Vuong Van Thao is a native Hanoian, born in 1969 and graduated from Hanoi Fine Arts University in 1995. His ‘Body and Dream’ series, for which he achieved international recognition, was first exhibited at Salon Natasha in 2001. These paintings and sculptures are affectionately referred to as his ‘bums’ artworks and are still an important and ongoing part of Thao’s art practice.

In 2006 Thao unveiled his first ‘Living Fossil’ sculpture series. He created a miniture model consisting of a house next to a power pole from each street in the Hanoi’s Old Quarter and cast each one in a cube of solid composite resin. In 2007 Thao was invited to exhibit this 68-piece work at the Singapore Art Museum as part of the Asia Pacific Art Awards, during which he was nominated as one of the 10 best artists in the region. The museum purchased the entire work for its permanent collection.

Chasing the “Living Fossil” concept for the last 10 years, Thao has created beautiful pieces that represent the loss of traditional values and urge us to think more about the effects of globalization and urbanization.