Regarding both genre and style, Nguyễn Trọng Khôi is a diverse and multifaceted artist. In terms of thinking, he journeys from expressive representation to figurative, and even non-figurative, abstract forms. Observing his journey, his still life paintings are compelling in their technique and captivating in their figurative expression.
Viewing Nguyễn Trọng Khôi’s still life paintings easily reminds us of Georges Perec’s novel “Les Choses” (Objects). Perec spent more than five years writing this novel, which is less than 200 pages long, first published in 1965 under the title “Les Choses: Une histoire des années soixante” (Objects: A History of the Sixties). Georges Perec believed that objects make history, not the other way around.
With objects, Georges Perec used a method of enumeration, listing without following a storyline. It simply depicted the trivial daily life of a young couple living in the Simon Kryubele apartment complex (Paris), where objects continuously accumulated, threatening to overwhelm the people. Georges Perec’s approach, whether celebrating or criticizing objectism (chosisme), could be interpreted in multiple ways. Nguyễn Trọng Khôi’s still life paintings take a gentler, more poetic approach, but they also exhibit elements of objectism.
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – White Calla Lily and Plums. 2005. Oil on canvas. 40.6×50.8cm
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Still Life with Flowers, Books, and Pipe. 2003. Oil on canvas. 35.5×45.7cm
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Purple Calla Lily. 2004. Oil on canvas
Collector Nguyễn Chí Sơn
If Nathalie Sarraute, Alain Robbe-Grillet, Georges Perec, and others emphasize the non-sentient and invasive nature of objects on humans, then Trần Dần, Nguyễn Tuân, and Nguyễn Trọng Khôi indirectly attribute meanings to objects. They follow the Vietnamese aesthetic: “No scene can be free from sorrow / When the person is sad, the scene can’t be happy” – from “The Tale of Kiều.”
In an interview, Nguyễn Trọng Khôi shared: “Habits sometimes dominate us. My many years working in illustration have led me into the complexities of expression, making my paintings always carry significant meaning, closer to literature, which is not the primary function of painting. I spent a lot of time overcoming this.”
In another interview, Nguyễn Trọng Khôi was more resolute. He said: “Let’s discard the habit of viewing objects like humans, tables, chairs, flowers, this flower, that flower, to observe their random structures. Over time, we will understand their hidden language. There are many cases where artists have embedded various meanings into their paintings, which has become an incurable habit.” However, saying and doing are different matters. His still life paintings exemplify this “overcoming,” yet they still faintly carry some meaning, “vaguely resembling a human figure,” making them quite intriguing.
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Plums. 2004. Oil on canvas. 40.6×50.8cm
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Vases. 2004. Oil on canvas. 40×60cm. Collection of Nguyễn Chí Sơn, Ninh Thuận
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Concerto. 2017. Oil on canvas. 100×100cm. Collection of Nguyễn Chí Sơn, Ninh Thuận
NGUYỄN TRỌNG KHÔI – Still Life. 2003. Oil on canvas. 81.8×86.3cm
Why is Nguyễn Trọng Khôi strong in still life? Without directly asking him, it is hard to know his opinion. Reflecting on his painting journey and shared perspectives, it probably stems from several aspects. First, as an art student, Nguyễn Trọng Khôi excelled in detailed drawing with high accuracy, sometimes akin to technical drawings. Second, when working in illustration for journalism since the 1970s, he focused on understanding and applying graphic techniques, hence the anatomical shapes differed in space and structure from previous paintings. Third, being a writer, poet, musician, and singer naturally infused his works with a “literary” and “artistic” quality, which is maximized in still life painting – due to the genre’s “formless” nature – allowing the essence of painting to shine.
In other genres, one can “see” Nguyễn Trọng Khôi too clearly, which may not always be engaging or poetic. It’s like Nguyễn Trọng Khôi painting surrealism because he has read too many surreal folk tales. In still life, Nguyễn Trọng Khôi “hides” a part of himself, clear yet concealed. As A.P. Chudakov (1938-2005) said: “Every artist speaks in the language of objects of their time.”
Nguyễn Trọng Khôi is no exception.
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Lý Đợi
