CHÓE ’ PAINTINGS Choe was an internationally acclaimed cartoonist; an artist who painted and sold multiple types of artwork: oil on canvas, silk painting, water color on rice-paper… He was also a writer, poet and composer. I first met Choe in late 1970 at the Bao Den News office, Saigon. At that time, he was just drawing cartoons for a few newspapers in Saigon. Only a few years later, he became a world famous cartoonist. Tu Do Gallery opened in June 24 th , 1989. We purchased 20 artworks from Choe in July. That was the very first collection of our art gallery. Choe’s silk paintings was very different from those by other Southern artists, most of whom attended the Gia Dinh Art Institute. They followed closely the traditional Le Van De style: fair and dreamy. As a self-taught artist coming from a cartoon background, Choe’s style was, on the other hand, a combination of bold, gutsy strokes and lavish colors. Many pointed out that Choe’s silk paintings weren’t correct accordi...
