OPENING REPORT: Celebrating a historic debut together at The Vietnam Art House

Vietnam Art House

4 days ago

3 min read

Updated: 3 hours ago

THE HAGUE, October 2, 2026 – Vietnam Art House opened “The Southern Soul”, the debut and first solo exhibition in the Netherlands by Vietnamese artist Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh (b. 1954) with a private viewing on Sunday the 27th of September. An event originally planned at the gallery for 2020 but postponed due to the pandemic ultimately became one of Vietnam Art House’s most celebrated afternoons. Forty-six guests attended, among them collectors, diplomats, fellow artists, press and gallery friends to mark Binh’s historic debut.

Uniting Cultures at the Vietnam Art House

The guests gathered for the special afternoon came from 17 different countries: the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary, the Philippines, USA, Vietnam, South-Korea, Italy, Belgium, Turkey, Suriname, Poland, Ukraine, Indonesia, France, Denmark and Russia, underscoring the wide scale of engagement for Binh’s art across nations.

With opening speeches by the founders Hanh Do and Jim Broens, the artist Nguyen Thanh Binh and a longtime gallery friend Alfons Gulick, every guest entered with their own unique story and found connection through their love for art. Young and old, Binh captivated the crowd with his brushstrokes expressing the profound feelings he carries towards peace, freedom and the essence of life.

Sharing Sentiments

Former Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam, Mrs. Elsbeth Akkerman, wrote in the guestbook:

"Xin cám ơn! Thank you for the invite for a beautiful exposition, it is also a Dutch – Vietnamese 'warm bath'. My husband Coen and I enjoyed very much this afternoon."

Other guests wrote:

"Great exhibition – amazing art! Thank you " - J. Rovers
"Very proud to be able to meet you [Mr. Binh]. I admired your paintings especially the colours! Thank you" - Ingrid Vermaas.
"I am jealous that we don’t have such a beautiful event in the US!" - Guest from the USA
"Much better and professionally organized than many such events I have seen in Germany." - Guest from Germany
"Goodmorning Hanh, First of all, thank you for a lovely afternoon and the interesting exhibition of Binh's work. The efforts of the organizing team were a great success, everyone was in high spirits. Please thank them for this. .. Hopefully, we will see each other again before long, I always find it inspiring. Warm regards from both of us" - Jim & Magda

And many more…

A Moment for Connection

The afternoon provoked deep conversations, as a live Q&A session with the artist allowed our guests to delve deeper into Binh’s artistic journey on how he arrived at his new abstract series, Color of Love. He shared personal anecdotes on battling through the hardships of war and how art became his medium to transcend from his memories collected as a soldier during a world of combat and loss into a world of freedom to chase the essence of life.

Rewarding Results

The admiration and respect for Binh’s art was expressed immediately as the opening led to artistic and commercial success:

The “Color of Love” was immediately reserved by a collector from the USA.
The artworks “Estuary” and “Public Holiday” were reserved.
There was also interest expressed by guests for the “Cellist” and “Schoolgirls in Blue” artworks.
Several new commissions have been placed directly with Binh by guests.
Guests queued to have their photograph taken with Binh, and some even left with a personal signature.