'You cannot build a country without books'<\/p>\n
Lila Fitri Aly, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Hailing from far away in the wine-producing region of Burgundy,
\nsome 100 kilometers south of Paris, Didier Hamel was already
\nobsessed with stories and pictures of Sumatran tigers when he
\nvisited the island in 1969 and stayed in Medan, North Sumatra,
\nfor six months.<\/p>\n
In the 1970s Hamel, who loves Indonesia, moved to Jakarta and
\nbegan to visit the islands in Indonesia on a Bugisnese vessel.<\/p>\n
\"Really fantastic,\" he said in his study at the Duta Fine Arts
\nGallery, Kemang, South Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Hamel -- an artist, a writer of fine art books and also the
\nowner of Duta Fine Arts Gallery -- has never been without
\ninspiration. Every minute a new idea will come to him. He is sure
\nthis is the fruit of his great love of reading which is part of
\nthe European culture.<\/p>\n
In the 1950s, when there were not many places to go for
\nrecreation in France and television was not popular enough,
\nFrench youngsters spent their free time reading. Unlike the
\npresent generation, who usually shun reading in favor of the
\ngreat temptation that is television, they devoured one book after
\nanother, improving their knowledge with each passing day.<\/p>\n
\"Building a country without books is just like building a
\nhouse without bricks,\" Hamel said.<\/p>\n
A lover of books, he has an incredible collection both at home
\nand in the office. He said Japan translated a lot of books into
\nJapanese because books are a source of knowledge. Realizing the
\nimportance of books as a source of knowledge, Singapore has made
\nEnglish its lingua franca because most books are written in
\nEnglish. Thanks to books, he said, these two countries had made
\nprogress in leaps and bounds.<\/p>\n
As a writer, Hamel lamented there were only a few book shops
\nin Indonesia. He himself has written quite a few books, among
\nothers on painters Antonio Blanco, Nyoman Gunarsa, Kartini
\nBasuki, Emil Rizek (an Austrian painter) and Van der Sterren (a
\nDutch-born painter domiciled in New Zealand).<\/p>\n
As an artist, Hamel has never run out of ideas. He finds it
\neasy enough to realize his ideas. The only constraint is time,
\nparticularly when one gets older.<\/p>\n
\"It's a pity, we cannot buy time in a shop,\" said Hamel, who
\nhas a secretary to arrange his daily schedule.<\/p>\n
Each night Hamel works from 11 p.m until 4 a.m., either
\npainting, writing or anything else. For him, painting and writing
\nare just like eating. Without them, he will go hungry and it is
\nlate at night and in the small hours that he satisfies this
\nhunger.<\/p>\n
Hamel wakes up at 2 p.m. and then goes to his gallery.<\/p>\n
\"I dedicate all my life to art,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He began to have this sleeping pattern when he was still in
\nFrance and now he does not think he should change it. He said in
\nhis school days, he longed to attend a night school because
\nduring the day he would sleep in class.<\/p>\n
In 1983 he opened Oet's Gallery at Falatehen, South Jakarta,
\nbut after some time he closed it. Then in 1986, he opened the
\nDuta Fine Arts Gallery, one of the pioneering galleries in
\nJakarta, along with his partner, Wiwoho Basuki, a businessman and
\nthe husband of painter Kartini Basuki. Hamel had the knowledge
\nand Basuki, also an art buff, the money. Both shared a common
\nidea and a common vision. They formed a harmonious partnership in
\nestablishing the Duta Fine Arts Gallery at a time when, unlike
\ntoday, the art world in Indonesia was still in a slumber and the
\nmarket limited.<\/p>\n
At first some Caucasian expatriates bought some antique items
\nin Ciputat and Indonesians followed suit. When these expatriates
\nbegan to buy paintings, Indonesians would follow suit, too.
\nFinally, the art world in Indonesia flourished.<\/p>\n
Hamel said his gallery was the first to introduce democracy.
\nAnybody can hold an exhibition there as long as their works pass
\nthe selection. At some other places, he said, it would be
\ndifficult to display your works if you did not personally know
\nthe management. That's why the presence of Duta Fine Arts Gallery
\nwas welcomed as a fresh wind by the artists.<\/p>\n
Many collectors and painters have been catapulted to fame
\nthrough this gallery. In 1989-1990 a painting boom took place
\nwith the result that quite a lot of galleries sprung up, an
\nindication of the flourishing development of painting in
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
In Hamel's words, the country's art world has shown a very
\ninteresting development in the past decade. The works by local
\npainters are now known in international circles. The strength of
\nlocal painting is its strong roots. When the Dutch colonized
\nIndonesia, they did not colonize the people intellectually. They
\ncame here only on business. That's why local painters can remain
\nclose to their traditional roots.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's art has a strong self identity, especially in the
\ncase of the new generation. It is a pity that the works of local
\npainters lack the touch of literature. If there are a lot of
\nbooks here and if the painters are avid readers, they can explore
\ntheir themes further and do more to express themselves. More
\nknowledge will allow them to be more open. He blames this lack of
\nreading on television, which he said could kill the imagination
\nand discourage reading.<\/p>\n
Hamel believed that one must have a concept in life. The
\ntrouble with Indonesians is they often had a lot of interests at
\nhe same time but in the end nothing ever got completed.<\/p>\n
Another thing that is unfavorable for Indonesians is they get
\nbored easily. If someone can focus himself on one point and does
\nnot get bored easily, one can show greater professionalism.<\/p>\n
Local painters, he said, also lack focus. They allow
\nthemselves to be influenced by many art schools and will always
\nfollow the market tendency. Actually, a painter must paint, paint
\nand paint again until he can make a good painting. He should not
\njust follow the market trends.<\/p>\n
About his gallery, he said that he did not particularly seek
\nfinancial profit as intellectual pleasure was the priority.<\/p>\n
Running a gallery, he maintained, is not running a shop. He
\nsaid he was running his gallery in search of intellectual
\npleasure along with his partner, Basuki. When an intellectual job
\nis seriously done, profit will surely come in the end. He warned
\nagainst measuring profit with money.<\/p>\n
Hamel and his partner try to introduce Indonesian paintings to
\nthe international community. They seem to suggest that Indonesia
\nnot only have batik and kris, but also paintings.<\/p>\n
Their major project now is to set up Duta Fine Arts Museum, an
\nidea conceived 16-years ago. Building the museum, measuring about
\n1,800 square meters and located next to the gallery, began five
\n-years ago. It is scheduled to be officially opened in November
\n2002. It will house 300 paintings by local painters and foreign
\nartists inspired by Indonesia.<\/p>",
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