Google Doodle, a temporary logo on the Google homepage, on Sunday featured Bui Xuan Phai, a late Vietnamese painter and artist, on the occasion of his 99th birth anniversary.
This is the second time a famous Vietnamese figure has been featured on the homepage of the world’s most popular search engine.
Google Doodle previously honored late Vietnamese songwriter Trinh Cong Son on February 28, which was his 80th birthday.
Bui Thanh Phuong, who is Phai’s son and also a professional painter, has expressed his gratitude toward Google on the official Facebook fanpage of Bui Xuan Phai.
“We sincerely thank Google, a multinational technology corporation from the United States, for honoring Bui Xuan Phai, my father, on the occasion of his 99th birthday (1.9.1920-1.9.2019),” Phuong wrote in the Facebook post.
Bui Xuan Phai loves his country and Hanoi, Phuong stated, adding that the late artist had contributed to the development of modern Vietnamese art with his unique works.
This Google Doodle has a very special meaning not only to the family but also to those who have been admiring Phai, according to Phuong.
During an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, Phuong said Google had contacted the family nearly one year ago to prepare for this.
Phuong has supplied Google with documents about his father, including his self-portrait.
According to Phan Cam Thuong, a researcher and art critic, Phai’s unique talent helped him become widely loved and stay “immortal” in the hearts of art lovers.
Through his works, Phai was able to create a very special sense of nostalgia for Hanoi, which no one has ever been able to do, Thuong elaborated.
Bui Xuan Phai was born in 1920 in Kim Hoang Village, Ha Dong District, Hanoi. He had lived in several places within Hanoi’s Old Quarter until his passing in 1988.
He attended the Indochina Fine Arts College in1941.
Aside from his well-known paintings about the Old Quarter, Phai was also famous for his artworks about theatrical topics, nude paintings, and portraits.
He was honored with many local and international awards, including the Ho Chi Minh Prize in literature and art in 1996, national art exhibition awards in 1946 and 1980, and Graphic Prize of Leipzig (Germany).
Source: Tuoitrenews
