Kim Hoang painting
Encyclopedia
Kim Hoang painting is a genre of Vietnamese
woodcut
paintings originated from Kim Hoàng village of Hanoi
, Vietnam
. In the past, Kim Hoang painting was a popular element of the Tết
holiday, together with Dong Ho
and Hang Trong painting
, but this tradition was lost in the middle of the 20th century and today several authentic pictures of Kim Hoang painting are found only in museums or fine art galleries. However, the art of making Kim Hoang painting is still considered a symbol of traditional culture and aesthetic value of Vietnam.
, pictures of Kim Hoang share many common themes with ones of Dong Ho such as everyday activities, animals and sprititual signs. The distinct feature of Kim Hoang painting is several lines of poem written in form of chữ thảo
at the left corner of the painting, the content of those lines along with the illustration help emphasize the meaning of the picture. The popular examples of Kim Hoang painting are Gà độc (Cock) and Lợn độc (Pig).
The woodcut
s of Kim Hoang village are more delicate and detailed than ones of Dong Ho village, they are used to print in sheets of paper which are dyed beforehand with red or yellow colours, the red ones are called giấy hồng điều (scarlet paper) and the yellow ones is giấy vàng tầu (Chinese yellow paper). The colours used in making Kim Hoang painting are obtained from black Chinese ink and other natural materials such as white gypsum
, red vermilion
and yellow gardenia
. To strengthen the durability of the colours, the craftsmen often mixed colour paints with glue extracted from buffalo skin. Like the production of Hang Trong painting
, Kim Hoang craftsmen only used the woodblocks to create the black outlines and then drew and coloured details by their own hands. For this reason, pictures of a subject, although outlined by the same woodcut, are slightly different from one to another, thus they becomes more valuable and attractive to customers.
. The pictures were made in the Kim Hoàng village, now in Hoai Duc
(Hanoi
), which was one of the few place where folk paintings were made in Vietnam during the dynastic time, along with Hang Trong, Dong Ho and Sinh village. Kim Hoang painting was well received in the 19th century but the tradition of making pictures gradually declined and ultimately lost in the middle of the 20th century. One of the main factor that led to the extinction of the manufacture was an flood in 1915 which destroyed almost all original woodblocks of the village. Nowadays, authentic Kim Hoang pictures are only found in museums and galleries.
Vietnamese art
Vietnamese art is art created in Vietnam or by Vietnamese artists, from ancient times to the present.-Introduction:Vietnamese art has a long and rich history, the earliest examples of which date back as far as the Stone Age around 8,000 BCE....
woodcut
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
paintings originated from Kim Hoàng village of Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. In the past, Kim Hoang painting was a popular element of the Tết
Tet
Tet can mean:*Tết or Tết Nguyên Đán, the Vietnamese new year**Tet Offensive, a military campaign that began in 1968*Têt in Roussillon, France*Equal temperament, abbreviated as 12-TET, 19-TET and so on...
holiday, together with Dong Ho
Dong Ho Painting
Dong Ho painting , full name Dong Ho folk woodcut painting is a genre of Vietnamese woodcut paintings originated from Dong Ho village in Bac Ninh Province, Vietnam...
and Hang Trong painting
Hang Trong painting
Hang Trong painting is a genre of Vietnamese woodcut painting that originated from the area of Hàng Trống and Hàng Nón streets in the center district of Hanoi, Vietnam...
, but this tradition was lost in the middle of the 20th century and today several authentic pictures of Kim Hoang painting are found only in museums or fine art galleries. However, the art of making Kim Hoang painting is still considered a symbol of traditional culture and aesthetic value of Vietnam.
Themes and making
Produced in the countryside as Dong Ho paintingDong Ho Painting
Dong Ho painting , full name Dong Ho folk woodcut painting is a genre of Vietnamese woodcut paintings originated from Dong Ho village in Bac Ninh Province, Vietnam...
, pictures of Kim Hoang share many common themes with ones of Dong Ho such as everyday activities, animals and sprititual signs. The distinct feature of Kim Hoang painting is several lines of poem written in form of chữ thảo
Cursive script (East Asia)
Cursive script , sometimes translated as Grass script is a style of Chinese calligraphy. Cursive script is faster to write than other styles, but difficult to read for those unfamiliar with it. It functions primarily as a kind of shorthand script or calligraphic style...
at the left corner of the painting, the content of those lines along with the illustration help emphasize the meaning of the picture. The popular examples of Kim Hoang painting are Gà độc (Cock) and Lợn độc (Pig).
The woodcut
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
s of Kim Hoang village are more delicate and detailed than ones of Dong Ho village, they are used to print in sheets of paper which are dyed beforehand with red or yellow colours, the red ones are called giấy hồng điều (scarlet paper) and the yellow ones is giấy vàng tầu (Chinese yellow paper). The colours used in making Kim Hoang painting are obtained from black Chinese ink and other natural materials such as white gypsum
Gypsum
Gypsum is a very soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is found in alabaster, a decorative stone used in Ancient Egypt. It is the second softest mineral on the Mohs Hardness Scale...
, red vermilion
Vermilion
Vermilion is an opaque orangish red pigment, similar to scarlet. As a naturally occurring mineral pigment, it is known as cinnabar, and was in use around the world before the Common Era began. Most naturally produced vermilion comes from cinnabar mined in China, and vermilion is nowadays commonly...
and yellow gardenia
Gardenia
Gardenia is a genus of 142 species of flowering plants in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, native to the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, southern Asia, Australasia and Oceania....
. To strengthen the durability of the colours, the craftsmen often mixed colour paints with glue extracted from buffalo skin. Like the production of Hang Trong painting
Hang Trong painting
Hang Trong painting is a genre of Vietnamese woodcut painting that originated from the area of Hàng Trống and Hàng Nón streets in the center district of Hanoi, Vietnam...
, Kim Hoang craftsmen only used the woodblocks to create the black outlines and then drew and coloured details by their own hands. For this reason, pictures of a subject, although outlined by the same woodcut, are slightly different from one to another, thus they becomes more valuable and attractive to customers.
History
The origin of Kim Hoang painting was dated back to the 18th century during the reign of the Lê DynastyLê Dynasty
The Later Lê Dynasty , sometimes referred to as the Lê Dynasty was the longest-ruling dynasty of Vietnam, ruling the country from 1428 to 1788, with a brief interruption....
. The pictures were made in the Kim Hoàng village, now in Hoai Duc
Hoai Duc
Hoài Đức is a district huyện of Hanoi in the Red River Delta region of Vietnam....
(Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
), which was one of the few place where folk paintings were made in Vietnam during the dynastic time, along with Hang Trong, Dong Ho and Sinh village. Kim Hoang painting was well received in the 19th century but the tradition of making pictures gradually declined and ultimately lost in the middle of the 20th century. One of the main factor that led to the extinction of the manufacture was an flood in 1915 which destroyed almost all original woodblocks of the village. Nowadays, authentic Kim Hoang pictures are only found in museums and galleries.