Color Maze Painting

Have a fun expedition into the maze of colours and textures. Each one of these playful forms are filled with textures and colours that only son ta, Vietnamese natural lacquer, can express. It is a small artwork but the amount of the skills put into this is much bigger than you imagine. All colours are different layers of lacquer and material on top of each other. For instance, the background is a solid one colour with a single layer. And the colourful forms consist of 2 to 5 layers. The painting was sanded completely level and smooth before being polished by hand. The calculation and control over thickness of the layers needed to be precise. This artwork is like a tiny encyclopedia of son mai techniques. (ABOUT MY MATERIAL AND TECHNIQUES) Son Ta, Vietnamese natural lacquer, is an organic material purified and processed from sap of Rhus Saccedanea tree. In my son ta painting, art is created by building layers of lacquer with different colors and textures, and other materials (such as gold, silver, eggshells, and mother of pearl). Underlaying layers are then sanded back to the surface. Son ta has a high transparency compared to other natural lacquers. High transparency enables lacquer to have more vivid colours when mixed with colour pigments. The transparency of the material can also be used to create a variety of expressions. What fascinates me most is the fact that son ta "ages" with time. Natural lacquer hardens by a chemical reaction rather than dries. Enzymes within the lacquer catch oxygen from H2O in the atmosphere and polymerize. This reaction happens in son ta over a much longer time span compared to lacquer from other countries. This makes son ta much softer at the beginning, but turns it harder and tougher with time. Its transparency also increases, making the finished work brighter and more colourful with time. Son ta painting is an art form that ages like fine quality wine. The longer the time, the better in quality and flavore, until the chemical effect is fully complete.

Painting:Lacquer on Wood

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:16.5 W x 23.6 H x 0.6 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.