Japanese crafts brings new perspective<\/p>\n
Yusuf Susilo Hartono, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
There is a prevailing perception in Indonesia that craft is of
\na lower status than pure art. As if to turn this perception
\naround, a number of Japanese artists are exhibiting in Jakarta
\nsome of their contemporary craft works.<\/p>\n
The exhibition at the Galeri Nasional seems to encourage us to
\nreorient ourselves, to set us free from the prevailing perception
\nof crafts and fine art, a legacy of western thinking that,
\nunfortunately, is still held by a number of art observers.<\/p>\n
Artist Hashimoto Masayuki said the exhibition, held last month
\nin Malaysia, was not an attempt by the Japanese to mobilize
\nMalaysian and Indonesian forces against the disadvantageous
\ndefinition of art and craft as propounded by western art
\nthinkers.<\/p>\n
The 61 displayed works by 18 artists, who all graduated from
\nvarious arts institutes in Japan, are testimony that the old
\ndefinitions have already been shattered.<\/p>\n
The works, which we generally define as statues, are called by
\nthe craftsmen contemporary works of craft.<\/p>\n
A clay work by Makashima Harumi, A Hard Struggle (1999),
\nresembles a series of steel helmets, which in their silence imply
\nmany stories, depending on your associations.<\/p>\n
Leaf Boat by Kofusiwaki Tsusaka (1998) is a black lacquer,
\nboat-shaped piece. We also have a work by Hashimoto Masayuki,
\nOrchards: Sunlight Penetrating Fruit, Fruit in Sunlight Filtering
\nThrough Leaves, which is made of metal in the shape of a lemon
\ncontaining plenty of holes to let in the sunlight. This is only
\none of many pieces he has produced since 1976.<\/p>\n
Another craftsman, Fukami Sueharu, has his Transience (1998)
\nexhibited. Made of egg-blue porcelain, it looks like a sharp and
\nflexible knife used in the kitchen.<\/p>\n
Kano Tomohiro, meanwhile, displays a printed glass work called
\nFree Form (1999), which looks like a black balloon with two ends
\nthrough which to blow up the balloon. Another work of his, which
\nappears on the catalog cover, implies perfect gracefulness.<\/p>\n
Of all the works on display, the item that has received the
\nmost attention is a piece by Takahashi Yoshihiko, an artist who
\nworks with glass.<\/p>\n
The great interest in glass works is understandable, since in
\nIndonesia glass art has not yet been as developed as other fine
\nart genres. In Japan, in a span of 25 years since a glass art
\ndepartment was opened for the first time in a Japanese
\nuniversity, this art genre has gained great popularity.<\/p>\n
Takahashi displays his Hollow Group (2000), in which he
\npresents six works he created with a 130-centimeter-long blowing
\npipe and a burning process at temperatures greater than 1000
\ndegrees Celsius.<\/p>\n
There are also tapestry works, plaited bamboo craft, printing
\non cotton cloth, textiles, porcelain and boxes ornamented with
\npearl shards and seashells, mixed with glittering gold and silver
\nwith the uniquely Japanese maki-e technique of workmanship. It is
\nworthwhile to note that these works are generally liberated from
\ntheir utilitarian functions and appear in their personal
\nlanguage.<\/p>\n
To ensure the security of these 61 works, the head of the
\nGaleri Nasional, Wati Murani, said the Japanese side had insured
\nthem for Rp 75 billion. She added that Rp 5 billion was needed to
\norganize the exhibition.<\/p>\n
Four of the 18 craftsmen taking part in the exhibition --
\nNakashime, Kano, Tashima and Hashimoto -- said that in creating
\ntheir works they usually adjusted to the character of the
\nmaterials they used, and that, unlike other contemporary fine
\nartists, they don't want to be bothered by ideas related to
\nsocial criticism. They simply follow \"the way of the materials\"
\nto find their own personal expressions.<\/p>\n
In his curatorial note, Kaneko Kenji, the chief curator of the
\nCrafts Gallery at the Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, said the
\npresence of Japanese contemporary crafts was closely related to
\nthe Meiji restoration -- a historical period in Japan marking the
\nbeginning of the country's openness toward the outside world
\nafter isolating itself from the rest of the world for centuries.<\/p>\n
Activities related to arts and craft in Japan came to a brief
\nstop during World War II, but were immediately resumed the moment
\nthe war ended.<\/p>\n
In 1954 there came a breakthrough, introduced by the Sodeisha
\nschool, a group of ceramicists from Kyoto who produced non-
\nfunctional works. Their works successfully brought forth personal
\nexpression, and united craft and pure art.<\/p>\n
In later developments, contemporary craft artists have earned
\ngreater appreciation in Japan and from their counterparts in the
\nWest.<\/p>\n
In Japan alone, as noted by Asmudjo Irianto of the Bandung
\nInstitute of Technology, who has helped organize this exhibition,
\ncontemporary craftsmen, in several respects, have secured a more
\nrespectable place in society than other contemporary artists.<\/p>\n
Hopefully, the fresh wind from this Japanese contemporary
\ncraft exhibition can awaken a new awareness about the Indonesian
\nart world. In fact, we have a great diversity of traditional
\ncrafts that can be given a new touch with a new concept. Also,
\nthere is an abundance of raw materials that can be tapped for
\npersonal expression.<\/p>\n
I-BOX:<\/p>\n
Japanese Contemporary Kriya Art is being held at the Galeri
\nNasional at Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur No. 14, Gambir, Central
\nJakarta (Tel. 34833954), 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., until July 12. Free
\nof charge.<\/p>",
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