An artistic journey beyond words, where traditional Vietnamese lacquer meets the sacred language of Thangka and the singular touch of the artist’s hands.
17 — 26/9/2026
1st & 2nd floors, Fine Arts Exhibition House · 16 Ngô Quyền Street, Hanoi
Zen Artist Chân Như (Lê Mạnh Hùng)
and his students: Định Tâm (Phan Nha Trang) · Lê Hồng Giang
EXHIBITION
“PERMANENCE”: WHEN PAINTING BECOMES A WAY OF SEEING UNBORN AND UNDYING
Behind the ceaseless flow of change, what remains?
From this question emerged “Permanence,” a Zen Art Exhibition that takes viewers on an artistic journey beyond the visible.
Two Distinctive Innovations at Permanence:
01. Thangka Reimagined in Vietnamese Lacquer:
For the first time, the sacred tradition of Thangka painting is expressed through traditional Vietnamese lacquer, with every touch of colour and every layer of metallic leaf carrying the stillness and the inner experience of an artist who has devoted years to deep meditation practice.
02. Lacquer Painting with Ten Fingertips:
Chân Như paints lacquer directly with all ten fingertips — each touch and each stroke carrying the pulse of feeling and its immediate energy into the material.
For nearly two decades, Chân Như has devoted himself to Zen painting—an approach concerned less with reproducing the external world than with capturing subtle movements within, the artist’s resonance with life, and the transformations that arise through practice.
One of the most distinctive aspects of Chân Như’s practice is that he paints directly with all ten fingertips across a range of materials, including both oil and lacquer. Without brushes, preliminary sketches, or conventional compositional planning, each movement of the hands and each application of colour becomes part of a natural flow of emotion and intuition.
Alongside Chân Như’s own works, the exhibition reveals another dimension of his artistic journey: its continuation through a number of his students, foremost among them Định Tâm (Phan Nha Trang) and Lê Hồng Giang.
If an artwork can be the trace of a moment, then art passed from one person to another creates a current that can extend beyond the life of any one individual. What is passed on is not simply technique or a way of working with materials, but also the Dharma—a way of seeing and receiving the world through the stillness of Zen practice.
A look back at the exhibitions that have marked the artistic journey of Chân Như (Lê Mạnh Hùng)
SOLO EXHIBITION
Moments
Hanoi · 2020 — Each work holds on to a moment of the present, the mind resting wholly in what is happening now
SOLO EXHIBITION
Lotus – Father and Son
Hanoi · 2015 — A special milestone in Lê Mạnh Hùng’s artistic journey: his first exhibition together with his son
GROUP EXHIBITION
Homeland
Hanoi & Quảng Bình · 2013 — A group exhibition with painter Đỗ Viết Viên and fellow artists, bringing together a shared love for the many regions of Vietnam and paying tribute to those who gave their lives for the country
SOLO EXHIBITION
The Waiting Wharf
Hanoi · 2011 — A new chapter in the artist’s journey, expressing a longing for awakening—an invitation to board the boat of wisdom and compassion, leave the shores of delusion behind, and journey toward the far shore of peace
SOLO EXHIBITION
Time to Return
Hanoi · 2008 — The title means a return to oneself: setting down the shells of the ego to recognise the true person already present in everyone
GROUP EXHIBITION
The Soul of the Vietnamese Countryside
Hanoi · 2006 — A defining exhibition that marked the emergence of his distinctive artistic path, bringing together painting and the practice of meditation
PERMANENCE — EXHIBITION INFORMATION
Dates
17–26 September 2026 (Free admission daily, 8:30 AM–7:00 PM)
Opening Ceremony
5:00–8:00 PM | 17 September 2026
Venue
1st & 2nd Floors, Fine Arts Exhibition House, 16 Ngô Quyền Street, Hanoi
