An enlightened person' in ‘the garden of Eden’
People call him the builder of "the Garden of Eden", a restricted area that many people hesitate to step
into because they easily lose their way in it. Many artists from photographers to painters have tried to
this sensitive topic and many of them have to receive 'bitter fruits' from audiences and professionals. As
for sculptor Le Cong Thanh, even the most fastidious person could not find anything to criticize him.
They silently gaze at the 'Eve' statues (nude statues) exposing in the middle of daylight, being majestic
between the sky and the sea, immense mountains and rivers, in order to admire amazingly, praise about
those works, or at least for someone, who don't understand art very well, will look curiously and be
interested in standing in front of woman's precious thing under the eyes of the sculptor's creative
power.
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An enlightened person' in ‘the garden of Eden’ by Tran My Hien
Le Cong Thanh and The Question of The Human Condition
The esthetic qualities of Vietnam art pose a great enigma: in the past, sculpture has generally been the
best media to express it. However, in modern times, since the beginning of the 20th century, this art
form has become but a shadow of its former self. On the other hand, painting, which is not per say a
Vietnamese artistic tradition, has blossomed. There are many important cultural, political and social
reasons for this: the religion break and the " ancient " traditional education, the revolution, unremitting
war, contact with the colonial Eastern culture, the birth of middle class intellectuals, or pupils and
students and of city dwellers, public servants of the new society… This enigma does however
demonstrate the importance of a new sculptor in the context of the 20th century, Le Cong Thanh.
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Le Cong Thanh and The Question of The Human Condition By Nguyen Quan,