Rusli's essential elements are not for sale<\/p>\n
By Amir Sidharta<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A modest exhibition at Taman Ismail Marzuki's
\nCipta II Gallery presents 27 small and four medium-sized
\nwatercolors and two oil on canvas paintings by Rusli, an
\nIndonesian painter who may not be very famous, yet whose works
\nare worthy of a master.<\/p>\n
The simplicity of the exhibition seems to be very much in the
\nspirit of the artist's paintings. Rusli characteristically
\nconcentrates on presenting essential elements in his works. He
\npaints with washes of color, maintaining the white surface of his
\nmedia in his compositions.<\/p>\n
This approach is very much in accord with the balance of the
\npositive and negative elements (Yin and Yang) in Chinese art. In
\nRusli's paintings, the strokes of color on the media is the
\npositive element, while the white of the paper or canvas is the
\nnegative element.<\/p>\n
His small watercolors, approximately 12 x 18 cms, are
\nrepresentative of his work. In Beach II (1970) for example, he
\npresents a Balinese open pavilion by the sea, shaded by a large
\ntree. In this composition he uses thin brush strokes of brown,
\nblue and green. Two yellow boats appear to the right of the
\nstructure, while three smaller blue boats are seen in the
\nbackground. The serene landscape is presented with few brush
\nstrokes.<\/p>\n
A festive celebration is presented with wild and expressive
\nstrokes of color in Dalam Pura (Temple of Death) (1966). The
\nwhite paper is covered with simple shapes formed by colorful
\nstrokes of the brush to represent pavilions, temporary shrines,
\nceremonial umbrellas, figures and even coconut trees in the
\ndistant background. Even in this scene, the artist leaves much of
\nthe paper unpainted.<\/p>\n
In this painting, he uses a basically symmetrical composition
\nin which the most important element of the depiction is placed in
\nthe middle, flanked by supporting elements. He often uses a
\nsimilar composition in his paintings of temples, particularly his
\nChinese temples, for which he is famous.<\/p>\n
Harbor (1974) displays large ships near the heavy
\ninfrastructure of a European harbor. The hierarchy of green,
\nyellow and purple lines and dots in this elegant composition
\nsuggest the painter's fascination with the scene.<\/p>\n
While most of the works are miniature watercolors, painted in
\nthe 1960s and 1970s, there are also a couple of paintings from
\nthe 1980s and some which were painted last year.<\/p>\n
Rusli was born in Medan in 1916. After the Indonesia's
\nindependence in 1945, he chaired the Yogyakarta chapter of the
\nYoung Artists Association (Seniman Indonesia Muda) and the
\nArtists Society (Seniman Masyarakat), also in Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
He received a grant to study art at Santiniketan, India. In
\n1951, he became an instructor at Yogyakarta's Fine Arts Academy
\n(ASRI Yogyakarta). Two years later, he participated in the 11th
\nSao Paolo Biennial exhibition and visited West Europe at the
\ninvitation of Sticusa, the Dutch Association of Cultural
\nExchange. He even exhibited at the Plaatz Gallery in The Hague in
\n1954, at Amsterdam's Stedelijk Museum in 1955 and at the Palazzo
\nBracaccio in Rome.<\/p>\n
After returning to Indonesia in 1956, he exhibited at
\nJakarta's Balai Budaya center and then held a series of
\nexhibitions in Medan, Kotaraja, Palembang, Surabaya, Yogyakarta,
\nand Jakarta over several years.<\/p>\n
Rusli has been a prolific painter, frequently holding solo
\nexhibitions. In 1986 he received the Adam Malik Award for
\nPainting. He also participated in the Contemporary Islamic Fine
\nArt Exhibition, held in conjunction with the Istiqlal Festival in
\n1991.<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that Rusli is one of Indonesia's master
\npainters. His paintings appear in Jakarta's Fine Art Museum at
\nTaman Fatahillah, the Neka Museum in Ubud and in the collection
\nat the Taman Ismail Marzuki.<\/p>\n
His painting of a Chinese temple was sold for Rp 33 million at
\nthe Indonesian Fine Arts Foundation auction last August. Two of
\nhis other paintings are to be sold at a Sotheby's and a
\nChristie's auction in early October. They are estimated to be
\nworth between S$10,000 and S$12,000.<\/p>\n
Even though his paintings are in demand, none of his paintings
\nat the small exhibition at Taman Ismail Marzuki are for sale. It
\nseems Rusli does not want his paintings to be seen as
\ncommodities, but rather as works of art which should be enjoyed
\nwithout a price tag whatsoever.<\/p>\n
The exhibition ends today.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ruslis-essential-elements-are-not-for-sale-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }