VietNamNet Bridge – Artist Vi Quoc Hiep opened a solo exhibition presenting paintings about old villas in the resort city of Da Lat, Lam Dong province, in Da Lat City on November 25.

The exhibition, at the Hoa Binh Exhibition Centre, showcased 60 paintings of old French-style villas in Da Lat. Hiep said old villas, which number over 2,000 in Da Lat, helps display the unique beauty of this resort city.

Hiep, 60, was born in the northern province of Lang Son. He graduated from the University of Arts in 1971. Since 1990, he has had 15 solo exhibitions and participated in many general exhibitions. His paintings are displayed at five big museums in Vietnam. Hiep’s paintings have been displayed in Vietnam, the former USSR, and Thailand. He has also won many painting awards.

Hiep, a Tay ethnic man, regards himself as a citizen of Da Lat because he has been living in the city for 30 years.

The painter first went to Da Lat in 1978 and he immediately fell in love with the ancient French-style villas, windy roads, hills, and the landscape. Hiep chose Da Lat as his second hometown and since then he has done a lot of paintings of Da Lat.

Hiep is considered the one who holds the soul of Da Lat’s old villas. He has tried to preserve the exquisite, charming and sophisticated beauty of the old villas in his paintings, and these have helped change the viewpoints of managers about the architecture of Da Lat’s old villas. He currently has around 400 paintings of old villas in Da Lat.

(Source: Tuoi Tre, VNE)