History

Lacquer was brought in Vietnam by Chinese craftmen. However, the introduction date is still a source of debates and a subject of discussions. According to some archeologists, the use of lacquered ornament dated from the first invasion of the Chinese (discovery of the lacquered articles in the tombs dated the 3rd – 4th centuries AD). Some others believe this technique was introduced in the 15th century by Trần Tường Công, ambassador to China’s court.
This person was assigned by King Lê Nhân Tôn (1443-1460) to find a work that could bring new incomes to the peasants. He was initiated into mysteries of lacquer in Chinese factories of Hunan province. The lacquer is in fact the milky liquid obtained by incision of lacquer tree. Thanks to the solidification in open air and the resistance to acid and scratches, the resinous gum constitutes an ideal protection for wood and bamboos.
In 1930, in Vietnam was invented the term “rubbed lacquer”. They used previously the term “indigene painting” in everyday language. It is comes from sap of a tree called “Rhus Verniciferum”, responsible for cutaneous allergy, which is grown in Vietnam and also in China and Japan.
In Japan, this sap was already used in the Asuka period (in 538-645 AD). In the Nara period, the court established a special service to take care of the corporations of lacquerers and provided lands for the peasants who cultivated strawberries (for silkworms) and Rhus vernicifera trees.
In Vietnam, Rhus vernicifera trees grown on the hills of Phu Tho province give a high-quality sap which is sough after in China and in Japan. The best lacquer is one that is collected before sunrise.
This resin is used for the production of lacquerware. Lacquered articles offer a large variety: partitions, boxes, trays, vases, chessboards, etc.

Work of lacquer requires lots of preparations and great care.

Process of making a painting

The support is prepared with a plate made from high-quality wood. First, one makes a coating of clay powder, mixed with resin of raw lacquer, then that must be left to dry. After that, the craftsman applies a coating of wood powder, also mixed with the resin, and puts a very thin coating of cotton on the two surfaces of the board. After drying, one needs to make about ten more coatings of raw lacquer, leave each coating to dry and rub it with pumice, in order to get at last a smooth and flat support.
The artist starts with black lines. Then, he applies colours, one after another, and one on another after each drying, of course. There must be in general several coatings of each colour.
It is the rubbing with pumice that makes it finally possible to mix the colours. In particularly, it brings out the lines and the colours of the first coatings. It is in this moment that the knowledge and experience of the craftsman play a very important role.
After all, one carries out a much more thorough and delicate operation to make the board brighter : with his hand palm, without any scratches and roughness, the artist rubs on all over the surface of the board sifted with a coating of carbon.
The board thus reaches to full brightness, one wipes the object with a dry smooth cloth to remove the carbon. And to complete all this, one applies a last coating of varnish.