Vũ Cao Đàm

Vũ Cao Đàm (1908-2000) was a Vietnamese painter. He was one of the alumni of Victor Tardieu's École des Beaux-Arts de l’Indochine in Hanoi in the 1930s, along with Mai Trung Thứ, Lê Phổ and woman painter Lê Thị Lựu to emigrate to France and make a career in Paris.

Vu Cao Dam was born on January 8, 1908 in Hanoi, Vietnam. A member of a large Catholic family, the artist was the fifth of fourteen children. His father, Vu Dinh Thi, was an intellectual and talented artist who excelled in Chinese calligraphy at an early age. His extensive studies of the French language, as well as a trip to Paris in 1889, left Vu Dinh Thi with a long-lasting fondness for French culture. This affection was passed on to his children, and Cao Dam would develop his own deep admiration for French art. Throughout his career, Vu Cao Dam continually looked to the work of French artists for inspiration.

In 1926, eighteen-year-old Vu Cao Dam entered the École des Beaux-Arts d'Indochine as a sculpture student. Through the teachings of Victor Tardieu, he was introduced to Western oil paintings and sculpting styles. However, students were also encouraged to be Vietnamese painters, sculptors and architects, learning traditional techniques such as painting on silk.

As one of two students in a brand new sculpture department, Vu Cao Dam excelled in modeling busts. Over the course of the five-year program, the emerging artist created numerous bronze pieces including: Tete de Jeune Fille, 1927; Young Peasant Girl, 1927; a bust of his father, Vu Dinh Thi, 1927; Rooster, 1927; Bust of Victor Tardieu, 1928; and Head of a Man with a Mandarin Hat, 1930. The bronze bust of Victor Tardieu was later donated to the Ecole des Beaux Arts d’Indochine by the Tardieu family.

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