Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Museum

Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Museum is a place to store and display works of painting, sculpture, and antiques with high artistic value. This museum is the largest art center in Vietnam, attracting thousands of tourists and the local people to visit and learn the arts every year.

History of Ho Chi Minh Fine Arts Museum

The HCMC Fine Arts Museum building was designed by Mr. Rivera, a French architect, in 1929 and completed in 1934.

The building used to be the residence of a Chinese businessman named Hua Bon Hoa, one of the wealthiest and most famous people in Saigon at the time. He also owned many famous works, such as the Majestic Hotel, Tu Du Hospital, and Saigon Emergency Center.

This place was established in 1987 as the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts. However, there were not many artifacts there. In 1992, the museum opened to welcome visitors.

So far, the museum has become one of Vietnam’s major art centers. It stores and preserves many famous sculptures, paintings, and historical artifacts of the country and humanity. Typically, an invaluable artistic work is the lacquer painting of the Spring Garden in North-Central-South (Vuon Xuan Bac Trung Nam) of artist Nguyen Gia Tri.

The beautiful architecture of the museum

HCMC Museum of Fine Arts is a beautiful building with a harmonious combination of Asian architecture (China) and Europe (France).

The museum’s dominant yellow color makes space cover the old charm in the heart of the modern city.

Coming here, you can also see the roofs with yin and yang red tiles, the edge of roof tiles with green borders, and glass windows with a symmetrical pattern.

Each site of the museum is impressed by the different types of bricks. The stairs are paved with marble; the floor is covered with flower bricks. The corridor is light gray; the large door frames catch the wind and sunlight. These sites attract photographers and young people who want to have beautiful photos.

Area to display artifacts in the museum

The museum consists of three main buildings: the art display area is located on Pho Duc Chinh Street, the middle is a seasonal exhibition area, and the place facing Nguyen Thai Binh Street displays ancient art and sculpture.

The main area is a three-storey building with beautiful French–Chinese architecture and a large yard for ventilation. Here, you can admire art before and after 1975 and contemporary works of art. Most of the works here are paintings. Typically, there is a national lacquer painting by artist Nguyen Gia Tri. The 3rd floor of this area, with modern paintings, shows the vision of new-generation artists.

The ancient art and sculpture area does not have many guests coming, and there may be no clear guidance on how to get there. You can see Champa statues and Chinese-Vietnamese sculptures. Looking at these artifacts, you will imagine the old temples and houses somewhere in the ancient Chinese streets in District 5 or Central Vietnam.

What to do at HCMC Fine Arts Museum

HCMC Fine Arts Museum is a famous place in Saigon that you should visit. This attraction is suitable for both single and family tourists. When you come here, you can do a lot of things, including:

• Enjoy and study of the art through many famous paintings,
• Explore your interest in art through different styles of drawing,
• Learn how to draw at the class in the yard at the weekends,
• Discover the classic beauty of the building of the Fine Arts Museum,
• Please take pictures of you with the beautiful building to remember your journey, or share them with friends.

---

Art is borderless, and this museum is worth visiting when you travel to Ho Chi Minh City. It is not far from the tourist town of Pham Ngu Lao and Bui Vien Street, District 1, so you can take a taxi there.

If you love classic style, are fascinated by skillful patterns on buildings, and are passionate about exploring culture and art, you will definitely like this Arts Museum hidden in the bustling city of Saigon.