The legendary artist Bui Xuan Phai knew the streets and the people of Hanoi by heart. This self-portrait depicts the artist at his easel, concentrating on the painting in front of him. He is entirely immersed in the act of creation, unleashing his artistic capabilities and imagination. The bold lines of Phai’s self-portrait emphasizing movement, celebrate his expressive style. Bui Xuan Phai, one of the internationally best known Vietnamese artists, was persecuted in 1957 for his support of the Nhan Van movement for political and cultural freedom, and was only ‘rehabilitated’ in 1984, when he was allowed to hold his first solo. In 1996, he was amply vindicated when he was posthumously awarded the coveted Ho Chi Minh Prize. He graduated from the Fine Arts College of IndoChina in 1946, and was involved in the anti-French resistance in Viet Bac and the August 1954 Revolution in Hanoi. He was dubbed one of the Four Pillars of Vietnamese Art, the others being Nguyen Tu Nghiem, Duong Bich Lien and Nguyen Sang.