SE Asian artists share their experiences<\/p>\n
By Ati Nurbaiti<\/p>\n
MANILA (JP): Artists are often loathe to discuss the thought
\nprocesses behind their works. So when 35 artists from Southeast
\nAsia gathered recently and shared their thoughts in Manila,
\ninsight was gained into the shared experiences and concerns in
\nthis region.<\/p>\n
Their few words -- more were provided in the event catalog --
\nenable the uninitiated to better appreciate their creations which
\nrange from disturbing, serene, humorous or a mixture of all these
\nelements.<\/p>\n
Artists from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore,
\nBrunei Darussalam, Thailand and Vietnam met on Sept. 10-11 for
\nthe announcement of winners of the Philip Morris ASEAN Art Awards
\n1997, held this year for the fourth time.<\/p>\n
The day after the announcement they joined an "artist
\ninteraction" activity by daubing paint on panels to the
\naccompaniment of Filipino music and dance.<\/p>\n
Indonesian Yuswantoro Adi took the grand prize for his
\nMasterpieces of Indonesia. Four other winners were Insects
\nDiskette by Malaysia's Ahmad Shukri Mohamed, Human Environment by
\nVietnam's Tran Van Thao, A Wedding Gift from my Mum by
\nSingapore's Tan Juat Lee; and K-H by the Philippines' Daniel A.
\nCoquilla.<\/p>\n
All the works are currently on display at the Metropolitan
\nMuseum of Manila to Sept. 30.<\/p>\n
Ahmad Shukri figured rows of diskettes adorned with
\nbutterflies and other insects. Behind his puzzling display was a
\nhint of concern at the omnipresence of technology. "Everyone has
\ncomputers now...maybe in the future the children will only know
\ninsects and (other parts of) nature from their screens," he said.
\n"They will not know the feel of rubber, the smell and sound of
\ninsects."<\/p>\n
Of his work in earthy colors, one of five beautiful abstracts
\nfrom Vietnam, Tran said it reflected his impression of the
\nrapidly changing face of Ho Chi Minh City. "There is a lot of
\nproperty development going on," he said. "And it seems the
\nenvironment is not as good as before."<\/p>\n
Singapore's Tan described her red quilt-like work around
\nchildhood portraits as a "tribute to mother love".<\/p>\n
In the catalog, an advisor of the Singapore Art Museum, Eng-
\nLee Seok Chee, notes the link connecting Asian communities
\nthrough Tan's work: "The frugal practice of saving odd bits and
\nremnants of cloth to use and recycle..(link) the mothers and
\ngrandmothers of the present generation, not only of Chinese-
\nSingaporeans but of other Asians as well."<\/p>\n
Philippine painter Coquilla said his painting of traffic was a
\nscene he knew well. "I pass this road every day..the funeral
\nservice at the side of the road, the food sellers..." In a scene
\ncommon to most overpopulated cities in the region, a juror dryly
\nnoted: "The only comfortable person in the painting must be the
\ndead man in the coffin".<\/p>\n
It was beyond the layman to understand the jury's selection of
\nthe winners as the other works looked equally arresting.<\/p>\n
Hanura Hosea from Indonesia depicted a chicken coop with
\nfigures in contorted features, one "talking" to a chicken,
\nothers seated with joined hands around a table and one tied in
\nwhat might be a standing coffin. "A factory," was the long-haired
\nHanura's terse description.<\/p>\n
A figure offers a molded form titled "brain for rent", and the
\nviewer is left to search out the rest of possible meanings --
\n"the mental state of industrialization," suggests art writer and
\nchairman of the Indonesian jury team, Amir Sidharta.<\/p>\n
Artists portray social concerns, but many said separately that
\nthis should not be taken for granted.<\/p>\n
"In the times of (late Philippine president Ferdinand) Marcos,
\nartists only pictured poverty, beggars and the like," said
\nNunelecio Alvarado from Negros, the Philippines. In the 1980s,
\nat the start of the "People's Power" movement, they began to
\ndepict "defiance," he said.<\/p>\n
His own grim work, he said, told of life in his village:
\nfloods caused by timber felling for the sugar industry,
\nsymbolized by the red chain saw; the poverty, pictured by a woman
\nstabbed with a samurai ("for financial reasons, many of our women
\nlive with the Japanese"), flanked by evil reptile-like men.<\/p>\n
Malaysian juror Redza Piyadasa, himself an artist, said the
\nartist as social commentator and social critic was still unusual
\nin Malaysia even though it may be accepted in Indonesia and other
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
But the "pragmatic outlook" among Malaysia's younger
\ngeneration of artists surpassed more sentimentalized and
\nnationalistic leanings, he said.<\/p>\n
Singaporean Lee Leong Seng, who runs an art school, said his
\ncolleagues had yet to be more responsive to their surroundings.<\/p>\n
He said it was important to remind Singapore artists to look
\nmore to their own region for inspiration.<\/p>\n
"Many young artists have the good opportunity to study
\nabroad," he said. "When they return it seems their minds are
\nstill in the United States."<\/p>\n
Another commonality to all the countries was the dearth of
\nfemale finalists. The number of female participants is unknown,
\nsaid jury chairwoman May Ching Kao.<\/p>\n
Filipino painter Ivi Avellana-Cosio said: "My friends were
\necstatic when they knew a (Filipino) woman finally reached the
\nfinals, but I do not want to make an issue out of it."<\/p>\n
She said her parents raised their children to believe that
\nanyone, regardless of sex, could achieve their goals if they set
\ntheir mind to it.<\/p>\n
Still, she cannot paint as much as she wants. Her husband is
\nalso a painter and works at home.<\/p>\n
Family members and servants, she added, would not dare bother
\nher husband when he was "working" about domestic duties.<\/p>\n
"But I accept that," Avellana-Cosio said pragmatically. "If
\nnot, life would be miserable."<\/p>",
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