VietNamNet Bridge - More than 100 paintings by Vietnamese famous artists have been collected by a Thai man, Mr. Tira Vanichtheeranont, over several years. He has showcased the collection at the HCM City Fine Art Museum.


Tira Vanichtheeranont has collected paintings by artists of the Indochina Fine Art College since 2009. His collection now includes paintings, sketches and drafts of various materials. These works were made during the 1930-1970 period. Many of them lively reflect historical events in Vietnam.

“Unluckily, the value of these artworks is recognized by collectors and not many of them paid attention to them. As a foreigner who has worked in Vietnam for over two decades, I have recognized the significance of these works. They must be introduced to historical researchers and art lovers,” Tira Vanichtheeranont said.

The Thai collector has decided to introduce more than 100 paintings by famous Vietnamese artists like Luong Xuan Nhi, Nguyen Tuong Lan, Nguyen Do Cung, To Ngoc Van, Tran Van Can, Pham Hau, Le Van De, Ton That Dao, Nguyen Van Ty, Bui Xuan Phai and Nguyen Gia Tri. The exhibition was held at the HCM City Fine Art Museum on October 7-14.
Most of the exhibited artworks were bought by Tira Vanichtheeranont from Petro Paris, former Italian Commercial Counselor in Vietnam in 1980-1983 and 1988-1990. When Paris died, his Thai wife sold 50 paintings in his collection to Tira Vanichtheeranont.

Vietnamese senior art critic Phan Cam Thuong said this is a very valuable collection. “These works clearly reflect the life of Vietnamese people in the second half of the 20th century, with different styles,” he commented.

Dr. Nora A. Taylor, a professor of the Alsdorf Foundation on Southeast Asian Art History, the Chicago Art Institute, said that Tira Vanichtheeranont’s sketch collection embarks special historical value. “In many aspects, Tira Vanichtheeranont’s collection is more valuable than other modern and contemporary collections, including those owned by Southeast Asian art museums,” Taylor said.
“He has chosen a mild path but very meaningful in the long run: only collecting paper paintings, sketches, drafts and comics, which are easily forgotten or left out on the sideline of the market whirlwind.”

Tira Vanichtheeranont invited critic Phan Cam Thuong to compile an art book based on his collection. The book was published in 2010, entitled “Important and invaluable works of modern painting of Vietnam.”

Tira Vanichtheeranont, 62, graduated from the DeVry Technology Institute in Chicago, USA and worked as a telecom expert in Bangkok, Thailand in 1983-1987. He worked for the Vietnam Post Corporation and the HCM City Electricity Company in 1987-2006. After retirement in 2006, he opened a gallery in Bangkok.

Through collecting Vietnamese paintings, Tira Vanichtheeranont has become a friend of many Vietnamese painters. In late 2010, he organized a trip to Hanoi for Thai painters, in a bid to connect Thai and Vietnamese artists. After that he held the “Thailand-Vietnam Art Exhibition” in Hanoi to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Vietnam-Thailand relations.

Vietnam’s history in Tira Vanichtheeranont’s painting collection:

PV