape of Self” is on view until November 23, 2025, at Rue Miche L’edition, Basement B3, Union Square, 171 Dong Khoi, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
Photo: Annam Gallery
I’ll be referencing this in the future.