Su said while repairing a kitchen nearly a decade ago, he took shiny black bamboo down from the roof, and a piece was scratched, revealing its white stalk. He carved a portrait on the piece of bamboo, and then the idea of drawing pictures from smoke was generated.

Bamboo splints are joined to from the base for the pictures -- Photos: VNA

Bamboo splints are joined to from the base for the pictures

The picture base is put above a cooking stove to be smoked for three months to attain the right colour.

Tools to make smoked pictures

Su etches small lines with a needle, then he scrapes off the black smoke layer using a small knife

A picture entitled 'Before the earthquake'

A picture entitled 'After the earthquake'

A picture on Vietnam's sea and islands

It takes about six months to create a picture from cooking smoke

Su says he is also trying to make smoked pictures from glass and mica