Nieuwenkamp first European wandering artists in Bali<\/p>\n
By Rosemarie F. Oei<\/p>\n
UBUD, Bali (JP): As the first European artist who visited Bali
\nin the early 19th century, Wijnand Otto Jan Nieuwenkamp produced
\nmore than a 1,000 artworks in lithographs, woodcuts, drawings and
\npaintings.<\/p>\n
He traveled to Indonesia in 1898 and came to know of the
\n\"Islands of Gods\" from celebrated Dutch scholar G.P.Rouffaer. He
\nconsidered the island a paradise for every passionate young
\nartist.<\/p>\n
He managed to raise funds to return here after setting up
\nconnections with institutions, publishers and museums, and made
\nagreements with curators to collect a number of art objects on
\ntheir behalf.<\/p>\n
It is thanks to Nieuwenkamp that a number of ethnographic
\nmuseums in Europe possess fine examples of art from the former
\nDutch colony.<\/p>\n
Several of these objects were rescued from the plundering,
\nfire-raising soldiers in the Royal Dutch East-Indian Army.<\/p>\n
Before leaving for Bali, the artist studied Balinese art at
\nthe University of Leiden and managed to master the sophisticated
\ndetails in Balinese drawings. This advantage was revealed later
\nin his many drawings of Balinese nature and culture.<\/p>\n
Part of his works will be on display at the Puri Museum in
\nUbud, from April 4 to April 30, part of a traveling exhibition
\nwhich then continues to the Erasmus Huis in Jakarta until May 6.<\/p>\n
Arriving in Buleleng in 1904, Nieuwenkamp bought a bicycle on
\nwhich to travel the land of his dreams. The scene of the artist
\non wheels is immortalized in a stone relief in Meduwekarang
\nTemple in Kubutambahan. After several restorations, the relief
\nshows a man in Balinese attire riding a bicycle with lotus
\nflowers as wheels.<\/p>\n
While exploring the island, Nieuwenkamp became obsessed with
\ndetails from costumes, tools, folk tales and architecture.<\/p>\n
He was a real explorer who recorded in his special way the
\npresent situation as a scientist and an artist. He decided to
\npublish a book about Bali, which took him several years to
\ncomplete.<\/p>\n
The beauty of Bali and Lombok was described based on his
\nsketches and notes in an expensive and impressive publication,
\nBali en Lombok with only 400 copies which contained more than 250
\noriginal drawings.<\/p>\n
Suicide<\/p>\n
This book, which only recently came to light, is sure to
\nbecome the most sought-after book for the most fervent collectors
\nof art books.<\/p>\n
On his second journey to Bali in 1906, Nieuwenkamp wandered
\nthrough mountainous areas and outer villages.<\/p>\n
When the artist received news that the Dutch were to start
\ninvade of the Kingdom of Badung, which is now Denpasar, he dashed
\nback to the coast.<\/p>\n
There, he became a witness of the most historically spoken
\npuputan, in which thousands of men, women and children committed
\nsuicide rather than surrender to the Dutch.<\/p>\n
While the Dutch side wrote this \"glorious\" event into history
\nas a victory, Nieuwenkamp doubted the need for the invasion.<\/p>\n
He wrote to his wife, Anna Wilbrink, and his friends and
\nacquaintances, about his disgust of the \"massacre\".<\/p>\n
One letter to Wilbrink read \"I know that my report will
\ncontradict the sweetened official propaganda and make me many
\nenemies. I was nauseous to read the 'truth' about the fall of
\nDenpasar and feel disgusted by stories of heroic deeds carried in
\nthe newspapers.<\/p>\n
\"Our soldiers stood at the front gates of the palace when
\nhundreds of Balinese charged out -- men, women and children. The
\nmen stabbed the women and children to death and afterwards leapt
\nin front of the troops to allow themselves to be shot ... During
\nthe entire operation we (the Dutch) suffered four deaths,
\nsufficient proof that one cannot speak of any true fight.\"<\/p>\n
After agonizing over whether or not to go public because of
\npossible repercussions because of \"unpatriotic\" remarks,
\nNieuwenkamp submitted an article about the tragedy to the
\nAlgemene Dagblad.<\/p>\n
He was greatly frustrated when this, in his opinion,
\nsensational front page article appeared on page nine as an
\nabbreviated and highly edited version, mentioning him as an
\n\"emotional artist\".<\/p>\n
The puputan scene can now be found in many a painters'
\nrendering.<\/p>\n
As the rest of Bali fell to the Dutch, Nieuwenkamp was
\nnevertheless accepted in the Balinese community and by nobility.<\/p>\n
He then traveled to India, driven by a fascination of
\nBuddhism and Hinduism which he encountered in Bali, and
\neventually produced another book on his Indian voyages.<\/p>\n
In 1914 Nieuwenkamp held exhibitions to promote Indonesian
\nart. He traveled to Bali a few times, watching firsthand its
\ntransformation into a tourist destination.<\/p>\n
His last visit to Bali in 1937 resulted in a beautiful 1938
\ncalendar. During the last period of his life, Nieuwenkamp
\ndedicated himself to his religious fascination of the East in a
\nnumber of paintings of Buddha. He died in 1950 of a heart attack.<\/p>\n
During his life the artist had written and illustrated about
\n250 articles in magazines and periodicals, and produced more than
\n20 publications.<\/p>\n
In 1947, he set up a foundation to preserve his works, and
\nopened the Nieuwenkamp museum in Edam, Holland. The museum shut
\ndown in 1974 due to financial problems and lack of interest.<\/p>\n
His enthusiasm for the East, and especially Indonesia, which
\ninspired him as an artist, was almost forgotten.<\/p>\n
Only recently his artworks, including his Bali en Lombok, came
\nto light.<\/p>\n
Today his adventures in Bali have been published in another
\nbook, W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp, First European Artist in Bali by Bruce
\nW. Carpenter. Complete with illustrations and drawings of the
\nartist, the book was launched at the exhibition.<\/p>\n
The collection consists of 51 drawings, a small part of the
\ncollection managed by the Nieuwenkamp Foundation.<\/p>\n
The writer is the curator of the Museum Puri Lukisan in Ubud.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nieuwenkamp-first-european-wandering-artists-in-bali-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }