Nature blends with unique moss painting art

Creating art from moss

Thu Trang is currently the founder of Noi Studio in Ho Chi Minh City. Before starting her career in moss painting, she had over 9 years of experience as a copywriter in the creative advertising industry.

“This job has trained me to observe and have a deeper insight into everything that is happening around me. It also helps me have a broader approach to art and nature, to the invisible connection between all things. Find a way to express my views and perspectives through the language of visual art,” Thu Trang shared with Travellive.

According to Thu Trang, nature plays a very important role in her works, because the main materials she uses are all derived from nature. The idea of ​​creating artistic moss paintings came to Thu Trang without any specific milestone, but it was a process of accumulation after encounters with nature.

“I grew up in the Central Highlands, in the morning I went to school and in the afternoon I followed my mother to the coffee plantation, sitting and playing under the shade of the trees so she could work in the garden. At that time, nature was just a few steps away. When I grew up and moved to Saigon to study and work, I saw how far nature seemed. The desire to be 'close' to nature, to express, share emotions, imagination and small private things led me to this art of installation, specifically creating moss paintings,” Thu Trang said.

The most special thing about moss paintings lies in the material Thu Trang uses: preserved moss - which has only appeared in Vietnam in the last 2-3 years. It is still a fairly new concept as a material for works of art. Preserved moss is a type of living moss that has undergone a special treatment process that condenses the spores, putting the moss into a "hibernation" state. Thanks to the preservative compound with the main ingredient glycerin, the moss still maintains its moisture, color and shape.

Therefore, preserved moss does not require any care and remains green for a long time, very suitable for today's busy life because not everyone has the conditions to plant or take care of plants.

“I can summarize the steps of making moss paintings into three main stages: processing moss, coming up with ideas - layout and adjusting arrangements. There is no most important step because every step is important,” Thu Trang said with a smile.

Initially, she started by experimenting with growing moss at home, then it took her more than a year to learn, experiment and perfect the moss treatment standards. This is not a very long period of time but it is enough to test each person's perseverance.

The mosses in Vietnam grow and have different moisture-absorbing and color-retaining properties than mosses grown in temperate countries, so it is impossible to apply the same techniques from abroad. Not to mention that the treatment compounds are not easy to buy domestically, so finding a replacement product that still ensures safety is also a big challenge. Mistakes and corrections happen many times, sometimes Thu Trang has to throw away the whole batch of treated moss because it does not meet the standards. Time is the best standard to verify whether the moss has met the standards or not, that is why she does not rush to put moss on the painting but has to wait more than a year to ensure the quality of the materials she uses.

The day the moss treatment was completed, Thu Trang thought that was it, everything else would be easy, but it turned out that things were not that simple. After all, moss is a creative material, like having a box of watercolors in your hand, and what you draw to create a beautiful picture is the important thing. But coming up with creative ideas for the layout is also the most exciting, it is like a transformation process that brings your private world inside to the outside, portraying it into shape, into comedy.

And finally, the moss arrangement, all steps are done by hand, meticulously completed in every smallest detail. Each piece of moss has a different shape, color, size. The most special thing about making moss paintings is the "uniqueness", you will not be able to find two second moss paintings like that.

Inspiration for creating moss paintings through trips and connecting with nature

“My creative inspiration often starts from the simplest things in daily life. The hot summer days in Saigon this year have created the painting 'The Spring Of Summer' with the hope that everyone will find a gentle 'spring' for themselves. For me, it is trekking trips to the mossy forest hidden deep in the old forest, but for others it could be a cool glass of tamarind ice, a bunch of sweet U Hong lychees, or simply the smile of a lover,” Thu Trang shared.

The times Thu Trang was stuck in the middle of her journey to adulthood also helped her create the painting "(The) Space In Between".

Thu Trang added: “Although I am an amateur with no background in art, it helps me not to be bound by any standards or concepts. In each moss painting, I look for similarities in contrast, balance in chaos, and the primitiveness of nature. If you look at my paintings, you can clearly see that I emphasize the diverse, primitive beauty and the 'randomness' that nature inherently possesses.”

From her trips and times of connecting with nature, Thu Trang was inspired to put it into art. From art, she became more responsible for every action in daily life. She founded Noi Studio with the hope that each of her works could contribute to shortening the distance between humans and nature, between "love" and "action", between "great" and "small".

As a new and picky art form, Thu Trang also encountered many difficulties when creating moss paintings. Mastering the moss material in the process of creating artistic moss paintings was probably the biggest challenge for her. Unlike a watercolor box, you can use different types of brushes, moss is a completely natural material so the shape, size and color cannot be controlled.

Therefore, arranging moss on the painting to ensure that it conveys the original idea and layout often takes a lot of time. Each painting contains improvisation and freedom. And in that improvisation, you will also find the mysterious wildness but not lacking the soft, green vitality of the naturally growing moss carpets.

According to Thu Trang, moss paintings cost between 10 and 15 million per square meter depending on the style and materials used in each painting. As for preservation, it is quite simple, you just need to keep it indoors away from direct sunlight, no need to water or care, and the ideal temperature is below 30 degrees Celsius.

For a long time, Japanese Zen monks have grown moss on the walls and in their temple gardens to create a sense of peace and freedom. Many even consider moss an important element to help connect with nature and support meditation. Moss is a popular trend for many people to create green living spaces for their homes without spending time taking care of them.

Phuong Thao is the Editor of Travellive Magazine. She is passionate about traveling and loves to capture moments with her camera in every land she visits. Travel, art, and lifestyle are her favorite writing topics.

Phuong Thao