While the handicraft village of Non Nuoc (Marble Mountains) attracts many foreign tourists for sight seeing and shopping, the Danang Sculpture Foundation lures many foreign sculptors as a place of art creation and transferring their sketches into stone sculptures in different sizes.
The Danang Sculpture Foundation is located on a small road at Hoa Hai ward, Ngu Hanh Son district. With little traffic, the cutting and carving stones sounds clear and bustling. Danang carvers and foreign artists work at full stretch on each slide of carving. There is no difference in hair colour as everything becomes white with stone powder. It is a vivid sign of cultural exchange and integration.
For many years, the Foundation has become a reliable destination for sculptors from many countries. Among more than 70 foreign artists who have visited the Foundation, over 40 sculptors from Norway, Sweden, Germany, Holland, Austria, Israel, US, Australia and Singapore, etc. have stayed here for many days, many weeks to compose and finish their artwork. Some artists bring their models from home; some find their inspiration for creation right from the local cultural tradition and the charming and impressive beauty of the city by the poetic Han River. Some need the assistance of the skilled carvers at the Foundation to transfer their models into stones; the others carve by themselves as an opportunity of practising their skills.
At the beginning of the year, the Foundation received seven sculptors from Sweden. They came here to work and also to visit Danang to understand Vietnamese life and culture to “enrich their knowledge and seek for inspiration of creation.” During their break, we had a cheerful talk. Being asked why she chose this place, a Swedish sculptress replied “Through the Foundation’s website, we find this a very convenient for our work. The equipment for carving is quite modern. The carvers are professional and can communicate in English. Costs of stones and labour are much lower than in Europe. And we can also combine working with an interesting travel to Danang. It’s fantastic!” Her friend came here according to a recommendation of a Norwegian sculptor who has a strong attachment to this place. He showed her many photos of stone sculptures done by the Foundation’s carvers in Norway, which met a very demanding standard of art. So she was attracted by their talents. She said “I have finished my work here in a month. Nothing to complain. Thank the talented Danang carvers. Thank my Norwegian colleague for his valuable advice”.
Many foreign sculptors have come and gone but one has chosen Danang as his second homeland, chosen the Danang Sculpture Foundation as his studio. It is the Norwegian sculptor, Oyvin Storbaekken. At this place, he has finished his big sculpture with the three ladies from three regions of Vietnam and offered it to Danang city. The sculpture is displayed on the eastern side of Han River. Everyday he comes to the workshop to create new sculptures. He is now a voluntary senior advisor of the Foundation, a contact with many foreign sculptors, particularly from the Scandinavia to Danang.
Oyvin is quite proud of the team of Danang carvers whom he has had a significant role in training during the past five years. Thanks to him, the carvers have learned a lot of things, contemplating of their own eyes world – famous sculptures in European museums, learning how to carve in granite in Norway and exchanging their experiences with other stone carvers in Italy, etc. As a result, the young Danang carvers are confident in their skills and some of their own models have been selected to display at national fine art exhibitions. Domestic and foreign sculptors who participated the first international sculpture symposium in Danang in 2006 admitted that this was the best team of carvers among others in other symposia in Vietnam…
(Brief translation of an article in Danang Culture and Tourism Magazine, on the 35th anniversary of Vietnam’s Liberation Day, 30/4/1975 – 30/4/2010)
