Nguyễn Hiêm was born in 1915 in Châu Đốc, An Giang, into a farming family with no artistic background. From a young age, he showed a love for painting, shaping clay buffaloes with his own hands. As he grew up, Nguyễn Hiêm passed the entrance exam to the Gia Định – Sài Gòn School of Fine Arts and graduated in 1940.

In 1945, he joined the army and fought directly on the Southern Resistance front. Despite the hardships of war, he believed that the paintbrush was also a powerful “weapon” to support our people and troops. Many quick sketches and completed artworks emerged from this period, vividly portraying the heroic life and battles of the Vietnamese people. As a soldier and also an artist, he always carried with him a tin tube—cut from a bazooka shell—used to store his sketches, large and small, wherever he went.

During the resistance war, he created many valuable artworks on the theme of war. Notable pieces include *Battle of Tầm Vu*, *Crossing the Monkey Bridge*, among others. Nguyễn Hiêm received a major award at the 1954 National Fine Arts Exhibition for his entire collection of war sketches brought from the South. After the 1958 National Fine Arts Exhibition, the Vietnam Fine Arts Association brought the exhibition to the former Soviet Union and other Eastern European countries. Nguyễn Hiêm’s works left a strong impression on international audiences—especially his piece *Night March*, which was published by the Soviet Art Publishing House in a special compilation on Vietnamese visual arts. In 1962, the Soviet Art Council honored him as a distinguished figure, publishing his name and works in the Soviet Encyclopedia.

His works are preserved in various institutions, including the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of the Revolution, the Southeastern Armed Forces Museum, and the Quang San Museum of Art. Nguyễn Hiêm was awarded the State Prize for Literature and Arts in the first round in 2000.

After the war ended, he continued contributing to Vietnamese art. Nguyễn Hiêm passed away suddenly on December 30, 1976, at the peak of his career, leaving deep sorrow for his family and admirers of Vietnamese art.