Truong Tan

'Vietnamese Lotus' Lacquer on Wood Contemporary Painting

2008

Truong Tan was born in 1963 and graduated from the University of Fine Arts, Hanoi in 1989. As an artist, Tan is known above all for his erotic references to his sexuality, making use of his autobiographical experiences, perceptions and feelings to mark his artistic narrative. His departure from the University where he served as a lecturer until 1997, was largely due to his challenging art that openly expressed his gayness and questioned the contradictions of the then implemented economic liberalization policy of Doi Moi. By rejecting the more conservative assumption of art that was being adopted by his peers, Tan moved to Paris under a grant from the Cité Internationale des Arts. Despite his reputation as the enfant terrible of the time, Tan has today emerged as one of Vietnam’s most internationally acclaimed artists with his art as part of the permanent collections of major art museums that include the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan; the Queensland Art Gallery, Australia and the Singapore Art Museum. He has been a participant of numerous biennials in Asia and Europe. Tan lives and works in Paris as well as in Hanoi. Tan's works were selected for an Asian exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in February 2013.