VU CAO DAM | Le Repos Après le Bain (Rest After the bath)

Formerly in the Private Collection of Le Pho, the artist
Private Collection, France

This work is in good overall condition as viewed. There is evidence of light wear, small tears and losses along the edges of the work, but this does not affect the overall image. There is some very faint foxing to the silk, but this is consistent with the age of the work. Framed, under Plexiglas.
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Sensationally arresting and elegantly composed, Le repos après le bain (Rest after the bath) is an exquisite silk painting by the pioneering Vietnamese artist, Vu Cao Dam. While female figures – their sensual forms, ineffable grace and audacious allure - are one of the most pervasive themes in his oeuvre, the artist seldom depicted his famed Vietnamese ladies in the state of undress. The present lot offers a rare glimpse into an intimate scene where two women lounge upon a large divan, their feminine forms portrayed with striking subtlety. The figures’ repose and composure, as suggested in the title, capture a private moment shortly after a relaxing bath.  Their bodies are supple and delicately rendered, showcasing the artist’s mastery of silk painting techniques. Executed in the late 1930s, after Vu Cao Dam moved to Paris upon his graduation from the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Hanoi, Le repos après le bain (Rest after the bath) signifies a seminal moment in the artist’s career. It embodies the unique style that he developed - one that melds traditional Vietnamese qualities with Western approaches. However, what truly sets this masterpiece apart is the rare subject matter: the beguiling nude heroines of the work are bold representations of modern Vietnamese beauty.

 

Born in 1908, Vu Cao Dam was part of the first generation of Vietnamese artists who received the highbrow tutelage under the prominent Victor Tardieu, a French painter who founded the Ecole des Beaux-Arts de I’Indochine in Hanoi. The artist entered the Ecole in 1926, a year after its opening and was part of the second class of students who graduated right after artists such as Le Pho, Mai Thu and Nguyen Phan Chanh. The school was a cradle for artists who sought to harmonize the then silo’d practices of Vietnamese crafts and Western-style aesthetics. During this period, the practice of silk painting in particular flourished to great heights as a result of the innovations and technical skill of these pioneering figures. Vu Cao Dam’s silk paintings are amongst some of the most treasured and exquisite of the medium.

Tardieu and his counterpart Joseph Inguimberty introduced the study of nudes into the curriculum of the Ecole, as an important foundation on the anatomy of the human body. In studio classes, students like Vu Cao Dam, learned how to depict the nude by observing models—a notion and subject considered quite radical in early 20th century Vietnam. While this training informed the artist’s practice after he left his native country, Le repos après le bain (Rest after the bath) reveals a heightened innovation and individualized approach to the female nude portrait.  

The present lot exemplifies the artist’s willingness to explore fresh modes of figural representation and his engagement with the European art world at a critical juncture. In 1931, upon winning a scholarship for travel and study, Vu Cao Dam moved to Paris, an epicentre for avant-garde activity. He attended the Ecole du Louvre and was able to view in person, masterworks of the artists like Rodin, Renoir and Modigliani, and thus the various ways in which the female nude was depicted throughout art history. Additionally, artists were fervently exploring ways to transform the way people view, understand and admire the human figure. The ideas of contemporaneous artists often inspired Vu Cao Dam, who synthesized them into his own unique visual idiom, expressed beautifully in Le repos après le bain.

The artist, who was also a talented sculptor, soon devoted himself purely to painting. He developed a style that insisted on a strong affinity with his Vietnamese roots. Gaining more recognition, Vu Cao Dam participated in various prestigious art exhibitions include the Salon des Indepenants, the Salon des Tuileries and the Salon d’Autoome. Le repos après le bain (Rest after the bath) is a seminal work from this significant period, when Vu Cao Dam painted on silk and used soft yet confidant dark brushstrokes to delineate his subject matter.

The tightly cropped image shows the two ladies in languid poses – the allure of their elegant beauty heightened by Vu Cao Dam’s ingenious and intimate composition. One of the figures lies on a large seat; her right arm rests gingerly across her torso as she tilts her head downwards to rest upon her left shoulder.  The divan, painted in spontaneous black strokes and a warm reddish brown, sits diagonally across the image forming both the background and middle-ground of the work. The edges of the cushions on which the reclining nude rests comfortably, are shown in bold lines that cut across the space. Angled against the leaning position of the seated woman, these stark strokes create depth and dynamism within the scene in a brilliantly simple manner. In these astute ways, Vu Cao Dam demonstrates his confidence in applying Western notions of spatial perspective to elevate the viewing experience of his paintings.

Belonging to the zenith of Vu Cao Dam’s illustrious career, Le repos après le bain displays the full range of his idiosyncratic style and technical dexterity. As silk is one of the most delicate surfaces for painting, it requires the artist to command an immense control of his brush and ink to execute a truly successful work. The forms of the two graceful ladies in the current painting are rendered with smooth and subtle brushstrokes, revealing the influence of Chinese calligraphic techniques. Each curve, fold, crevice and feature of the feminine figure is expressed with an impressive understanding of the human body. The artist’s attention to detail is expressed in the fine facial features of the Vietnamese women. Yet the black outlines of their languid poses are applied with an inspired spontaneity. Additionally, the rough drybrush textures of the background not only create shadows within the work but also contrast the soft, silky skin of the figures. Faintly coloured with subtle tones of peach and beige, the skin of the nudes compliment the fragile nature of the silk medium.

In this gentle yet daring portrait, Vu Cao Dam establishes a fresh conception of the female nude by exhibiting the profound capacities of Vietnamese silk painting. In 1949, the artist left Paris and settled in the South of France where he would become neighbours with the modernist artist Marc Chagall. Although Vu Cao Dam’s later works were largely oil paintings, he continued to explore ways to depict the female form eminently. A rare and sensual work, Le repos après le bain (Rest after the bath) conveys the bold elegance of Vietnamese women, ultimately offering the viewer a captivating yet dreamlike encounter with beauty.