Lebadang (Hoi) was born in Quang Tri, Vietnam in 1922. He moved to France in 1939 to pursue an art career at Ecole de Beaus Arts de Toulouse. While studying there he was awarded prizes for painting, drawing, and sculpture and won his first commission.

By 1950 the Paris art community had recognized Lebadang's work, appreciating the blend of European and Far Eastern culture and philosophies reflected in it. The director of the Far Eastern Department at UNESCO commissioned him to illustrate a book of poetry, published by Editions Euros.

Lebadang was first represented in the United States, in 1966, with an exhibition of his paintings at the Cincinnati Art Museum. In describing his art today critics rema...