» Artist » Tran Luong

Tran Luong (b. 1960, Vietnam) graduated from the Hanoi University of Fine Arts in 1983 and later formed a collective with fellow painting graduates that became known as the Gang of Five and was responsible for leading the development of contemporary art in Vietnam. From 1990 to 1996, the Gang of Five mounted major exhibitions in Hanoi (twice), Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), London, and Hong Kong, and participated in several international group exhibitions. Previously, they had organized monthly exhibitions in each other’s homes in response to otherwise limited opportunity. Tran Luong has played a critical role in generating support for artists in Vietnam. In 1998 he co-founded Nha San Studio (also known as Nha San Duc), Hanoi’s leading alternative art space, and curated the majority of the exhibitions during its first four years of operation. He co-founded the Hanoi Contemporary Art Centre in 2000, serving as its Director until 2003.

Tran Luong currently serves as Director and co-founder of the Center for Art Patronage and Development (APD). He is also Chair of the Advisory Board of The Resilient Housing Program / Sống Foundation, a member of the Arts Council of the Asian Cultural Council (ACC), New York (since 2019), and an advisory member of the Mekong Cultural Hub (British Council) (since 2017).

In 2004, Luong organized Lim Dim, an international performance art event in Hanoi. (He curated an exhibition with the same title, featuring 16 contemporary artists from Vietnam, for the Stenersen Museum, Oslo, in 2009.) He has participated in numerous performance art festivals including Future of Imagination, Singapore, 2006 and 2012; UP-ON, International Live Art Festival, Chengdu, China, 2008; Beyond Pressure, International Performance Art Festival, Yangon, Myanmar, 2008; Global Warming! Global Warning!!, Perfurbance #4, Mount Merapi, Indonesia, 2008; and Guangzhou Live, China, 2010.

Luong has been the subject of solo exhibitions and has staged solo performances at Tokyo Gallery, 1997; Nha San Studio, Hanoi, 1998, 2000, and 2010; Art in General, New York, 1999; Robert F. Brush Art Gallery, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, 2000; Cave Gallery, Brooklyn, 2003; and Goethe Institut, Hanoi, 2004. He is a member of the curatorial team for the 2013 Singapore Biennial, and has participated in notable group exhibitions including Imagined Workshop, Fukuoka Asian Art Triennial, Japan, 2002; Post-Doi Moi: Vietnamese Art After 1990, Singapore Art Museum, 2008; Inward Gazes: Performance Art in Asia, Macau Museum of Art, 2008; Strategies from Within: Vietnamese and Cambodian Contemporary Art, Ke Center, Shanghai, 2008; and Negotiating Home, History and Nation: Two Decades of Contemporary Art in Southeast Asia 1991–2011, Singapore Art Museum, 2011. Luong lives and works in Hanoi.

Studio Visit with Tran Luong

In this interview, artist–curator Tran Luong reflects on his artistic journey, the guiding role of intellectual engagement, and his aspiration to build a sustainable art ecosystem for future generations. A key figure in establishing pioneering spaces for critically engaged contemporary art in Vietnam, as well as in supporting and nurturing younger generations of artists, Tran Luong moves beyond conventional notions of curatorial practice. He encourages artists to expand the boundaries of their work while continuously creating opportunities for exchange both locally and internationally. In the conversation, he also speaks about his long-standing affinity with performance art, emphasizing the body as a tool for seeking freedom – resisting the commodification of art while dissolving class barriers in its reception. Tran Luong is a co-founder of Nhà Sàn* Studio, and currently serves as Director and co-founder of the Center for Art Patronage and Development (APD). He is also Chair of the Advisory Board of The Resilient Housing Program / Sống Foundation, a member of the Arts Council of the Asian Cultural Council (ACC), New York (since 2019), and an advisory member of the Mekong Cultural Hub (British Council) (since 2017).

*The name Nhà Sàn often refers to a group of artists who come from or are associated with Nhà Sàn Studio and Nhà Sàn Collective. Nhà Sàn Studio was co-founded in 1988 by Nguyen Manh Duc and artist Tran Luong, while Nhà Sàn Collective refers to a later generation of Nhà Sàn artists, from 2013 onwards.

This video is part of a series of interviews by Nguyễn Art Foundation.