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Ha Cam Tam was born in 1933 in Vietnam. A creative artist since 1950, he received his training from the Academy of Fine Arts in Saigon. He escaped Vietnam by boat in 1977 and resettled in the US in 1978. He is now a resident of San Jose, California.
During his early creative years, the artist lived closed to a stable of workhorses. He came to admire the beauty of these animals and was deeply affected by the abuses inflicted upon them by their keepers. Horses became the favorite subject of his paintings. He mostly portrayed them in a free and fun loving spirit, usually away from humans, their abusers.
He continued painting horses in the US, and was invited to teach Vietnamese Traditional Art at the University of Washington. He was also invited to write critical essays on various Vietnamese magazines. He continues to be active today, and is now exploring the realm of abstract art.
From 1955 to 1975, he held two to four exhibitions each year at libraries and cultural centers. Since he arrived in the US in 1975, he has held several exhibitions around the country, and also in Canada. |
 | Sketch Book: Showing WRECKAGE OF THE ESCAPE BOAT. It was by fate that Ha Cam Tam escaped from Vietnam on the same boat with other well-known Vietnamese artists. Ha paid the boat owner for a place on the boat, not knowing that he would meet some old friends. If happened that the well known writer Mai Thao, the composer Van Phung and his wife, the singer Chau Ha, the children story writer Quyen Di, and other lesser known artists were on the boat when Ha came on board. This coincidental assembly helped ease the fear of being captured by the government sea patrol and of the unknown dangers of the ocean. When the boat reaches that small Malaysian island, it was prevented by the locals from landing. The crew tried five times to and the boat was pushed back to the open sea each time. The locals finally allowed them to land and set up a camp to stay until they were contacted by officials from the United Nations. Being free of his belongings and worries, and having ample time to share life stories with his friends, the artists enjoyed a time that he still believes to the best of his life.
The boat, however, was later destroyed by a storm. The wreckage signaled the artist's farewell to his motherland, and reminded him that he would have to begin a new chapter in his life. |
Frolicking: For Ha Cam Tam, the horse is the most beautiful animal, the embodiment of the male physical strength and the female grace. This great creature also represents the spirit of freedom.
In this painting, the artist captures the power of that free spirit. Two horses, in their mere act of frolicking, stir up a mighty wind. Neither horse prevents the other from enjoying freedom. It is this concept of freedom that humans aspire to, yet can never achieve. Be free, and allow others to be free.
As a painter from the old school, Ha Cam Tam employs brushstrokes that is reminiscent of traditional calligraphy. The painter also applies a unique hand painting technique to his horse paintings. Because of this style, Ha Cam Tam has been accorded a special place in the community of Vietnamese contemporary artists. |  |
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