With a fire pen in their hand, some Vietnamese artists are able to create paintings on paper, wood or stone featuring the countryside, landscapes and people. These unique artworks come with price tags ranging from hundreds of thousands of dong to millions of dong.

In Vietnam, the art of painting with fire is not popular. Thus, there are just a few artists who are able to embrace this genre of art. According to painter Ho Ngoc Hieu, who has the most portraits of President Ho Chi Minh created with fire, fire painting requires aspiration and effort. Artists must be skillful, meticulous and precise to bring the depth and spirit to artworks.

Hieu, whose studio and showroom is located at Nguyen Van Thanh Street in HCMC’s District 9, knew the art after he got a fire painting from one of his friends abroad. 

Hien was captivated by simple strokes and a harmonious mixture of colors, so he decided to learn it.

Artist Hieu said people can use all kinds of wood for drawing. However, artists often choose pine or rubber wood for durability and beautiful colors.

Hieu said artists must have detailed sketches in their mind to make precise pen strokes. 

He demonstrated his great skills through landscape paintings of an old Saigon, Ben Thanh Market, Cho Lon Market, Trang Tien Bridge and One-Pillar Pagoda.

He said his customers are mainly rich people and those believing in feng-shui. 

A piece of artwork painted with fire costs VND1.2 million to VND7 million depending on size and sophistication.

This is the art of drawing created by Huynh Quoc Tuan, a student of HCMC University of Technology (HUTECH). 

Having burned things accidentally, he found the burn marks were uniquely beautiful, so he decided to learn to make artworks with fire. 

After a year of doing research on methodology and materials, Tuan succeeded in making paintings on paper with fire.

Paper for drawing is made from normal material but should be processed several times before use. 

It should be soaked into water before it is attached by a special formula glue type on a surface.

The pen which Tuan uses consists of a gas pipe, an ignition system and an adjusting button. 

Tuan said the artist needs a high level of concentration to control the pen and adjust the level of fire to create clear strokes. 

Tuan’s main themes are rare animals, landscapes, people and architectural constructions and his artworks are priced at VND500,000 per item or above.

SGT