Van Minh NGUYEN (1930-2014) Red-ground lacquer panel depicting an archaic Chinese guang-type coffee pot set in the center of a gray and gold lacquered square. Unsigned. 87.5 x 46 cm Accompanied by a photo of the artist near his work. Born in 1934, Nguyễn Văn Minh graduated valedictorian from the Gia Dinh School of Fine Arts in 1958. A renowned master lacquerer, he spent a long period perfecting his lacquer technique between 1961 and 1962 at the National Industrial Arts and Research Institute in Kyoto and Sendai. Widely recognized for his mastery of this material, in 1967 he produced a large-scale lacquer for the interior decoration of the Vietnamese presidential palace, "Bình Ngô Đại Cáo". Before 1975, together with painter Nguyễn Văn Trung, he set up a lacquer workshop renamed Mê Linh, and assumed the role of director. In 1975, he emigrated to the United States, where he met with great success, and was subsequently the subject of numerous exhibitions on American soil, as well as in France, Belgium, Italy and Vietnam. His success continues to this day; he has spent over 60 years passionately pursuing his work in lacquer, and his works are sought after by collectors in Vietnam and abroad.