Le Hien Minh, born in Hanoi and raised in Saigon, Vietnam, weaves together socio-historical and mystical themes with socially engaged issues to ignite meaningful dialogues about the human-made systems that govern our world. Renowned for her two-decade dedication to using traditional Vietnamese handmade Dó paper, she has distinguished herself through powerful works that seamlessly integrate this material into modern contexts. Her art, created with Dó paper, advocates for both cultural sustainability and the preservation of Vietnam’s rich artistic heritage.
Central to Le Hien Minh’s current work is the female experience, through which she maps the complex interconnections among myriad socio-historical and cultural forces that shape modern life. Her contemplative yet provocative art intertwines mystical and spiritual elements with metaphysical and surrealistic concepts. This unique approach encourages reflection on the intricate interplay between the tangible and intangible, the seen and unseen, and the visible and invisible systems that influence and govern our lives.
Since 2003, Le Hien Minh has participated in numerous national and international exhibitions. Highlights include exhibitions at the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts in Hanoi, Sculpture Expanded by the Association of Finnish Sculptors in Finland, the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum in Japan, and Gallery 400 in Chicago. Her work has been reviewed in The Brooklyn Rail, Art Asia Pacific, Ocular Magazine, and Art&Market, among others. She has received multiple grants and fellowships including the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Asian Cultural Council, the Goethe Institute, and the University of Illinois Chicago.
Le Hien Minh has also lectured at multiple public institutions, including the San Jose Museum of Art and the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum. Her book “Còn Lại | Rời Rạc” was acquired by the Joan Flasch Artist’s Book Collection, which is one of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago's special collections, and the Asian Art Archive in America.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2019 The States of Mind, Myorakuji Temple, Fukuoka, Japan
2013 Dó10, Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2012 Bố Hạo, Viet Nam National Fine Arts Museum, Hanoi, Vietnam
2007 Lê Hiền Minh, Vietart Center, Hanoi, Vietnam
2003 Untitled, Mai Gallery, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Untitled, Nha San Experimental Studio, Hanoi, Vietnam
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 See Saw Seen, Gallery 400, Chicago, USA
2023 Tongue & Nail, Iceberg Projects, Chicago, USA
A Village Before US, John David Mooney Foundation, Chicago, USA
2022 Pacific - Leipzig, Deutsches Haus, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2021 Making & Experiencing Asian Cultures, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
Within | Between | Beneath | Upon, The Factory Contemporary Arts Center, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2020 Divine Feminine, Objekti 6, Espoo, Finland
The Invisibility of Female Labour, LIA, Leipzig, Germany
The States of Mind, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
2019 Infinity, 25th Hakata Tomyo Festival, Fukuoka, Japan
Venus, Art Omi, New York, USA
Divine Feminine, Sculpture Expanded – Moving Laboratory of Public Arts, Helsinki, Finland
2018 Người [được] Ngắm / Bodies Survey[ed], San Art, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2017 bugs, birds..equations of the future, Mot++, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Home | Land, Taiwan Annual, Taipei, Taiwan
Ke: History of Now, Wedeman Gallery, Massachusetts, USA
2016 Hat | Tim, Dia Projects, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Còn Lại | Rời Rạc, Joan Flasch Artists’ Book Collection, Chicago, USA.
2014 The Room, Antique Street, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2012 The Walker, Ho Chi Minh city Museum of Fine Arts, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2011 Watusi Regime, Park Armory Avenue, New York, USA
2010 Body, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, Vermont, USA
2009 So Close Yet So Far Away, International Incheon Women Artist’s Biennale, Incheon, S.Korea
2004 Limbo, Warsaw Project Space, Cincinnati, USA
Modern Talks Vietnamese, Deutsche Telekom Tagungshotel, Stuttgart, Germany
Rites of Passage (Crossing the Threshold), Chidlaw Gallery, Cincinnati, USA
ARTIST BOOK
2012 Còn Lại | Rời Rạc
LECTURE
2023 School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA
2021 The Factory Contemporary Arts Center, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
University of Minnesota - Regis Center for Art, Minnesota, USA
2019 Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, USA
AWARDS/ GRANTS/ FELLOWSHIPS
2022-2024 University of Illinois Chicago, USA
Asian Cultural Council, USA
2020 Goethe Institute, Germany
2019 Asian Cultural Council, USA
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan
Art Omi, USA
2018 Finnish Cultural Foundation, Finland
2010 Vermont Studio Center, USA
2009 International Incheon Women Artists’ Biennale, S. Korea
RESIDENCIES
2020 Leipzig International Art Programme, Leipzig, Germany
2019 Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
Art Omi, Ghent, New York, USA
2010 Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, Vermont, USA
2009 Incheon Art Platform, Incheon, Korea.
SELECTED REVIEWS, PUBLICATIONS & MEDIA
2023 A Village Before Us, Art & Market by Zulkhairi Zulkiflee
Public and private politics in Vietnamese art, Chicago Reader by Wendy Wei
Tongue tied, Chicago Reader by Maxwell Rabb
Tongue & Nail, ArtForum April Issue
Tongue & Nails, New Art Examiner by Annette LePique
2022 New Currents: Le Hien Minh, Art Asia Pacific Issue 127 by Peter Chung
Art Asia Pacific Almanac 2022, Re-Reading Memory, Declaring Reality by Quyen Hoang
2021 Memory Notebook by Bill Nguyen
Ocula Magazine, Pathways into Sculpture in Vietnam by Nguyen Thuy Duong
Elle Magazine, Nghệ Thuật Cho Nhau Thêm Sức Mạnh by Nhat Ha
2020 Fukuoka Asian Art Museum Publication, The 79th Issue of The Ajibi News by Takako Kinoshita
2019 The Association of Finnish Sculptors, Sculpture Expanded by Tiina Veräjänkorva
2018 San Art Publication, Bodies Survey(ed) by Nguyen Hoang Quyen
2017 Harper Bazaar, Lê Hiền Minh by Linh Le
Art Asia Pacific Almanac 2017, Vietnam by Ruben Luong
Chất Liệu Giấy Trong Nghệ Thuật Điêu Khắc Việt Nam Giai Đoạn 2000-2015 by Dang Thi Phong Lan
2016 Art Asia Pacific, Hat|Tim by Dave Willis
2015 Citizen K, Me Con va Binh Dang Gioi by Nguyen Thi Hien
2014 Dep, Tinh si cung Do by Nhu Thao
2013 Nghe Thuat Moi, Mot Cuoc Trao Doi Ngan by Nguyen Thuy Hang
2012 Sai Gon Tiep Thi, Gia dinh la nen tang nghe that cua toi by Nguyen Dinh
2011 The Thao & Van Hoa Newspaper, Le Hien Minh bay tuong phat tai My by Vi Vi
2009 The Brooklyn Rail, 2009 Incheon Women Artists’ Biennale So Close Yet So Far Away by Robert C. Morgan
2007 Tia Sang Magazine, The gioi giay do trong tac pham Le Hien Minh by Thuy Hang
EDUCATION
2022-2024 School of Art & Art History, University of Illinois Chicago, Master of Fine Arts degree
2002-2004 Art Academy of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, USA, Bachelor of Fine Arts degree
2003 Corcoran College of Art and Design, Washington DC, USA
1998-2001 University of Fine Arts, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam