THUA THIEN – HUE (VNS)— Hundreds of art lovers in Hue City gathered at the office of Thua Thien-Hue Association of Writers and Artists on Sunday for the release of a new book on the life and works of renowned painter Buu Chi.

The 368-page book, titled Buu Chi – Artistic Career&World's Memory, is a collection of articles and statements about the artist's perspectives on arts and his ruminations on painting and contemporary artistic life.

It features reviews of Buu Chi's paintings including the impressions he made on famous musical composers, painters and writers such as Trinh Cong Son, and Nguyen Dac Xuan.

The book also includes a number of his works including Chinese-ink and oil paintings. Many of these works, which have been preserved by his wife and children, are being published for the first time.

Born to a royal family in Hue, Buu Chi (1948 – 2002) graduated from the Faculty of Law at Hue University in 1971.

But his real love was painting and the self-taught artist went on to become a painter of renown at home and abroad.

His anti-war paintings using Chinese ink brought him fame from around the world even before the end of the American War.

After the war ended in 1975, his oil paintings were sought after by collectors from many countries.

The book was released at the closing of an exhibition of Buu Chi paintings in Hue City.