"Yesterday" (2010) is a stunning and quietly intense oil painting, and one of the most poignant of the critically acclaimed new portrait series by important emerging Vietnamese artist, Le Quy Tong. His portraits such as "Yesterday" all consist of close-up depictions of young, beautiful, androgynous Vietnamese individuals from the artist's own generation, painted in a manner that powerfully evokes specific moods and thoughts. Here, the artist portrays his sitter as looking downwards and away, as if reminiscing about days past, as underscored by the title. The artist's portraits are further defined by a nearly monochromatic blue, grey and sepia-toned palette, an unabashed gestural brushstroke, a dynamic yet thoughtful movement of paint and a sophisticated understanding of light. The artist is influenced by Eastern and Western Contemporary artists such as Yan Pei Ming, Jenny Saville, Marlene Dumas and Lucien Freud, as well as traditional Asian ink brush paintings and calligraphy. "Yesterday" measures 51.20 x 43.25 inches (130 x 110 cm) and is in excellent condition.

Le Quy Tong was born in Vietnam in 1977 and graduated from Hanoi Fine Art College in 2001. The artist has exhibited throughout Asia, Europe, the U.K. and U.S., including the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts, Hanoi; The Estel Gallery in Tennessee US; The Henry Martin Museum, France; The German Embassy in Vietnam amongst others. His portrait paintings are particularly sought after on both the primary and secondary markets.