Born in Hanoi, Tran Trong Vu (b.1964) graduated from Hanoi University of Fine Arts in 1987. In 1989, Vu won a scholarship to study at Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts de Paris. His breakthrough came when, in Europe, he was exposed to individualism in style, instead of the conformist art that he was taught to admire. Currently, Vu lives in France and his works have been exhibited in Europe and the United States.This triptych reveals Vu’s introspection of the Vietnamese society and its people. The text in this work is translated as follows:"Rainwater even though it is salty, it is not romantic."Rainwater even though it is salty, it is not speechless. Each panel suggests human suffering, and the monotony of everyday life hidden behind the half-smiles, point at the loss of identity and conformity brought about by an increasingly globalized environment.
