Hang Trong Paintings

Most of us grew up having our family holiday traditions regardless of where you are from or what tax bracket your family falls into. Whether it is getting a real Christmas tree for the Christmas holiday, making grandma’s stuffing recipe on Thanksgiving, or lighting oil lamps with loved ones during Diwali, we not only celebrate the holiday but also cherish our family’s take on the activities associated with the holiday. Then one day, we have our own family and pass on those traditions to new family members.

I remember vividly when I was a child, during Tet, my family would decorate our living room with folk paintings, cherry blossom branches and a kumquat tree. For me, one of the holiday traditions that I cherish is picking out Hàng Trống painting or Vietnamese folk woodcut painting to decorate our place.

Hàng Trống paintings originated from the area of Hàng Trống street in the Old Quarter of Hanoi, Vietnam. They are made by both printing and painting techniques. The first stage of making the painting is printing black outlines using woodblocks, then drawing the details and coloring the picture by hand. Hàng Trống craftsmen colorize pictures with pigments, therefore; the tone of Hàng Trống paintings is usually vibrant and bright with principal colors being pink, blue, green, red and yellow. There is a wide variety of categories such as religious rituals, daily activities, nature, ancient stories, and Tet . The category of Tet is one of the most famous with most of them exhibiting the family’s wishes for the new year. For example, the painting "Chim Cong" (peacock) is believed to bring fame and fortune, or "To nu" (Virgin Girl) depicts four beautiful girls performing musical instruments as a wish for a happy new year.

This Tet, I give my living room a makeover with a Hàng Trống painting called "Ca chep vuot vu mon" (Carp jumping the dragon gate) and quince with a hope for a year of transformation and perseverance.

What about you? What are your family traditions?

Tet holiday decorations

“Carp jumping the dragon gate” is the symbol of transformation and perseverance