Nguyễn Ðức Thọ (20 September 1945) is a Vietnamese artist who was North Vietnamese war artist whose career spanned the Second Indochina War (also known as the Vietnam War). He was born in Hà Nam Province into a family with strong ties to the revolution against French colonialism. His mother and father donated fabric and bicycles to the Việt Minh. After studying the intermediate art course at the Vietnam Fine Arts College, he joined the

People's Army of Vietnam The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the ...

(PAVN) in May 1965 during the heightened American bombing campaign of Operation Linebacker. First serving as a regular soldier in a missile unit, he was later sent to the Soviet Union for training and education on missile systems as a soldier and engineer. He became a war artist after his unit recognized his talent for art, and due to the army’s natural demand for art. He was in charge of making banners, decorating meeting halls and drawing propaganda posters for his unit. However, he also made images for purely documentary purposes. His paintings were shown in many divisional exhibitions and published in '' Quân Đội Nhân Dân'' (‘People’s Army’ newspaper). Many of his images involved scenes of ant-aircraft defenses. He was able to draw in many famous locations, including the Ho Chi Minh Trail, Highway 9, Khe Sanh, the

Second Battle of Quảng Trị The Second Battle of Quang Tri ( vi, Trận Thành cổ Quảng Trị; also called Operation Lam Sơn 72) began on 28 June 1972 and lasted 81 days until 16 September 1972, when South Vietnam's Army of the Republic of Vietnam defeated the North Vi ...

and eventually in

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

in 1975 during and after liberation. He graduated the Vietnam Fine Arts College in 1976. In the same year, his painting ''Evening on the Red River'' was given to the Cuban government. He remained in the PAVN until 1990, working with them to reorganize museums and art exhibitions. He also painted from his recollections of the Vietnam War and his work was included in many exhibitions throughout Vietnam.

Notable works

* Evening on the Red River (1974) * Pitted (1985) * Wish Uncle Ho (1995) * The Focus On the Trail (2000) * Ba Đình One Morning in May

Collections

* Vietnam National Fine Arts Museum * Ho Chi Minh City Museum or Fine Arts
Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Association

The British Museum

Witness Collection (Cuban Government)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nguyen, Duc Tho 1945 births Living people People from Hà Nam province Vietnamese artists North Vietnamese people 20th-century Vietnamese artists Vietnam War artists People's Army of Vietnam