A seminar discussing solutions to improve the quality of art photography products was organized late last week.

Photographic Artist Tran Thi Thu Dong, chair of the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists, emphasized that the photography industry is endeavoring to overcome difficulties to continue to develop sustainably, aiming to build a photography industry and implement the cultural industry development strategy.

Dong said Vietnam’s fine-art photography has gained remarkable results, but there are still few works deserving the strong development of the country, and there are few major influential artists as seen in previous development periods.  

The thing that needs to be done immediately is building a policy on training and re-training photographers to help them optimize their creative abilities, in association with social responsibilities and citizen obligations, according to Dong.

Tran Quoc Dung, a photography critic and researcher, commented that for photographic artists, creating high-quality artworks is always their highest aspiration. But it is not an easy task, because "artists today not only spend time on arts, but they also have to do business to earn money and contribute to the country’s development".

"In the past, artists composed products based on their passions, interests, and strengths, while now their works must carry responsibility towards society. For example, the works need to reflect industrial and agricultural development, as well as cultural events in daily life and fatherland protection,” Dung said.

“No matter how talented there are, they cannot create high-quality products with social topics if they cannot get support from agencies and organizations, and if they cannot have favorable conditions to approach events,” he explained. “The quality of artistic works can only be improved with the support from the society."

Artist Nguyen Duc Toan believes that in order to direct the creation of photographic works with high artistic value and positive impact on society, creators and appraisers must change their concept of art and follow the same direction.

Innovation in artistic perspective and in thinking is needed. 

Artists should not repeat the styles created in the past. Creators should also spend more time paying attention to the results of many photo competitions, watch more photo exhibitions to know and remember previously created camera angles, to avoid accidentally repeating the same angles and styles used by predecessors.

It is always difficult to innovate and have these innovations recognized in the arts world. Therefore, creators need to be patient in the process when meeting obstacles on their paths.

“Be creative with the belief in good things. Believe that works with real value will be recognized today or tomorrow,” Toan commented.

Tran Manh Thuong, a critic, said artists need to pursue a specific style of their own which cannot be mistaken for others’ styles.

“During the process of creativity, artists need to learn from predecessors, but they must not imitate the predecessors’ styles. You must not be the ‘shadow’ of anyone,” he said, adding that he recently has noted that many photographers imitate each other’s styles.

“It happens that after an artist win a prize at a competition, photographers rush to take a series of photos with the same motif and with small differences in time and landscapes."

For example, if photographers visit the northwest region, all of them take pictures of terraced fields, either in Hoang Su Phi, Xin Man and Ha Giang, or Mu Cang Chai, Yen Bai and Lao Cai.

“If the problem cannot be solved, Vietnamese photography will end up with poor themes, lack of vivid content, lack of ideological depth, and similar styles,” he concluded.

Tinh Le