"Kim Sa Painting and Mother Goddess Worship in Hang Trong Paintings" is one of two talk shows within the project "Vietnamese Spiritual Paintings". A project that aims to bring the spiritual beauty of Vietnamese people in 4 famous folk painting genres: Hang Trong, Dong Ho, Kim Hoang and Lang Sinh; combined with Kim Sa Painting - an art form improved by Hue enamel that has been lost for more than a century. To thereby honor the cultural values, identity and religion formed and developed by the Vietnamese people.
The painting "Five Tiger Generals" in Hang Trong painting in the Kim Sa painting style
Talkshow “Kim Sa Painting and Mother Goddess Worship in Hang Trong Paintings” organized by Hoa Gam unit with the presence of art and folk culture lovers. Bringing unique experiences combining artistic and traditional values. The talkshow also had the participation of artisan Le Dinh Nghien, the last person who still keeps the secret of Hang Trong folk painting.
In particular, in addition to sending meaningful messages about traditional values to the public, attendees can also admire the painting "Five Tiger Generals" - the first painting in Vietnam to be performed by Kim Sa Painting.
Artisan Le Dinh Nghien (left), the last person who still keeps the secret of Hang Trong folk painting craft
Ms. Nguyen Hoang Oanh - the founder of Hoa Gam, who is also the person who directly restored the paintings and created new paintings using ancient art, said: "In Vietnamese beliefs, the tiger is considered a powerful and majestic mascot. From there, it gradually entered art, becoming a characteristic beauty in Vietnamese folk paintings.
In the worship of the Mother Goddesses of the Three and Four Palaces, Quan Ngu Ho belongs to the system of deities that are respected and worshiped by the people of the lower levels. It can be said that the worship of the tiger god does not develop independently but exists in parallel with other religions and beliefs, especially the worship of the Mother Goddess. Therefore, we created the Ngu Ho Than Tuong painting in the Kim Sa style to continue the beautiful values that Hang Trong paintings left behind. In addition, all the paintings carry the desire to convey to the younger generation the traditional beauty in the most accessible and unique way, while also bringing a bit of modern breath to the art of ancient paintings."
Ms. Nguyen Hoang Oanh (middle) - the founder of Hoa Gam, is also the person who directly restores paintings and creates new paintings using ancient art.
Mother Goddess worship is known as a folk belief that appeared very early in the cultural life of the Vietnamese people, bearing a strong indigenous and primitive character and existing throughout the history of the nation. The Mother Goddess worship itself originates from the matriarchal system throughout the formation of the Vietnamese consciousness.
The Mother Goddess worship contains many rich and diverse traditional cultural values. Worshiping the Mother Goddess is synonymous with the desire for protection, fertility, and creativity. It is different from other religions and beliefs in that it is oriented towards real, mundane, and close life because the Mother Goddess religion is primarily concerned with the earthly life of people in many aspects such as health, money, luck, happiness, etc. The Mother Goddess worship also uniquely demonstrates the spirit of patriotism and the morality of remembering the source of water when drinking water because the characters worshiped in the Mother Goddess temples and shrines are often heroes who bravely fought and sacrificed for the independence and freedom of the nation.
The paintings of the Mother Goddesses in Hang Trong paintings have achieved certain values in terms of beliefs as well as visual art values. This is a unique and distinctive type of religious painting among the types of religious paintings.
The talk show “Kim Sa Painting and Mother Goddess Worship in Hang Trong Paintings” not only sincerely honors traditional arts, but is also a fresh and passionate affirmation of the young generation towards the past, towards the beautiful historical values of our nation. In order for traditional arts to fully develop its quintessential values, the talk show is like rediscovering an ancient art that has been lost. A deeper understanding of a belief that has been recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
