The talented artist emerged from the Soviet Nghe Tinh 'source'

His eyes were filled with tears, his trembling hands gently touched each photo as if he wanted to find the warmth of the past. People knew him as a famous painter, a pioneer of modern Vietnamese art, but in that moment, he was just a child returning, small and moved by family memories, by the shadow of a glorious history.

Rooted in a patriotic family

On the eve of the 95th anniversary of the Nghe Tinh Soviet, during a meeting with the soldiers' relatives, I had the opportunity to talk with artist Le Huy Tiep.

He did not talk much about himself but enthusiastically talked about his parents and childhood memories with a warm Nghe accent. It seemed that in each word, the love for his fatherland permeated every layer of memory.

Born in 1950, in Nghi Long commune, old Nghi Loc district (now Trung Loc commune, Nghe An province), Le Huy Tiep grew up in a noble family with a tradition of mandarin education and patriotism.

His great-grandfather was Le Huy Nghiem, a mandarin who held many positions under the Nguyen Dynasty.

When he was the District Chief of Phu Loc, he was a close friend of Phan Dinh Phung. Later, when he went to Son Tay to become an official, Nghiem still secretly helped the insurgents of Hoang Hoa Tham and Nguyen Thien Thuat.

Once, because he refused to convict and even acquitted a rebel leader, he was removed from office.

Returning to the officialdom for a short time, he was promoted to the position of An Sat Hai Duong but soon resigned, determined not to collaborate with the French invaders, keeping the integrity of a patriotic Confucian scholar.

His father, comrade Le Huy Diep, was one of the first party members in 1930, Secretary of the first Nghi Loc District Party Committee, later held many important positions in Nghe An Provincial Party Committee, and was a member of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee.

His mother, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thiu, was a communications officer of the Central Region Party Committee in 1930 and was imprisoned in Vinh Prison. Later, she held the position of President of the Nghe An Women's Union, President of the Inter-Zone IV Women's Union, and a member of the 2nd National Assembly.

Her aunt was Mrs. Nguyen Thi Xan, also a loyal female soldier in the Nghe Tinh Soviet movement, member of the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee in 1930 and was also imprisoned at Vinh Prison.

In front of the portraits of his parents and aunt hanging solemnly in the museum, Le Huy Tiep recounted the love story of his parents: A steadfast love between two communists.

They were active in the revolutionary movement from the 1930s but it was not until after the August Revolution that they had the opportunity to meet again.

After more than ten years of wandering, he still waited for her. When he proposed, she was afraid that the torture she had experienced would make her unable to become a mother, so she refused.

But his faithful love, along with the encouragement of the organization, touched her heart. In 1948, a simple but warm wedding was held, bringing joy to comrades and friends.

Two years later, the boy Le Huy Tiep was born, the crystallization of steadfast love and revolutionary ideals.

Gratitude from the heart of an artist

In the Vietnamese painting world, Le Huy Tiep is one of the typical faces, a pioneer of the third generation of painters in modern fine arts.

Working tirelessly, constantly creating, opening up many methods of expression, he became famous in both the fields of painting and printmaking and was once Chairman of the Art Council of the Vietnam Fine Arts Association.

Talking about his chance to come to painting, he mentioned Mr. Le Van Mien (his grandfather's younger brother).

In 1892, the Hue court selected three officials' children to send to France to study at the Colonial School (École Coloniale) in Paris, Mr. Mien was one of them.

During his time studying abroad, he not only studied well but also showed his mettle early on, leading many groups of colonial students to stand up and fight.

After graduating, instead of returning to become an official like his two classmates, Le Van Mien chose to stay in Paris, studying at the Paris School of Fine Arts (École des Beaux-Arts de Paris) under the guidance of painter Jean-Léon Gérôme.

He mastered oil painting, the most popular material in Europe at that time, and became the first person to bring oil painting to Indochina.

In 1898, he returned to the country and took on various positions, including that of professor of painting and French at the Hue National School.

At this school, teacher Le Van Mien once had a special student, Nguyen Tat Thanh.

Later, when Vietnam Television made the documentary "The Teacher of Nguyen Tat Thanh" broadcast on VTV1, the image and contributions of Le Van Mien were once again mentioned with gratitude and respect.

Perhaps from that source, the career of holding a brush came to Le Huy Tiep as a destiny. In 1966, he passed the entrance exam to the Hanoi School of Industrial Fine Arts.

Three years later, he was sent to the Soviet Union to study at the Faculty of Graphics, Moscow University of Industrial Fine Arts, and returned in 1975.

In 1985, while studying in the former Soviet Union, he created the ceramic painting “Uncle Ho in front of the map”. The painting consists of 88 ceramic pieces, measuring 165 x 112.5 cm. To achieve the desired color, he had to fire it three times at temperatures ranging from 800 to 1,200 degrees Celsius.

In early 2000, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Party's founding and the 110th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's birthday, artist Le Huy Tiep and the Nghe An Association in Hanoi presented this work to the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee as a tribute to their homeland.

Not stopping there, in 2022, he presented the Nghe Tinh Soviet Museum with two priceless souvenirs: the 60-year Party membership badge of his mother and his aunt.

A year later, in 2023, the artist returned and presented the logo he had designed to the museum. The logo is simple, with concise lines, a crystallization of modern artistic thinking and historical spirit, so that the revolutionary movement of 1930-1931 will live forever in the community's memory.

Listening to him tell his story, I understood that painting for Le Huy Tiep is not only a career but also a way for him to repay his homeland.

The paintings, memorabilia, and designs he handed down were not simply works of art but words of gratitude, a continuation of the lineage of a revolutionary family.

What he left behind not only enriched Nghe An's cultural treasure but also affirmed a truth: No matter where you go or where you become famous, your heart always belongs to its roots.

In the eyes of that artist, I saw a whole flow, from the tragic Soviet years of Nghe Tinh, through the ups and downs of family, to the painting career and the grateful gifts. Everything was like a symphony, when colors, memories and love for the homeland blended into a sacred melody.