
Le Pho 黎譜 | The three bathers 三位浴者
1938
Le Pho's "The Three Bathers" exemplifies the artist's sophisticated synthesis of Vietnamese and French artistic traditions through its delicate application of ink and gouache on silk. The composition depicts three female figures in an intimate moment of bathing, rendered with graceful linework and subtle color harmonies that reflect the influence of both traditional East Asian painting and modern Western aesthetics. This work showcases Le Pho's mastery of the demanding silk medium and his characteristic ability to convey quiet elegance and psychological introspection through simplified forms and restrained tonality.
- Medium
- ink and gouache on silk
- Signed
- Yes
- Location
- Sotheby's, New York, NY
- Spotted At
- Auction House · Sotheby'sView on map
🔨 Auction Lot
Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction
March 29, 2026
Estimate: $4,800,000 to $6,800,000
Lot 46
More by Lê Phổ
Artists in conversation

Vu Cao Dam
Vietnamese · b. 1908

A contemporary of Le Pho who trained at the same Ecole des Beaux Arts de l'Indochine, Vu Cao Dam similarly painted intimate female figures using ink and gouache on silk, blending Vietnamese delicacy with French modernist sensibility in soft, harmonious tones.
Mai Thu
Vietnamese · b. 1906
Mai Thu created serene figurative works on silk depicting Vietnamese women in quiet, intimate moments, sharing Le Pho's graceful linework, muted color palette, and the same East Asian and French academic fusion that defines this bathing composition.
Helene Carre
French · b. 1879
Carre produced intimiste paintings of bathing and grooming female figures rendered with soft color harmonies and gentle, flowing contours that closely parallel the serene mood and figurative treatment seen in Le Pho's three bathers composition.
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