Nguyễn Tường Tam also known as Nhất Linh (1906-1963) - Lot 94

Nguyễn Tường Tam also known as Nhất Linh (1906-1963) Indochina School of Fine Arts, Class I (1925-1930) Les conseils de la bonzesse Color xylographic print on paper Circa 1927 Bottom left: artist's red stamp, black stamp of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts d'Indochine, handwritten reference to the justification of the print. 73.5 x 43 cm Perforations to upper corners, indentations, minor restoration, wetness. As early as 1925, Nguyễn Tường Tam, better known by his pen name Nhất Linh, joined the first graduating class of the Indochina School of Fine Arts as valedictorian. There, he rubbed shoulders with Mai Thu, Le Pho and Vu Cao Dam, but abandoned his artistic career a few years later in favor of that of activist, writer, journalist and publisher. Committed to the nationalists of socialist persuasion, himself leader of the Vietnam National Party from 1945, he became Hồ Chí Minh's Minister of Foreign Affairs after a period in hiding. While his pictorial works are relatively rare, his intellectual influence helped shape a whole new literary generation, making Nguyễn Tường Tam an essential figure in the cultural and political life of colonial Vietnam. This work is the only known version to bear the artist's original seal. It is the subject of a detailed article in the Thanh Niên daily newspaper, cf. Lê Cong Son, 'Giải' hai câu Nôm bí hiểm trên tranh đấu giá tại Pháp của nhà văn Nhất Linh published online 16/10/2021 (article in Vietnamese