RI artist makes big name overseas<\/p>\n
Boudewijn Brands, Contributor, Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
Usually, Indonesian artists that gain international recognition,
\nachieve that from their home base promoted by local and
\ninternational curators. Many more people want to live as an
\nartist as the buying public allows.<\/p>\n
So usually, only a minority of a given artist population can
\nactually live from the art they make.<\/p>\n
Love took Fauzie As'Ad to the tiny Principality of
\nLiechtenstein between Switzerland and Austria. He made it after a
\nlot of additional study and training.<\/p>\n
Fauzie As'Ad was born in 1968 in Bekasi and lived there as
\nwell as in Tasikmalaya and Yogyakarta. He does not feel that he
\nreally belongs to any particular ethnic group.<\/p>\n
Liechtenstein, like Switzerland, has hardly any natural
\nresources but its wealth originates from the provision of high-
\nclass and specialized services. Among them is the disputed bank
\naccount secrecy and the possibility of setting up international
\nheadquarters there.<\/p>\n
In the cultural field, the Principality is outstanding. The
\nroyal family has a famous art collection and the country has its
\nown museum in which this collection is integrated and where a
\nmodern, contemporary collection has been added in more recent
\ntimes.<\/p>\n
Given the high standard of living, the "artist density" is
\nhigh: 160 artists from a little less than 40,000 inhabitants! As
\nin all other parts of the world, only a few artists find enough
\nbuyers to live exclusively from their art. These professional
\nartists can be found on website www.artnet.li.<\/p>\n
So how did Fauzie become one of them? When still a student at
\nthe Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) in Yogyakarta in 1990, he met
\nSabine Wilscher.<\/p>\n
She had just finished her studies and was making her first
\noverseas trip, which took her to the local art school in tourist
\ndestination Yogyakarta. She returned to Liechtenstein and worked
\nas a nurse in a psychiatric institution after that. They got
\nmarried in 1993 and after Fauzie finished his studies at ISI, he
\nmoved to be with her in Liechtenstein in 1995.<\/p>\n
"The first two years were hard," says Fauzie. Less so than in
\nIndonesia, collectors in Liechtenstein do not determine who will
\nbe successful. Curators play a much more important role.<\/p>\n
"You do not need many friends, only the right ones", Fauzie
\nremarked.<\/p>\n
He is not really happy with the situation as he feels that
\ncurators care less about art but more about promoting the artists
\nthey like.<\/p>\n
He managed to get his first solo exhibition in 1996. His luck
\ncame in 1997 when the VP Bank launched an art prize for the first
\ntime. Fauzie made a detailed proposal and he did get the prize: a
\nsix-month stint working at the sculpture studio of Luigi
\nCorsanini in Carrara, Italy.<\/p>\n
This town is famous for its marble which Fauzie could explore
\nintimately in combination with all the technical facilities and
\ntools a sculptor could dream of. The final result of this period,
\na marble statue of two meters high, is now placed in front of the
\nBank's office.<\/p>\n
This prize came after Fauzie suffered a major setback: when
\nvisiting Indonesia he was involved in a car accident which badly
\ndamaged his eyes and face. He was flown to the hospital in St.
\nGallen, Switzerland, where one eye was saved.<\/p>\n
To be immersed in an intensive sculpture program has helped
\nhim adapt. In fact, he observed that seeing one-dimensional,
\nfeeling a three-dimensional work such as a sculpture leads to new
\napproaches.<\/p>\n
In 1998 and 1999 he managed to join 11 group exhibitions both
\nin Europe (Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Germany) as well as in
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
He really received recognition with a solo exhibition at
\nGalerie Tangente in his hometown Eschen in 1998. The government
\ninvested in him and paid for one year of study and traveling
\nwhich allowed him to go to London, Paris and Berlin thereby
\ngaining firsthand insight into contemporary developments in
\nEurope.<\/p>\n
Thomas Ernst Wanger, an art historian, involved himself
\nintensively with Fauzie, both at his studio as well as through
\ntalks. The result was a thorough introduction to Fauzie and his
\nart on the occasion of his second solo exhibition there in 2001.<\/p>\n
He turned the gallery into a workshop where he was available
\nduring opening times. The public could, therefore, know him and
\nhis art firsthand. Fauzie did more. He cooked Indonesian food for
\nhis guests, so expanding their horizons even more.<\/p>\n
Being in Indonesia now, he wants to help build a cultural
\nbridge between his part of Europe and Indonesia.<\/p>\n
"Too many Indonesian artists follow the mainstream. They
\nshould go out and explore the world, not wait to be invited," he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He makes his house in Yogya available for this purpose.<\/p>\n
Fauzie's gallery and studio is open until April 28,
\n2003. Address: Soboman 219, Rt 06\/Rw 29, Ngestiharjo, Kasihan,
\nYogyakarta 55182, Tel.: 0274 378174, e-mail: zie@adon.li<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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