Thanks to his exceptional drawing abilities, Vu Dan Tan obtained a position as an artist-animator, initially at Hanoi Film Studio from 1967 to 1972, and subsequently at the Animation Studio of Vietnam National Television from 1972 to 1982. In 1973, he participated in a professional exchange program between socialist nations, which took him to Havana, Cuba, for a nine-month period. In addition to refining his professional abilities at Cuban Television Animation Studios and advancing his Spanish language skills, he dedicated a significant portion of his leisure time to attending classical operas and ballets at the Gran Teatro de La Habana. In the early 1980s, after resigning from his position as an artist animator, he set up an art studio in his residence at 30 Hang Bong Street in Hanoi, which became a hub for the intellectual community in Hanoi and anticipated the future establishment of the Salon Natasha.

From the late 1970s to the early 1980s, he focused mainly on mask-making. In the mid-1980s, he shifted his attention to painting, delving into various Western art movements while progressively developing his unique graphic style.

From 1987 to 1990, and for 10 months during 1993-1994, Vu Dan Tan resided in Russia alongside his Russian spouse, splitting his time between Moscow and Astrakhan. During this period, he witnessed significant transformations in the freedom of artistic expression instigated by Gorbachev’s Perestroika. Throughout this period, he produced numerous series of drawings and paintings that were exhibited in Moscow and at the Penza Regional Art Gallery. From the 2000s onward, they were consistently presented at the Astrakhan State Art Gallery and other art institutions within the city. Two pieces from Vu Dan Tan’s series of paintings on Soviet posters were featured in the exhibition ‘Between declarations and Dreams: Art of Southeast Asia since the 19th Century,’ which marked the inauguration of the National Gallery Singapore in 2015.

Upon his return from Russia in 1990, he established his residence in Hanoi. In the early 1990s, the varied figurative and abstract artworks of the 1980s were succeeded by the substantial ‘Festival banners’ series (1990-1994), which featured more intricate references. As early as 1991, he commenced creating what would become his most recognized three-dimensional pieces, cut-outs crafted from cigarette boxes and other commercial packaging. This newfound passion led to his most renowned series of three-dimensional works, ‘Suitcases of a Pilgrim’, which began in 1994 and evolved periodically until 2006. This series, which was showcased at the 2nd Asia-Pacific Triennial (Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, Australia) in 1996, earned Vu Dan Tan acclaim as a contemporary artist. Following the 2nd APT, he received invitations to numerous international exhibitions and Biennials.

Starting in the mid-1990s, Vu Dan Tan, a skilled musician and composer of piano music, integrated sound and music into his visual art, producing two-dimensional pieces, installations, and performances that explored musical themes. His works from the ‘Music’ series were showcased at his solo and group exhibitions in Vietnam and internationally.

During the mid-1990s, in his two-dimensional pieces featuring diverse subjects, Vu Dan Tan used unconventional materials, such as newspapers, magazine pages, and calendars, frequently incorporating his own written statements. One of his most extensive series, ‘Money’, featuring textual inserts of familiar slogans and quotes along with their interpretations, was developed from the early 1990s through the 2000s, exploring concepts such as the state, nation, economy, trade, borders, and the aspiration for unrestricted freedom.

A notable three-dimensional piece titled ‘Cadillac-Icarus’ was crafted by Vu Dan Tan in 1999 during his art residency at the Pacific Bridge Gallery in Oakland, USA. The artist transformed a genuine 1961 Cadillac into a sculpture, applying a gold finish to it. In 2000, the Pacific Bridge Gallery took the initiative to transport ‘Cadillac-Icarus’ to Vietnam and produced a film documenting its journey (the film ‘Icarus – the Art of Vu Dan Tan’, directed by Nicholas Brooks). After being driven around Hanoi, ‘Cadillac-Icarus’ became the focal point and concept for an improvised performance by Vietnamese visual artists. Several years later, ‘Cadillac-Icarus’ reemerged in a collection of the artist’s monoprints. Nevertheless, the concept and desire to utilize various vehicles for outdoor interactive sculptures/installations had originated earlier, in 1997, through a series of sketches for a sculpture project intended for the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, which ultimately was not realized.

The turn of the millennium was marked by the emergence of a new series of works entitled 'Fashion', which continued to evolve until the artist's death. This series consists of life-sized costumes-sculptures cut out from cardboard, evoking the image of a sensual female torso; however, the central figure, a coveted woman, is missing. Following 'Fashion', the 'Amazon' series of sheet-metal dresses was created between 2001 and 2009, showcasing a more robust, solid, and aggressive aesthetic. Both series were intermittently featured in institutional exhibitions, including those at the Goethe Institut in Hanoi, the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts, and the Singapore Art Museum.

Although the main contribution of Vu Dan Tan, who worked intensively until his passing, was in contemporary Vietnamese and Southeast Asian visual art, he also engaged in music composition and authored several writings. He died in Hanoi in 2009 due to cancer.