In 2021, artist Tran Binh Minh (43 years old, Hanoi) decided to quit his job as a Product Design Director with a salary that many people dream of. Currently, he is pursuing his passion of traveling across the country to directly depict majestic natural scenes.
Quitting middle-aged jobs to pursue youthful passion
Artist Tran Binh Minh was a student at the Hanoi University of Industrial Fine Arts and won several awards from the school when participating in painting exhibitions. After graduating and starting work, he continued to sketch on the computer for industrial products such as self-driving electric cars, robots, high-tech equipment... Due to his busy work, he no longer had much time for painting and coloring.
Artist Tran Binh Minh
"I draw anytime, anywhere, as a way to write a diary in pictures. During that period, my job at the Group allowed me to travel to many places on business trips, but it was always rushed so I only stopped at quick sketches at each place I went through" - artist Tran Binh Minh regrets.
When the Covid-19 pandemic suddenly struck, everyone's lives seemed to change. The line between life and death was so fragile. Sometimes we realize that money is not everything, but how we enjoy life every day is important.
Live drawing at Cua Lo beach
That was also the time when he slowed down to fully appreciate life. By the end of 2021, he decided to quit his job to start a new journey - the journey of Traveling and Drawing.
Visualization is easy but difficult
Direct drawing is a form of drawing directly with the subject, character or landscape that the artist chooses. Therefore, the way the artist expresses will awaken the creative inspirations inherent at the time of drawing.
Direct drawing requires the artist to observe the scene carefully and feel the color that best suits the space. To express this in the work, the artist also has to face a challenge that is not easy. At each moment, the scene changes differently, sometimes just in the blink of an eye, or in the bow of the head.
The work was composed at Cua Lo beach.
“The artist cannot make up a drawing, but must carefully observe the space, color, and shape of the scene. Generalizing the space with a pen stroke is not easy. When starting to draw and when finishing the work, the space may have changed significantly,” the artist confided.
The most memorable painting trip of the male artist was when he went to Nam Dinh to paint fishing boats. He went to the beach early in the morning to buy fresh seafood from the boats that had just docked. Then, he started painting the sea from morning to evening, feeling the change of space in each stroke of the brush in each painting. During his breaks, he rewarded himself with a delicious meal of grilled seafood, sipping a few cans of beer while admiring the paintings and the seascape.
Artist Tran Binh Minh's trip to Muong Khuong, Lao Cai
Step out of your comfort zone to become a Go-getter and Drawer
When we enter our 20s, we are often busy looking for a job we love. When we reach our 30s, we want a stable job. But for artist Tran Binh Minh, after turning 40 for three years, he chose to step out of his comfort zone.
He decided to start the "Go and Draw" journey project. The journey to draw natural landscapes, conquering every province of the country. The paintings he drew were collected by a few people who loved paintings, creating a separate source of income to buy paints, canvases to draw and gas to travel.
Yellow mustard flower season along the Duong River
Through his travels, artist Tran Binh Minh has discovered many beautiful landscapes in all parts of the country. He has had new experiences, set foot on lands he has never visited before, and captured the natural landscape through each of his own drawings. This is the passion he has been pursuing for a long time.
Artist Tran Binh Minh has proven that 43 years old is never too late or too old to follow the call of passion.
"Go and experience a lot, not necessarily drawing like me, maybe taking pictures, or writing a few lines about the land you are visiting. Interact as much as possible with the people, culture, cuisine, and local lifestyle. Go to the places you want to go, to the places you accidentally meet in life, you will have many interesting experiences. Take time for yourself when you are young to travel as much as possible..." - Artist Tran Binh Minh shared.
