Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
American, Vietnamese
Kenny Nguyen (b. 1990, Ben Tre Province, Vietnam) creates expansive, dimensional, mixed-media paintings that center on ideas of cultural identity, displacement and integration. Nguyen grew up on a coconut farm in a rural area near the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam. Despite having an established career in fashion design, he decided to join his family when they moved to the United States in 2010.
Acclimating to an American way of life proved uneasy at first, especially with a language barrier that intensified feelings of alienation and isolation. Nguyen turned to art-making as a coping mechanism and as a means to express himself in a more universal language. The transition from design to art was a natural one and in 2015 Nguyen earned a BFA in painting from the University of North Carolina Charlotte, and subsequently established a studio in Charlotte.
Drawing from his experience working with textiles, in particular, silk, a culturally significant material in Vietnam, Nguyen developed a distinctive technique to produce sensuous, three-dimensional works that he describes as “deconstructed paintings.” He begins by tearing swaths of silk fabric into hundreds of strips that he dips in acrylic paint and adheres to raw canvas. Methodically, almost meditatively, he repeats the process—tearing, painting, sanding, sewing, weaving, attaching, layering—until he has a structured but malleable medium, which he shapes into undulating, sculpted forms.
Nguyen’s paintings are often affixed to the wall with pushpins, allowing him the flexibility to rehang or adjust the composition as desired. The works can be stretched flat like a traditional canvas or gently draped, folded and creased into animated structures that unfurl along the wall and pool at the floor. Each installation is unique.
In some ways, Nguyen’s deconstruction and reconstruction is akin to the experience of growing into his identity as Vietnamese American and as an artist. His use of silk, which remains the primary material in his practice, has evolved alongside him. Where he once chose it for its splendor and sense of familiarity, through a rigorous process of transformation, it now holds greater meaning for the artist: “For me, silk has become the connector tying both cultures together.”
Nguyen has participated in exhibitions across the globe, including at the Sejong Museum of Art, Seoul; CICA Museum (Czong Institute for Contemporary Art), Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, Korea; Kunstwerk Carlshütte, Büdelsdorf, Germany; LaGrange Art Museum, Georgia; Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville, Florida; Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Ana, California; and The Rayburn House Office Building, United States Capitol Complex, Washington, DC. In 2016, Nguyen received the Excellence Asia Contemporary Young Artist Award from Sejong Museum of Art and in 2023, a nomination for the Joan Mitchell Fellowship. He has been awarded numerous grants, fellowships and residencies.to
5
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
5
3
2
5
5
5
5
5
5
295
266
150
148
5
Artist: Kenny Nguyen
Three-dimensional, green, yellow, blue, hand-cut silk painting mounted on wall
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
Eruption Series No. 43, 2024
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
83 x 113 inches
210.82 x 287.02 cm
Undulated Dimensions (approx): 78 x 106 x 5 ...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Dimensional Multicolor Horizontal Silk Painting, Contemporary Abstract Art
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
Encounter Series No.51, 2025
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
71 x 109 inches
180.3 x 269.2 cm
Undulated Dimensions (Approx.) 66 x 93 x 8 inc...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Dimensional Yellow, Blue, White Silk Painting, Contemporary Abstract Art
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
Untitled (Diptych 1/2), 2024
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
59 x 39 inches
Undulated Dimensions (Approx.): 55.5 x 35.5 x 5 inches
KN084
Ke...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Dimensional Jewel-Toned Vertical Silk Painting, Contemporary Abstract Art
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
Untitled, 2024
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
72 x 54 inches
Undulated dimensions (approx.) 66 x 49 x 5 inches
KN074
Kenny Nguyen (b. 1990...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Dimensional Blue and Orange Vertical Silk Painting, Contemporary Abstract Art
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
(Undecided Title), 2024
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
72 x 54 inches
Undulated Dimensions (Approx): 66 x 49 x 5 inches
KN066
Kenny Nguyen...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Related Items
Green Gold Forest by Lesley Richmond, 2019, mixed media wall hanging, silk fiber
By Lesley Richmond
Located in St. Louis, MO
Lesley Richmond was born in Cornwall, England. Lesley now lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada. She received her art teachers training in London, England and her MEd in the USA. She taught...
Category
2010s Contemporary Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Cotton, Silk, Dye, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$8,600
H 40 in W 68 in D 1 in
Ode to our New Heroes-yellow, green, purple and blue 4 panels
By José Castro
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Ode to our Heroes - yellow, green, purple and blue 4 panels each 12 X 12.
The panels are aluminum with acrylic, wire grid, silk, ink, soldering wire.
Jose Castro was born in Matanza...
Category
2010s Contemporary Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Wire
$4,800
H 12 in W 12 in D 0.05 in
"Family Issues" Original Acrylic Mixed Media Painting
Located in New York, NY
About the Artwork:
"Family Issues"" is a powerful mixed-media painting that delves into the complex emotions and dynamics within family relationships. The artist employs a vivid and evocative palette, using brilliant hues to express a spectrum of feelings, from love and warmth to tension and conflict.
The artist's use of brilliant hues is deliberate, with fiery colors symbolizing anger and passion. Lighter shades of yellow and green peek through, suggesting moments of reconciliation and healing. The mixed-media approach, combining painting with found objects and textured materials, adds a tactile quality that invites viewers to engage with the piece on a sensory level."
The painting is on canvas and will be professionally packaged and shipped in a secured box.
About the Artist:
Bandji Fall...
Category
2010s Abstract Impressionist Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
"Morning Melody" Original Acrylic Mixed Media Painting
Located in New York, NY
About the Artwork:
"Morning Melody" is a mesmerizing acrylic painting on canvas, a captivating and serene depiction of an early morning flute song, designed to awaken positive memories and emotions. Through this painting, the artist invites viewers to pause and appreciate the beauty of simple moments, the tranquility of nature, and the power of music to evoke deep, heartfelt memories. The scene outside the artist’s window, framed by a clear blue sky and bathed in the soft light of dawn, serves as a reminder of the beauty and peace that can be found in everyday life. This artwork is a celebration of serenity, nostalgia, and the quiet joy of a new day’s beginning.
The painting is on canvas and will be professionally packaged and shipped in a secured box.
About the Artist:
Bandji Fall...
Category
2010s Abstract Impressionist Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
"Study in Red, " Mixed Media on Canvas
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based artist Michael Thompson creates unique compositions of abstract painted elements and a collage of vintage Asian ephemera—including fragments of fabric, scrolls, drawings, and books collected during his travels. In a departure from his split bamboo kite series, this work on stretched canvas entitled "Study in Red" layers textured paper and silken fragments within a rosy...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Wood, Rice Paper, Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Painting of bouquet of flowers on fabric & rice paper: 'Oriental Blue'
By Joel Handorff
Located in New York, NY
‘Starting with a drawing of "real" flowers, I create layers of thinly veiled surfaces. They become abstracted through the process of multiple printings. The essence of flowers become...
Category
2010s Contemporary Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Silk, Synthetic, Acrylic, Rice Paper
"The World Connection" Original Abstract Acrylic Painting
Located in New York, NY
About the Artwork:
“The World Connection” is a captivating mixed-media artwork designed to convey the concept of a globally connected world that beautifully captures the essence of a world united through invisible bonds and shared experiences. The artist’s use of color, texture, and symbolic forms creates a dynamic and engaging composition that encourages viewers to reflect on their place within the global community. This piece is a celebration of diversity, unity, and the profound connections that link us all, transcending geographical and cultural boundaries.
The painting is on canvas and will be professionally packaged and shipped in a secured box.
About the Artist:
Bandji Fall...
Category
2010s Abstract Impressionist Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
$5,800
H 30 in W 24 in D 1 in
Limited Edition Sublimation Print on Silk - 2nd from the Diptych - Flowers
Located in Vilnius, Vilniaus apskr.
This contemporary artwork, crafted using a sublimation process, offers an exquisite transfer of vivid imagery onto silk through eco-friendly, water-based sublimation inks.
Its hybr...
Category
2010s Contemporary Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Silver
$1,500
H 27.559 in W 19.685 in D 0.787 in
Modern Green, White & Black Abstract Geometric Kimono Collagraph, Masterplate #1
By Patricia A. Pearce
Located in Soquel, CA
Modern Green, White & Black Abstract Geometric Kimono Collagraph, Masterplate #1
Unique mixed media work created from a Master plate for collagraph printmaking, featuring a bold and...
Category
1980s Op Art Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Gesso, Silk, Masonite, Ink, Acrylic
$1,450
H 21.88 in W 17.38 in D 0.13 in
Must Have Been the Roses
By Scott Andresen
Located in New Orleans, LA
Andresen’s work focuses on the art of repair; more specifically how such actions have consequences both intended and unintended. Using a variety of materially driven processes the wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Thread, Mixed Media, Acrylic
"The Longest Drive". Contemporary Mixed Media
Located in Brecon, Powys
Imaginative work from this Internationally exhibited Brooklyn based artist.
Signed and dated 2007
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Silk, Plastic, Foam, Acrylic, Magazine Paper
Unearthly Sweetness
By Scott Andresen
Located in New Orleans, LA
Andresen’s work focuses on the art of repair; more specifically how such actions have consequences both intended and unintended. Using a variety of materially driven processes the wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Thread, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Previously Available Items
Dimensional Multicolor Vertical Silk Painting, Contemporary Abstract Art
By Kenny Nguyen
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Kenny Nguyen
Eruption Series No. 11, 2024
Hand-cut silk fabric, acrylic paint, canvas, mounted on wall
84 x 65 inches
undulated dimensions (Approx.): 79 x 60 x 5 inches
KN065
Kenny ...
Category
2010s Kenny Nguyen Mixed Media
Materials
Canvas, Silk, Acrylic
Kenny Nguyen mixed media for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Kenny Nguyen mixed media available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Kenny Nguyen in acrylic paint, canvas, fabric and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Kenny Nguyen mixed media, so small editions measuring 60 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Dionisios Fragias, Rachel Ovadia, and Thomas Hoitsma. Kenny Nguyen mixed media prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $9,600 and tops out at $15,000, while the average work can sell for $12,300.