Today we’d like to introduce you to Dan Nguyen.
So, before we jump into specific questions about your journey, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I am a figurative realist painter born and raised in Vietnam. I moved to the US in 2009 as an exchanged student at Atascadero High School. At 16 years old, I worked really hard in learning the language and adapting to a new culture, with the hope that I would be accepted in an American college. In 2016, I earned my BFA in Fashion Merchandising from The Academy of Art University in San Francisco, CA. After graduating from Fashion school, I wanted to explore another passion: painting. My chosen artistic path has been a straight, yet very rocky road, but the reward comes with challenging myself to become a bolder and stronger creative.
Recognized for my bold and vibrant color use, my narrative paintings tell stories of close relationships I value in life. The figures in my work are not afraid to be themselves and to be comfortable in their own skin.
I make art not only to express my personality but to also portray my love for the friends whom I consider family. Since I moved from Vietnam to the United States ten years ago, I have constantly been trying to find the same unconditional love that my parents have for me. However, just like anything in life, there is a downside in all relationships. By choosing to dig deep and highlighting the most vulnerable everyday moments and feelings I have in these interactions, I consciously capture not only their cheerful, uplifting, and pleasing aspects, but also the real, raw and sometimes uncomfortable attributes. As I continue to explore my body of work, I seek for answers and solutions to the struggles I face in friendships. With each painting, I slowly begin to accept and cherish the imperfection in my loved ones.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has been a very rough path with a lot of ups and downs. I had to face language difficulty, adapt to new culture, find way to fit in and make friends, and at the same time, try to maintain a high GPA (for my US visa status). Even up until these days, sometimes I feel very alone because I have no family with me. However, I am able to develop a great support system of my close friends, who truly care about me and support me through many challenges in the US. I am blessed and grateful for all the opportunities that are given to me.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with your work – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as an artist and what sets you apart from others.
Using oil paint as my main medium, I paint about love and human connection because relationships play a significant part in my everyday life. My expressive and colorful paintings often depict single or multi-figured compositions in carefully crafted environments that support the narrative. They are stories of friendships and relationships that I have had with unique creative individuals, whom I consider family. Throughout my time in the United States, I have been friends with a wide variety of people of different races, genders, educational backgrounds and ages, so diversity has a direct connection to the subjects and compositions of my art. From my experiences with human connections, relationships do not only contain happy and loving moments, but also raw and uncomfortable ones. Often, in order to further grow and understand one another, my friends and I must go through a process of learning each other’s good and bad qualities. As our relationship progresses deeper, we develop an unconditional love and acceptance of our flaws. When portraying human connection in art, it is important for me to stay honest and paint both good and bad aspects of all relationships because these layers of depth keep my audiences intrigued and analytical. My goal is to have them relate to each painting in many different emotional levels.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I just graduated with my MFA in painting from Laguna College of Art + Design. At the moment, my goal is to land an art college teaching job. I love to work with and inspire young students. During the pandemic, finding a job has been very difficult, but I am trying my best to stay positive and hope that my hard work pays off.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.dannguyen.art
- Email: painter@dannguyen.art
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dannguyen.art/
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