viet art show @ green rice gallery

The Twin Sides of Temptation: An Exploration into the Realm of Duality

Artist Reception: Friday May 20th - 5:30 pm - 10pm
Wine and Hors d'oeuvres will be served
Roundtable Discussion: In Searching for the New Vietnamese Visual Language
Friday May 20th - 8pm - 9pm
Exhibition: May 20th through June 4th
Opens Friday from 10 am - 5pm, Saturday from 1pm - 4pm and by appointment

Art goes where science cannot tread, and GreenRice Gallery will be presenting several artists' explorations of the soul, the essence of our humanity, in a show titled "The Twin Sides of Temptation." This is a natural follow-up to the gallery’s debut exhibition that celebrated the
minority cultures of Northern Vietnam while attempting to reconcile their place in the modern world. In the new show, the focus is on the dual forces that govern the soul and the intent is to identify the source of these forces – an exploration that leads to the recognition that the quest for spiritual fulfillment is part and parcel of the more familiar struggles for sustenance, status, sex and security.

Most cultures and religions present humans as obeying two masters—the high road of spiritual renunciation vs. the temptations of earthly pleasures. We see it in Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden. We recognize it in the Zen story of the Buddhist acolyte who cuts off his arm to prove his total devotion to the search for Enlightenment, thus suffering the conundrum of
showing his desire to rid himself of desire.

Six artists—Thai Bui, Jenny Do, Trinh Mai, Hien Nguyen, Rung, and Minh Tuan—will lay bare for us the reality that we prefer, sometimes, to suppress. Their understanding is that spiritual longings are just another facet of our insatiable desires; our urges to purify ourselves, to rise above the din and clangor of our bodily lusts and greed, are little different than our other temptations. We are thus invited to experience ecstasy in the spiritual and recognize serenity of the soul in our base physical pleasures. Tracing this spiritual ecstasy and physical serenity back to their source, we confront the two faces of temptation. And the artists, through this show, share with us the experience of their confrontation, and by doing so, celebrate the richness and depth of human gratification.

GreenRice Gallery also has the privilege to showcase the works of other well- known Vietnamese and Vietnamese American artists, such as Le Thiet Cuong, Quach Dong Phuong, Nguyen Quoc Dzung, Hoang Dang Nhuan, Pham Hoang, and Tran Huy Hoan. The gallery holds several exhibitions annually.

GreenRice Gallery is located on the third floor of the San Jose Chamber of Commerce Building, across from Original Joe's Restaurant. The address is at 300 South First Street, Suite 310, San Jose, CA 95113. Entrance and parking are on SECOND STREET. For more information, please call (408) 691-6489 or write to us at admin@greenricegallery.com.