Artists plug into their creativity in Yogyakarta show

Artists plug into their creativity in Yogyakarta show

By R. Fadjri

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Artists generally shy away from exhibitions
centered on a special theme, fearing that these may cramp their
individual creativity. Putting paid to this perception is the
ongoing Slot in The Box, displaying markedly different
interpretations of the title theme by 22 artists.

The works, to be exhibited from April 6 to May 31 and
organized by Galeri Cemeti and Yayasan Cemeti, take up nearly all
the space in the small confines of the gallery. The artists opt
for several fields, ranging from the conventional, such as oil on
canvas, to very contemporary, including the art of video
installation.

Slot in The Box provides the artists with the starting point
to enter the mysterious world of the individual creative process.
The curator has left it up to them to decide for themselves the
form of their interpretations.

"The artists were not chosen for their intellectual capacities
alone, but their life experience was also a contributing factor,"
said Nindityo Purnomo, the owner of Galeri Cemeti and curator of
the exhibition. "They are free to interpret the theme."

Viewers may derive greater political insight from the show,
particularly because its theme is symbolic of the voting process
and it is being held right before the general election. While
individual interpretations will inevitably vary, on a basic level
the exhibit is an artistic exploration of social phenomena. An
artistic eye will bring a better understanding of the works on
display.

Individuality

The exhibition reaffirms the individuality of the artists.
Bandung graphic artist Tisna Sanjaya translates the theme as a
holistic process leading up to the beginning of something through
his installation work Air Kaki (Water for the Feet).

A canvas dominated by brooding brown colors is streaked with
the slogan Pribumi Muslim Asli (the indigenous Moslem). The words
evoke images of recent riots sparked by religious conflicts.

Another picture shows a person cleaning the feet of a woman.
Bowls on the floor are filled with water from four bottles, each
of which has been used to clean four separate pairs of feet. The
bottles are laid in a circle around a small rambutan tree.

It could well be that Tisna's work holds no political message
for some viewers, as is the case with Eddy Hara's interpretation.
Known for his naively styled paintings, his Treasure comes in the
form of a glass box attached to one wall. The box holds several
souvenirs from abroad. Eddy Hara replaces the souvenirs with
postcards and envelopes from foreign friends on particular days.

Several artists interpret the theme from one aspect alone,
including an ear-shaped voting box in Hari Wahyu's work, the eye
symbol in a piece by Hedi Hariyanto, the mouth in a rendition by
Weye Haryanto, even brains in a work by Edi Prabandono.

Wahyu's Telinga (Ear) appears to serve a political function in
portraying the public's vocal expression. Thousands of worms
crowd the fiberglass structure, seemingly indicating an
undermining of the ability to hear and be heard.

Public Secret

The sense of being watched looms large in Hariyanto's Rahasia
Umum (Public Secret). The sculptor, a graduate of the Indonesian
Art Institute, has interpreted the phenomenon of the ballot box
as a pyramid-shaped wooden installation. At the base of the
pyramid, glued to the wall in a horizontal position, a mirror is
attached to reflect the shadow of a fiberglass eye.

The reflection of three eyes is seen if one peers into the
pyramid through a lens in the top, creating a disquieting feeling
of being watched.

Hedi Haryanto intensifies the foreboding by hanging an arrow-
shaped object, which is seemingly poised to hit the voyeur. The
message seems to be that everyone is free to look at the inside
of the pyramid, but they must understand that
misfortune might strike at any moment.

The exhibition hall, comprising two sections measuring 7
meters x 4 meters each, is packed to near capacity with pieces
craving room. Edo Pillu utilizes space in the bathroom, which is
only 2 meters x 2 meters, for Dewa Swasembada Anarki (Deity of
Self-supporting Anarchy). A piece of paper bearing the
inscription "private room # free space to think" is posted on the
front of the door.

On opening the door, a dark human figure swathed in gunnysacks
becomes discernible on the toilet wall. The figure is in stark
contrast to the bright yellow colors of the surrounding wall. A
map of Indonesia hangs around the figure's neck. This work is the
only piece in which the element of space is depicted as truly
functional.

Other installation pieces use ready-made items, such as Hanura
Hosea's Seni Maskulin dan Hajat Hidup Orang Banyak (Masculine Art
and the Desire of Many People), which features a dispenser and
the legs of a mannequin. Toni Voluntero's Open your Freezer --
Found the Fresh President is centered around a refrigerator.

Others have shaped their works from basic materials. Pintor
Sirait's Poignancy depicts three election boxes of rusty iron
sheets. Sculptor Anusapati's work called Tanah Airku (My Land) is
made of wood.

The conventional medium is represented in the painting work of
Semsar Siahaan, the drawing of Agung Kurniawan and Iwan Wijono,
and the graphic art of Firman. They have different views of the
voting box phenomenon.

Semsar Siahaan likens the matter with the power danger,
colored fire red in his work Tiket Searah Menuju Bencana (One-way
Ticket to Destruction).

Agung Kurniawan pictures a satirical version of power in his
work Memperingati 30 Tahun Berkuasanya Keluarga Suci
(Commemorating the 30th Anniversary of the Power of the Holy
Family).

Among the skilled video installations is one by F.X. Harsono.
The work consists of videos of art performances held at the
southern square of the Yogyakarta Palace, only about 200 meters
from Galeri Cemeti. Clad in the garb worn by lecturers of the
Indonesian Art Institute, he burned three wooden masks atop three
wooden chairs. Harsono's face, too, is covered with a mask
painted mostly black.

He then proceeded to dismember each chair and the masks with
an electric saw. The performance can be viewed on a monitor,
placed in the middle of the broken chair parts and masks in the
gallery.

Not all aspects of the ballot box phenomenon are expressed in
the works on show. But they do represent interpretations by a
small group of Indonesians of the five-yearly political
occurrence known as pesta demokrasi (Festival of Democracy).

With whatever deficiencies taken into account, their
interpretations through art are still much richer than the
political option of debate available in the run-up to the
election.