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International
Print Center New York announces the presentation of Traces
and Traditions: Vietnamese Woodblock Prints, opening Wednesday,
March 19th and remaining on view through Thursday, May 1st.
IPCNY is located at 526 West 26th Street in New York City.
Used
as talismans, religious images, and as works of art, Vietnamese
woodblock prints illustrate the continuity of cultural expression
in this rich and ancient civilization. Traces and Traditions
follows the evolution of woodblock printmaking from early
impressions by Vietnamese ethnic minorities, to historic Buddhist
images and texts, to traditional Dong Ho folk prints, to the
work of five leading contemporary printmakers working in Vietnam
today.
Exhibition
coordinators of Traces and Traditions are Judith Hughes
Day and Suzanne Lecht, specialists in Vietnamese contemporary
art.
Traces
and Traditions: Vietnamese Woodblock Prints complements
a concurrent exhibition Vietnam: Journeys of Body, Mind, and
Spirit, a collaboration between the American Museum of Natural
History and the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi.
Contemporary
artists represented in Traces and Traditions are Phan
Cam Thuong, his accomplished former student, Le Quoc Viet,
and three additional printmakers: Tran Nguyen Dan, Luu The
Han and Nguyen Duc Hoa. Blocks and woodcarving tools are included
in the exhibition. Phan Cam Thuong and Le Quoc Viet will present
demonstrations of contemporary and traditional Vietnamese
printmaking techniques at events scheduled at both New York
exhibition venues. The event at IPCNY will be held on April
3rd, 6-8 p.m.
Among
the historic prints, a rare Oriental anatomic chart from the
Tay minority combines the occult and the scientific. Chinese
characters fill an outline of the human form and are used
by by fortune tellers to identify ailments.
 
Left: Oriental Anatomical Chart,
hinh Nhan Y Hoc, Dan Toc Tay, 17th-18th century woodblock
print on Do paper, collection of Phan Cam Thuong.
Right: Amitabha Prayer Illustration, A Di Da Phat Tiep
Dan, 19th century woodblock, printed in 1997 on Do Paper,
Yen Ninh Pagoda.
International
Print Center New York is a new non-profit institution founded
to promote the greater appreciation and understanding of the
fine art print worldwide. Through innovative programming,
IPCNY fosters a climate for the enjoyment, examination and
serious study of artists' prints--from the old master to the
contemporary. IPCNY offers its members a program of workshop
and gallery visits, and has established an informational website.
IPCNY's new prints program presents an ongoing series of juried
exhibitions of contemporary prints. IPCNY depends upon public
and private donations to support its programs.
Funding
for Traces and Traditions: Vietnamese Woodblock Prints
is generously provided by the Ford Foundation.
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