Vu Dan Tan is a maverick in the Vietnamese contemporary art scene. He is a self-taught artist whose conceptual-based practice involves painting, drawing, sculpture, and mixed-media installation. Well-versed in music and literature, Tan’s works often bear reference to and get inspiration from Vietnamese traditional architecture, Greek mythologies, classic literary works, and popular culture. His idiosyncratic inventions are usually made from found materials, such as cardboard, newspaper, biscuit tins, cans, and vinyl records. Typically, he would create mystical creatures and fictional characters from his imaginary world.

Tan’s artistic practice deeply intertwines with his social practice. In 1990, he and his wife, Natasha Kraevskaia, founded Salon Natasha, the only art space then free from government supervision to showcase experimental works from young Vietnamese artists and foreign artists. The space is their home, artist studio, and gallery room to host exhibitions and events. It functioned as a meeting place for artists and intellectuals regardless of their cultural backgrounds. Many artworks exhibited there are collaborative by nature - artists would make works in the space, exchange ideas, and even work together on one piece. In a way, Salon Natasha witnessed the emergence of conceptual-based art practice in Vietnam.

Born in 1946 in Hanoi, Vu Dan Tan did not have access to formal education as a kid. His father is the playwright Vu Dinh Long (1896-1960), known for his “western-influenced” style play, Chen Thuoc Doc (A Cup of Poison) performed for the first time at the Hanoi Opera House in 1921. Vu Dan Tan served in the animation studio of Hanoi Television before he started his artistic career in the 1980s. Active in the underground art scene in Hanoi in the 1980s, Vu Dan Tan and Natalia Kraevskaia were regulars at the artist Bui Xuan Phai’s studio and Cafe Lam, where artists would gather together. Until his untimely death in 2009, Vu Dan Tan was considered one of the most important contemporary artists in Vietnam.