The painting "Vietnamese Lady" by Le Pho has been sold for S$781,200 at the Modern & Contemporary Art auction of Sotheby's Hong Kong.

The piece which is 28.5x 23.5cm ink and gouache on silk and was created in 1938, drew plenty of attention from collectors when it was estimated by the auction house to be valued at between S$620,000 and S$1 million.

During the Sunday auction, a Vietnamese collector purchased the painting for S$781,200.

Other Vietnamese artworks were also auctioned successfully at the event, including "Children Playing" by Mai Trung Thu which was sold for S$504,000 and “La mere et l'enfant” by Le Pho which changed hands for S$327,600.

The painting which recorded the highest price in the auction was "Tierfabel" (Animal Fable) by German artist Walter Spies which cost over S$4 million.

Le Pho, born in 1907 in Hanoi, was admitted to the Indochina Fine Arts College in 1925 and was subsequently awarded a scholarship to study in France in 1931. Two years later he returned to Vietnam and became a teacher at his former university, the Indochina Fine Arts College. He later died in Paris in 2001.