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Artist Hoa Nguyen: "I observe the forest through the eyes of humans and other creatures."
By Catherine Watson
THERE are many ways to see a forest. Some people see the trees, others see the birds, the orchids or the fungi. Hoa Nguyen sees it all.
Her monumental works of the Rhyll Inlet and the Western Port Woodlands first take your breath away and then they draw you in deep.
THERE are many ways to see a forest. Some people see the trees, others see the birds, the orchids or the fungi. Hoa Nguyen sees it all.
Her monumental works of the Rhyll Inlet and the Western Port Woodlands first take your breath away and then they draw you in deep.
Hoa was artist in residence at Berninneit Art Studio in February, with a mission to return this month for Becoming the Forest, an exhibition of three major new works in the gallery.
She uses Indian ink and red ink pen on archival paper. The enormous vertical format draws on the tradition of Asian scroll painting. It’s a fascinating meeting of Vietnamese artistic education with the Australian landscape.
During her residency she connected with members of Phillip Island Conservation Society and the Save Western Port Woodlands group, and we took her for a walk in The Gurdies.
Over the past few years I’ve walked in the woodlands with hundreds of people. None quite like Hoa. A diminutive figure in John Lennon sunglasses, her words constantly surprised me, as does her point of view.
How is it that she looked at a landscape that the rest of us see horizontally and saw it vertically?
She uses Indian ink and red ink pen on archival paper. The enormous vertical format draws on the tradition of Asian scroll painting. It’s a fascinating meeting of Vietnamese artistic education with the Australian landscape.
During her residency she connected with members of Phillip Island Conservation Society and the Save Western Port Woodlands group, and we took her for a walk in The Gurdies.
Over the past few years I’ve walked in the woodlands with hundreds of people. None quite like Hoa. A diminutive figure in John Lennon sunglasses, her words constantly surprised me, as does her point of view.
How is it that she looked at a landscape that the rest of us see horizontally and saw it vertically?
Hoa Nguyen: Becoming the Forest, Berninneit Art Gallery, September 12 to October 25. Exhibition opening Saturday, September 12, 3-5pm
Hoa Nguyen formed a friendship with Dr Dick Wettenhall, author of the monumental Ecology of Native Orchids and their Pollinators, focused on the Gurdies reserve.
Hoa’s work is held by collectors in Australia and Vietnam. She studied art in Vietnam, Russia and Australia and has always been an environmental activist. She says forests are where she finds peace and reconnects with life.
She brings an extraordinary multidisciplinary knowledge, not just in art practice and ecology, but in philosophy and science.
She brings an extraordinary multidisciplinary knowledge, not just in art practice and ecology, but in philosophy and science.
"In my works, there is no singular focal point. Instead, every element in the forest demands justice from the viewer's eye."
Hoa Nguyen
She writes: “Through ten years of drawing the forests, I have come to grasp the philosophy of the ‘Middle Way’, a path of balance between eternal and temporary existence. The forest teaches a path free from extremism and unconstrained by anything that would stifle the innate human quest for freedom and happiness.”
In an age of AI, it’s sometimes difficult to work out the role of the artist. Working with pen and ink, Hoa takes it as far from digital as possible.
Not just the inks, but the nature of the scrolls. At eight metres long, she can only work on a portion of the work at a time. Each work takes weeks or even months to complete. It’s a painstaking and meditative process that takes her deep into herself.
For the viewer, too, there’s a sense of zooming over the forest but also diving deep into it.
Despite the tens of thousands of photos taken by visitors to our woodlands, no one has yet managed to capture their complexity and beauty.
Using pen and paper, I think Hoa might just have managed it.
Catherine Watson is a member of Save Western Port Woodlands. A portion of proceeds from sales of Hoa's works will go towards local conservation organisations.
In an age of AI, it’s sometimes difficult to work out the role of the artist. Working with pen and ink, Hoa takes it as far from digital as possible.
Not just the inks, but the nature of the scrolls. At eight metres long, she can only work on a portion of the work at a time. Each work takes weeks or even months to complete. It’s a painstaking and meditative process that takes her deep into herself.
For the viewer, too, there’s a sense of zooming over the forest but also diving deep into it.
Despite the tens of thousands of photos taken by visitors to our woodlands, no one has yet managed to capture their complexity and beauty.
Using pen and paper, I think Hoa might just have managed it.
Catherine Watson is a member of Save Western Port Woodlands. A portion of proceeds from sales of Hoa's works will go towards local conservation organisations.
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