Translation of an essay on Le Hong Thai's lacquer arts by Birgit Hussfeld (originally written in German). It is one of the essays in the exhibition catalogue for 'Lacquer Earth Stones - Five Artists from Vietnam' which took place at the Museum of Lacquer Art, Münster, Germany, 1996.

‘Drowning = Solidity’ was a solo exhibition by Le Hong Thai. The artist in his early practice had been known for his abstract lacquer paintings with the employment of traditional lacquer technique on wood. In this exhibition Thai introduced to the public his experimental lacquer works on canvas for the first time, together with some of his abstract gouaches works.