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9 x 12 in Scratchboard and scratching tools

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Being busy and productive are sometimes mistaken terms. You may have a lot on your plate if you're busy, but that doesn't imply you're productive or managing your time wisely. Seeing a koala reminds you to take a break from your busy life and spend some time relaxing. The chosen media for this piece was scratchboard, and carving tools were used to create the patterns of fur and other objects. The seamless transition between light and dark values adds a realistic aspect to the whole drawing, which makes the koala more lively. I used various tools of different sizes to differentiate the pattern where intense light hits the main subject and light scratches where little light shines through.

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My chosen animal for this final scratchboard project is KOALA, which is the national animal of New Zealand. Before beginning my final piece, I experimented with the scratching tools on a smaller size scratchboard. From this experiment, I understand how to gain more control over the tools, how to apply pressure, and how to create midtones.

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Process Portfolio - Studio Art - Thy Nguyen

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297 mm x 420 mm (A3) black paper, white graphite pencils, brush

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The cinematic lighting style of chiaroscuro emphasizes shadow and light. Chiaroscuro first appeared as a painting technique used to create tension between light and dark parts in portraits and other still-life objects throughout the Renaissance. In this case, the main objects are a wine bottle and a face statue. By utilizing the chiaroscuro effect, the drawing was able to give off a cold and isolated atmosphere. In addition, I used a brush to create a smooth smudging effect which helped the white charcoal blend seamlessly with the black paper.

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Despite the ever-evolving society, women’s stereotypes still persist which make it difficult for them to defy. People unintentionally create impossible standards for women and expect everyone to follow them unanimously without any complaints. However, they rarely received any gratefulness for all the work they have been putting in to sustain and keep everything inside their household together. This is why our team wants to emphasize the invisible work of women by using the image of spices, representing the stereotype that women need to always be in charge of kitchen work. Additionally, the red lighting further highlights the struggle and toughness of life. We also specifically used nón lá to cater towards the asian community, where stereotypes of women are still the most prevalent.

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Charcoal, graphite pencils on watercolor paper, and brown sugar paper.  30 x 42 cm

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This art piece examines antique objects and desolated places through the use of the chiaroscuro effect. Through the main subject — payphone in a telephone booth — I want to convey the message of the continuity of time. Despite existing through many generations, the payphone still remains there, connecting people to people. The harmony between dark and light values helps direct the audience to the main emphasis — the payphone. Moreover, the use of charcoal and  smudging techniques also creates a vintage effect for the overall composition.

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Acrylic paint, oil paint, and other mixed media on canvas

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Drinking tea while discussing everything that happened in the year. This traditional Tet custom brings family members closer together. Traditionally, tea was favored by the aristocracy in the royal court to classify ordinary people in the feudal society. Nowadays, tea remains its popularity in the daily life of Vietnamese people and visitors. Tea is present in all aspects of Vietnamese people's life. During Tet, one of the most important Vietnam holidays, tea becomes more appreciated. They enjoy exclusive tea and share happiness together in the atmosphere of reunion and welcoming New Year. Drinking tea and inviting tea with best wishes are beautiful customs in Vietnam Tet.

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Xiao Zhan was the first cultural icon to appear in my head, as his acting made me feel so touched. I first got to know him through The Untamed (2019). In the play, his emotions — anger, sorrow, and joy — who are immersed in the role, all involve the hearts of audiences. After my first contact to Xiao Zhan, I wanted to know more about him. Through interviews and activities that he had involved in, it is not difficult to see that his actor's professionalism is really good. Whenever he do something, he always takes it seriously, never does things perfunctory

Furthermore, his portrayals of complex character in tv series, from a carefree and unrestrained personality to a dark and tormented character, have impressed me since I discovered Chinese dramas. This make the audience feel more connected to the character in the movie.

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Black marker, gesso, and black paint on canvas. 40 x 60 cm

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Hoi An - an ancient town located in the heart of Vietnam where life is so calm, where the flow of time seems to slow down, preserving the antiquated atmosphere to the site. My piece illustrates historic architecture, colorful lanterns, and flickering lights of paper lanterns on the overlong Thu Bon River; all of these characteristics brought us back to a world of hundreds of years ago. This is just a simple part of the old town of Hoi An, but enough to make people get lost and fascinated.

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“I knew that I must paint not what I saw, but only what was in me, in my soul” — Alexej von Jawlensky. The Blue Rider movement focuses on the spiritual values of art as a counter to the corruption and materialism of their age. Blue was the most spiritual color and the rider (horse) symbolized the ability to move beyond. The main features of the Blue Rider movement manifest in my sculpture through the horse’s wings and the use of different shades of blue. Small hints of yellow in the hair and tail represent the ability to go against the social norms. The horse trying to spread its wings among golden cranes conveys the story of being able to break beyond prejudice and courageously pursuing your dreams.

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This painting is a juxtaposition between love and war. The hearts in this painting symbolize deadly bombs and misiles during the war. Furthermore, the colorful background also helps tying the theme of destruction and conflict together. In addition, the harmed soldier standing in front of the painting frame demonstrates that wars only bring casualties and not love or happiness as described in the painting.

This was made to advocate for peace during the spark of conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

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This project represents  the flow of time and the changes in vietnamese society from post-colonial time. The bird and the red thread will be the factor that connects every element together. Furthermore, the girl shows the beauty of vietnamese people and the street vendors walking through a tunnel shows that this traditional way of selling food is still being kept over time.

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This project’s subject of inspiration is Vietnamese national flower - Lotus. Lotus is the national flower of Vietnam, it is the pink flowers that are a national symbol. Despite its roots padlock in the mud, the flower still remains flawless. That’s the reason why, lotus significance is of re-birth and spiritual enlightenment. Although, I loved how the ending product looks, I feel there are a few flaws if addressed could make this even better. For example, for the shadows, I just recently learned that we don’t use black to make the shadow, instead the complementary color on the color wheel since black is very pigmented.  In essence, there can be improvements made to my piece,  but overall I was very happy with the final artwork since it represents my culture and a part of my identity.

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Photography and black ink on watercolor paper. 31 x 46 cm

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From new life to death, from purity to passion, flowers have had many meanings in myths and legends. Swelling from tender bud to full bloom, flowers symbolize youth and beauty. However, in this piece, I want to illustrate the peak of the flowers’ beauty, when flowers bloom and flourish. Even though there are many different types of flowers in the same space, they are not overshadowed by others. Through this piece, I want to convey the idea that everyone has their own identity and beauty. Sometimes beauty standards might give us the impression that there is only one type of perfect body, but we forget our true beauty lies in our uniqueness.

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An idea that I want to explore with the inspiration from Mona Lisa is my imagination. Ao dai represent my Vietnamese culture. In addition, The koi fish and planets a part of my imagination as well as a part of my identity. Here, my hand is reaching out to reach my imagination because it brings me happiness. This is also the reason behind the smile. The landscape from Mona Lisa behind also plays an important role in this painting since the landscape provides a sense of mystery and peacefulness, which ties all of my ideas together.

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An idea I want to explore with this iconic piece of Mona Lisa is showing different sides of a human. My intentions when drawing this was to emphasize the untruthful aspect of humanity. The long nose here was inspired by Pinocchio since his nose will grow longer as he tells more lies. Apart from the satire of Mona Lisa, I also want to appropriate “The Starry Night” painting by Van Gogh as the background. In this piece, I have used three different style which were pop art, realism and Post-Impressionism.

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40 x 40 cm canvas, acrylic, mixed media, news paper

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As my theme focused on the evolution of the hustle and bustle culture of Saigon street, I want to portray the similarities of the Saigon street over time. Despite changes in time and location, the Saigon street will always retains its bustling nature, forming one of its most distinctive characteristics. In this piece, circle is a common occurrence as I want to portray the continuity in the culture like becoming full circle. I also used MDF to add on another layer of material, representing the roads of Saigon. This servers as a connection between the past and present as the streets will still remain the same even if generations pass.

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100 x 100 cm Acrylic on Canvas, 10 x 10 cm Oil Paint on Canvas

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Everyone knows what leadership is. However, for me, there are many kinds of leadership. It can be a team leader, a manager, or a teacher, but my definition for a leadership is simply someone who takes ownership in everything they do. Leadership can be seen in everyone, even in the most ordinary jobs. To acknowledge this, I want to honor people that silently contribute to the safety of my city, Ho Chi Minh. My main subject is a guard, who not only does his job but also take the responsibility of watching  out for potential danger that can occur in public.

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Process Portfolio - Intermediate Art - Thy Nguyen

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In this painting, the two complementary colors, blue and orange, created a high contrast which made colors appear more vibrant, enriching the work overall. Utilizing the vibrancy complimentary colors create, I decided to highlight antique objects that represent the timeflow of past decades. In addition, I kept the paper ripping effect to give the painting a more realistic appeal. Through this painting, observers are encouraged to indulge in enjoyable recollection of past events, meanwhile, reminiscing their individual memories.

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Flowers have a complicated socio-emotional connotation because they are commonly used to express a variety of emotions such as sympathy, sadness, shame, love, pride, joy, and even religious beliefs. Orange flowers are bright and bold, and, thus, they are known to symbolize feelings of excitement and enthusiasm. While the soothing blue hues that flowers possess are said to symbolize tranquility and peace. Ultimately, this color is known to spread feelings of relaxation in order to help people release any negative feelings or feelings of stress. By combining these two meaningful colors together, looking at this art piece can bring someone calmness to their restless mind.