“Blooming Light, Soaking Light”: The Netherlands Bring Art Masterpieces To Hanoi

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Netherlands – Vietnam diplomatic relations, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Hanoi and Vietnam National Fine Arts Museum co-organize the exhibition “Blooming Light, Soaking Light” – introducing the masterpieces of Dutch artists from the Golden Age to the end of the 19th century.

The exhibition are curated by art researcher Do Tuong Linh from the collection of Rijksmuseum, the national museum of the Netherlands.

Delegation from the organizing committee cut ribbon to open the exhibition “Blooming Light, Soaking Light” (Photo: Trinh Ngoc Anh).

Inspired by the poem “We Silver Beings, Misty Light, Plants Growing” by the famous Dutch poet Herman Gorter, the exhibition “Blooming Light, Soaking Light” explores and rediscovers different notions of “light” through the works of art by Dutch master painters.

The exhibition explores “light” from the symbolic, metaphorical, as well as technical perspective. Examining nearly 70 pieces under 5 main themes: Landscape, Still Life, Portrait, Genre Art, and Spiritual Realm, “Blooming Light, Soaking Light” recreates and interprets light in Dutch art history and reveals how it reflects the changes in the human perception of reality and the metaphysical world.

Photo: Baotintuc

“Blooming Light, Soaking Light” is also an opportunity for the public to enjoy classic works from the Dutch Golden Age – the period from the end of the 16th century to the 17th century, during which trade, science, and arts from the Netherlands became one of the world’s exemplary.

From Cornelis van Haarlem and Frans Hals, who are the masters of portraiture in all of Europe, to female painters, such as Judith Leyster and Marie Wandscheer, with their unique still lifes, to the figures that brought Dutch art around the world via trade routes such as Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer.

Employing a hybrid format, with the combination of fine printing on silk and digital projection, the Exhibition will bring audiences an opportunity to better understand Dutch cultural identities, lifestyles, and beliefs.

The Art Gallery of Jan Gildemeester Jansz, Adriaan de Lelie, 1794 – 1795. Photo: Rijksmuseum

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the exhibition on May 26, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Vietnam Kees van Baar expressed his happiness to introduce masterpieces of the Dutch fine arts to the public in the Vietnamese capital city.

Commenting on the prospects of the Vietnam-Netherlands relationship, the Dutch diplomat said that the two nations would become major partners in green economic development.

Still Life with Peeled Orange and Bunch of Grapes – Albertus Steenbergen. Photo: RIJKSMUSEUM

“The works you will see here in this Exhibition are some of the best of what Dutch fine arts have to offer. And I am very happy that you will get to experience this unique hybrid exhibition for yourselves tonight. Art can connect us and bring us together. And that is exactly what the celebration of 50 years of bilateral relations between Viet Nam and the Netherlands this year is all about,” said Ambassador Kees van Baar.

Self-portrait – Vincent Van Gogh. Photo: RIJKSMUSEUM

Johannes Vermeer’s ‘The Milkmaid’. Photo: Sotheby’s

The exhibition “Blooming Light, Soaking Light” is open until 11 June 2023 at, Vietnam Fine Arts Museum (Ba Dinh, Ha Noi).

Vietnam and the Netherlands established their diplomatic relations on April 9, 1973. The Netherlands is one of the first Western nations to set up diplomatic ties with and offer development aid to Vietnam.

Charlotte Pho

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