Entang Wiharso portrays collision with American culture in this work<\/p>\n
Carla Bianpoen, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Anyone marrying into another culture will have to deal with a
\nwide variety of issues, but it takes an artist like Entang
\nWiharso to make others feel the depth of tension it brings into
\nthe lives of those involved.<\/p>\n
Married to an Italian-born American wife, Entang, who lives
\nand works in Yogyakarta, but often stays in Rhode Island, USA,
\nhas had his share.<\/p>\n
In a unique and fascinating solo exhibition consisting of six
\ngiant installations and twelve large paintings entitled Inter-
\nEruption currently at Bentara Budaya gallery here, the artist
\nexpresses issues, emerging from personal experience and finds
\nparallels on a wider plane of social, cultural, political and
\ninternational relations.<\/p>\n
As an Indonesian Muslim who has lived in the United States, he
\noften felt like a supposed suspect, especially after 9\/11, with
\nluggage excessively checked when traveling, and hours of
\ninterrogation when coming back from abroad.<\/p>\n
As is widely known, terror attacks in Indonesia have usually
\nbeen followed by travel warnings. In his personal life, his
\nintercultural marriage evoked tension that was rooted in
\ndifferent traditions and backgrounds. In the context of society,
\na difference in physical appearance provoked reactions that could
\nsend one into a profound sense of alienation.<\/p>\n
The atmosphere surrounding the huge installations reeks of
\nintimidation, and the dim lights in others convey the notion of
\nperil and risk. But unlike his solo exhibition Nusa Amuk (2001-
\n2002), where a sense of horror at the corrosion of the human
\nspirit prevailed, the current exhibition uses oversized shapes to
\nindicate the magnitude of the problems faced. Imminent dangers of
\ntoo much love, of chauvinistic beliefs, and the hard-to-dispel
\nstereotypes, are presented with a more subtle, albeit acute,
\nmanner.<\/p>\n
The installation entitled Dotting consisting of upper bodies
\nin yellow gold prada scattered over a large space denote the
\nstereotypical habit of pointing, which may start with one person
\nand can be carried on to an immeasurable extreme. Forest of Eyes,
\nan installation of eyes -- acrylic on fiber glass -- over an
\nequally large space, can be seen as metaphors for being
\ncontinuously stared at and judged.<\/p>\n
These two installations are set in the upper part of the
\ngallery, where dim light and pillars covered in black evoke a
\nsense of how it feels when one is pointed at, stared at and
\njudged.<\/p>\n
A saw, which is a useful cutting tool, becomes a metaphor to
\nindicate a reverse meaning of \"love\" as seen in the installation
\nI Love You Too Much. Where large saws are seen dangling above
\nnudes (made of plastic dolls), that lie scattered, either whole
\nor cut in pieces.<\/p>\n
The teddy bear, an endearing toy of our childhood, is used to
\ncomment on America's posture as the would-be savior, the pillars
\nof the world. All About Teddy Bear is an installation of six 2.5-
\nmeter high sculptures with teddy bear heads, that stand like
\ncolumns on a carpet about 10 meters long. The teddy bear derives
\nfrom Teddy Roosevelt, who was president of the U.S. when he saved
\na baby bear.<\/p>\n
The travel warning controversy is tackled in the installation
\nentitled Fruit for Exotic Country. Consisting of nineteen larger-
\nthan-life-size male nudes who hold in each hand the half of a
\ncoconut husk filled with news paper cuttings, suggesting
\nfragmented news about events in Indonesia, the installation makes
\na mockery of the travel warnings.<\/p>\n
Cultural relations have been a hot issue in many newspapers,
\nin discussions and seminars, and real life is still struggling
\ntoward an ideal state. So is Entang, whose children are the fruit
\nof two cultures.<\/p>\n
One must always seek to know the heart of the problem, only
\nthen is it possible to find solutions, he says. Such is evident
\nin his installation entitled Sifting culture: Virtual still life.<\/p>\n
Ten figures in larger-than-life size are hung in a row, hands
\nfolded, and heads unnaturally small. Beneath every figure is a
\nbasket, with pictures that he says represent each one's memory.<\/p>\n
Melted candle tallow seep from various parts of the body,
\nindicating that the melting of two cultures or two persons for
\nthat matter, does not take away the person's essential identity.
\nWhat happens is that such identity can be enriched.<\/p>\n
In Behind Space, Entang indicates that the brushing of two
\ncultures is bound to give birth to a new culture. In a 3-meter x
\n4-meter x 3-meter house painted in pink, two figures facing each
\nother are hung in a prone position.<\/p>\n
The floor in the obscure space is covered with rose petals,
\nboth from the original as well as hybrid roses. After a few days,
\nthe petals smell of decay. But in the next stage they will have
\ndried, filling the space with a wonderful scent.<\/p>\n
Six huge installations and eleven large paintings are stirring
\naccounts of the emotions and inner eruptions that have colored
\nhis passage through cultural collisions. It is Entang Wiharso's
\n11th solo exhibition.<\/p>\n
Inter-Eruptions, a solo exhibition of paintings and installations
\nby Entang Wiharso at Bentara Budaya Jakarta, Jl. Palmerah Selatan
\n22, Central Jakarta, from April 8 through April 17, 2005<\/p>",
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