Cao Dam Vu — Maternité, 1964
Details
Signed and Dated: Hand-signed “vucaodam 64” in the lower left corner.
Verso Inscriptions: Hand-inscribed by the artist on the back of the canvas: “Maternité,” followed by Chinese characters, and “vu cao dam 1964”.
Sizes:
Artwork: 59 × 78.5 cm | 23.2 × 30.9 in
Executed in 1964, Maternité is a serene and luminous oil on canvas that perfectly captures Vu Cao Dam’s delicate fusion of traditional Vietnamese aesthetics with Western modernism. The composition features a tender depiction of a mother holding her child, a central theme in the artist’s oeuvre, set against an ethereal, impressionistic landscape. The work is characterized by a soft, atmospheric palette of blues, greens, and golden yellows, applied with light, rhythmic brushstrokes that create a sense of poetic tranquility.
A pioneering figure of modern Vietnamese art and a member of the School of Paris, Vu Cao Dam often imbued his subjects with a statuesque grace and a timeless, spiritual quality. In this piece, the influence of French Impressionism is evident in the dappled light and vibrant textures, while the figures themselves retain the elegant lines and quiet dignity found in classical Asian art. This painting stands as a masterful example of his ability to transcend cultural boundaries through a universal language of beauty and maternal love.
Provenance
Private Collection, New Jersey, USA (Held by descent within the same family).
Private Collection, Spain (acquired from the above in 2016).
Acquired from the above by the present owner.
Condition Report
The work is in very good overall condition, with the oil pigments remaining vibrant and the impasto textures well-preserved across the canvas surface. The canvas is properly tensioned on its original wooden stretcher. There are some minor, age-appropriate handling marks along the extreme edges where the canvas meets the frame. The verso of the canvas exhibits natural age-related toning but remains clean and stable, with the artist’s original inscriptions clearly legible.
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Cao Dam Vu
Vu Cao Dam was a leading figure in modern Vietnamese art and a key member of the historic first generation of artists trained at the École des Beaux-Arts of Indochina in Hanoi. In 1931, he moved to France, where he spent the majority of his life and career, successfully bridging traditional Eastern aesthetics with Western modernist techniques. He became particularly renowned for his mastery of silk painting and bronze sculpture, developing a distinctive, lyrical style characterized by flowing lines, delicate palettes, and serene, nostalgic depictions of Vietnamese women, family life, and folklore.
As a prominent voice of the École de Paris, Vu Cao Dam’s work achieved international acclaim, celebrating his cultural heritage through a refined universal lens. Today, his paintings and sculptures are highly sought after by collectors and are preserved in major museum collections and institutions around the world.
