Nguyen Thanh Binh is perhaps unique among Vietnamese artists as after many years he returned to his Asian tools by conducting a study of oriental philosophy and aesthetics. Although fond of many Europeans, notably Klimt and Gris, he felt he had to

understand himself as an Asian if he was to produce paintings which satisfied him and his feelings as a Vietnamese. The philosopher Khong Tu, and especially his book Kinh Dich, led Binh into the ways of Daoism and Zen, which are now heavily reflected in his work.