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Lot Essay
A reflection of the graceful beauty of his subjects, Le Pho’s works in the delicate medium of ink and gouache on silk are regarded as the most refined and iconic works from his artistic career. After graduating at the top in his class from the Hanoi Academy of Fine Art where he studied from 1925-1930, he went on to exhibit at the Colonial Exhibition in Paris in 1931 and became a renowned teacher at Ecole Supérieure des Beaux Arts de l'Indochine in Hanoi in 1934. By the time Le Pho participated in the Universal Exhibition in Paris and had decided to permanently relocate there in 1937, he was already regarded amongst his peers as the foremost artist of his generation.
Le Pho’s Elegant Lady by the Fence is an exceptional work from the earlier part of the artist’s career following his move to Paris in 1937. The present lot is distinctive for its inclusion of other elements beyond Le Pho’s iconic subject of the sophisticated Vietnamese woman wearing her traditional ao dai. Depicted in side profile, the central figure rests against a bamboo fence while daintily holding a cup of tea in her left hand. Her expression is serene as she gazes off into the distance beyond the frame of the painting. In the mid-ground of the painting and directly juxtaposing the central figure, walks a hunched woman with a cane. Her bent form and stooped posture is a stark contrast against the effortless poise of the central figure, and disrupts the otherwise idyllic scene.
Although the central figure does not appear to engage with the elderly woman, Le Pho brings them together within the composition as two opposing but inevitably connected figures. The pure white of the young woman’s ao dai contrasts against the black of the elderly woman’s, and further supports their dichotomous presentation. As an artist preoccupied with the preservation and presentation of a timeless classical beauty of Vietnamese culture, the present lot is rare mediation on the reality of youth’s transience, and of the necessary passing of time and old age. As the elderly figure heads towards a healthy and patiently waiting white steed, Le Pho hints at the continuation of youthful exuberance and strength in a different form. By flanking the central figure between the elderly woman and the youthful steed, Le Pho joins these three characters together in a circular composition and invites the viewer to consider the connections, symmetry, and dissimilarities between them.
Set against a backdrop of blooming flowers and lush greenery, Le Pho draws a further connection between man, animal, and the natural environment, and achieves a balance and harmony in composition as well as subject. Elegant Lady by the Fence is a testament to Le Pho’s sensitivity towards the portrayal of his subjects and scenes, and is also an example of a more reflective and allegorical approach the artist explored along his journey of artistic expression.
Le Pho’s Elegant Lady by the Fence is an exceptional work from the earlier part of the artist’s career following his move to Paris in 1937. The present lot is distinctive for its inclusion of other elements beyond Le Pho’s iconic subject of the sophisticated Vietnamese woman wearing her traditional ao dai. Depicted in side profile, the central figure rests against a bamboo fence while daintily holding a cup of tea in her left hand. Her expression is serene as she gazes off into the distance beyond the frame of the painting. In the mid-ground of the painting and directly juxtaposing the central figure, walks a hunched woman with a cane. Her bent form and stooped posture is a stark contrast against the effortless poise of the central figure, and disrupts the otherwise idyllic scene.
Although the central figure does not appear to engage with the elderly woman, Le Pho brings them together within the composition as two opposing but inevitably connected figures. The pure white of the young woman’s ao dai contrasts against the black of the elderly woman’s, and further supports their dichotomous presentation. As an artist preoccupied with the preservation and presentation of a timeless classical beauty of Vietnamese culture, the present lot is rare mediation on the reality of youth’s transience, and of the necessary passing of time and old age. As the elderly figure heads towards a healthy and patiently waiting white steed, Le Pho hints at the continuation of youthful exuberance and strength in a different form. By flanking the central figure between the elderly woman and the youthful steed, Le Pho joins these three characters together in a circular composition and invites the viewer to consider the connections, symmetry, and dissimilarities between them.
Set against a backdrop of blooming flowers and lush greenery, Le Pho draws a further connection between man, animal, and the natural environment, and achieves a balance and harmony in composition as well as subject. Elegant Lady by the Fence is a testament to Le Pho’s sensitivity towards the portrayal of his subjects and scenes, and is also an example of a more reflective and allegorical approach the artist explored along his journey of artistic expression.