VietNamNet Bridge – Pham Tuan Tu’s paintings featuring people of the “third world” attracted the audience at the opening ceremony of the exhibition of eight finalists of the “Painting Talents 2010” competition on October 18.

Characters in Tu’s paintings are not women or men. “Gay” is a portrait of a man wearing bra and skirt. “O moi” (lesbian) is a woman with a close-shaven head and moustache. “Mirror” features a man holding a piece of mousse to powder his face and wearing a flowered skirt. “Bud” is a man wearing women’s underwear, with close-shaven head and dog claws in his feet and his  tree roots as his hands.

“Some of my friends are people of the ‘third world’. I want to express my viewpoint, not ask people to sympathise with or love them. If we don’t have symphaty with them or see them as unhealthy people, they still exist,” Tu said.

From over 700 paintings by 165 authors from all of the country, the organizing board of the “Painting Talent 2010” competition selected artworks by eight young authors to introduce at this exhibition. They are Dao Anh Viet, Luong Van Trung, Le Tran Anh Tuan, Nguyen Hong Phuong, Le Hoang Bich Phuong, Nguyen Xuan Hoang and Nguyen The Hung.

The event will last until November 1 at the Hanoi Art University, Yet Kieu, Hanoi.

A $3,700 award will be presented to the painter whose paintings receive most votes by the audience on the competition’s website.

PV