Bali's Nagasepaha village a living museum of glass paintings
By Rosemarie F. Oei
BULELENG, North Bali (JP): The first glass paintings in Indonesia were created in Java where this form of art was probably introduced by the Dutch in the 19th century.
Historically, painting on glass dates from the 14th century in The Netherlands. It spread throughout Europe and thence to Iran in the following centuries.
In Java, glass painting was developed in the courts of Cirebon in West Java; Yogyakarta, Surakarta, Demak in Central Java and Madura. In Sumatra it was developed in Bengkulu area, Palembang (South Sumatra), Medan (North Sumatra) and Aceh.
Glass was a fairly exclusive medium at the time and early subjects were calligraphy and scenes from the Koran commissioned by the wealthy.
Due to the durability of glass and the protection afforded against destructive agents, colors stay fresh and sharp on the surface, and unless broken, the paintings will endure in their original clarity.
However, the fragile property of glass makes many art collectors hesitate to pay high prices for glass paintings even though the tradition of painting on glass is almost a lost art.
In a rare exhibition of glass paintings at Museum Puri Lukisan Ubud, Bali, from 23 April until 23 May, one can enjoy unique works from the remote village of Nagasepaha, North Bali.
Between the 1940s and 1970s the popularity of glass paintings declined to such an extent that today, outside of Bali, few artists work with this medium.
Balinese art is rich in many forms and glass painting is still practiced there since its introduction in 1927.
In Balinese glass painting, Chinese and Arabic influences mingle in scenes from Hindu shadow puppet themes.
In 1992 a group of teachers from the Art Department of the Singaraja School of Teachers Training and Education began to study a family of artists in the village of Nagasepaha, 7 km east of the Singaraja.
The purposes of this long study are to observe and learn the techniques of the local artists and to preserve the skills and promote interest in the art form to avoid it becoming only a commercial undertaking.
Nagasepaha village is a pleasant 1.5 kilometer walk from the road. The preeminent artist who introduced glass painting to the village is I Ketut Negara, also known as Jro Dalang Diah. Members of the study confess that his remarkable health caused them to be confused about his age and they were quite surprised to learn from his family that he was born in 1909.
Jro Dalang Diah, a wayang puppets master, sits quietly in traditional clothes surrounded by leather puppets hanging on the wall above his head.
"These are leather puppets that I made myself", says Jro Dalang, "I made many of them, but alas, also many of them have I sold." But those above his head are not for sale, because they have sacred meanings.
The puppet master recalls that one day in 1927 he was visited by a leather puppet collector, who brought with him a glass painting of a Japanese woman dressed in kimono.
The collector was determined to collect a glass painting depicting a scene from the wayang stories and asked Jro Dalang to make one for him.
Out of curiosity, Jro Dalang started to study the glass painting seriously and learned that painting on glass should be done in reverse, because the picture is viewed from the unpainted side.
This exploration lead him to produce more paintings on glass. And when in 1950 an order was placed for a wayang scene with scenic background, he used a Sukaraja or Jelekong (West Java) style. These two different styles emerge not only in Jro Dalang Diah's paintings, but also in the paintings of his descendants.
It was this combination of styles that caught the attention of local teachers from the Art Department in Singaraja and prompted the 1992 study.
Traditions, styles and techniques are passed on my master craftsmen and artists through apprenticeship. This is a common practice in the Balinese education system and in the Ubud area, painters are everywhere; they are the neighbor, brother, uncle, son or daughter of another painter.
Usually children are placed as apprentices with a painter who has been successful at selling his works. This announces the choice of painting as a future profession, either full-time or for the duration of the schooling. The sale of works may be expected to finance the family.
The guru (teacher) is often a member of one the Balinese social networks, such as the neighborhood association. In Nagasepaha, education in painting is more a family tradition.
Jro Dalang Diah, wayang puppet master and craftsman, has continued the tradition by teaching his children and grandchildren the art of creating wayang leather puppets.
First they learn to make wayang puppet heads to be followed by designing and cutting the wayang figures in leather. After a while when they have mastered the making of leather puppets, then Jro Dalang teaches them how to paint wayang scenes on glass.
Through communication with other villages, some young children came to Jro Dalang out of curiosity and a desire to learn the art of glass painting. Thus, Jro Dalang became the local guru and an apprenticeship educational system developed in the village similar to that in Ubud.
Meanwhile the researchers from the Singaraja School gradually shifted their passive studies to a posture of action research, by educating the painters on other aesthetic aspects.
Here they covered the application of decorative settings normal for traditional wayang paintings in the Singaraja area. This action research could be questioned for its motivation.
History
There is a history of this method of teaching in Ubud area. The Dutch painter Rudolf Bonnet (1895-1978) traveled to Bali in 1929 and left his mark on the Balinese art community. A more experienced businessman than the local artists and craftsmen, Bonnet was distressed that the growing art and handicraft industry was creating only small benefits for local Balinese.
His influence started when he began to make local artisans aware that Balinese art had become commercially attractive and many works were disappearing to foreign countries.
This was the time to act and thanks to his close friendship with Tjokorda Gede Agung Sukawati (then Prince of Ubud, 1910- 1978) Bonnet set up an association for artists in Ubud area, called Pita Maha, in those times, still a remote village like Nagasepaha today.
The association gathered on Saturdays and members showed their works and with Bonnet they discussed the composition, techniques and structure. Here Bonnet's talent, interest and affection for the local artists established him as the "guru" in the Balinese art community.
Even today, Bonnet is credited by many senior artists who joined the Pita Maha association as their "teacher" from whom they learned painting techniques and the business of sales through exhibitions.
One of the prominent historical writers from The Netherlands, Wim Bakker, who visited the village, made the comparison between motivation and findings of the researchers today and actions of Rudolf Bonnet in the past.
Both motivations arose from genuine concern to protect while guiding the development of art according to contemporary aesthetic conditions. The difference between the study and Bonnet's involvement is the support of the Ubud palace, which was very respected by the community during the earlier period.
This support gave Bonnet access to high society and the political network and enabled the realization of a museum for traditional Balinese arts while providing local artists income from exhibitions.
Today in Singaraja the researchers are more or less bound to the administrative regulations of the academic system.
One researcher, Hardiman, when asked about his objective, answered, "There should be a gallery or a studio available where the local painters can manage their own exhibitions and sales without being disadvantaged by commercial galleries or dealers.
We would like to build this place and teach methods to manage their unique glass paintings." But for the research to continue they need support from local governmental institutions as well as the educational institutions local and in Jakarta.
Though the research bears academic fruits for future studies, the researchers should take care that their findings do not create negative effects to the village such as placing the locals in a living museum to suffer from inquiring tourists.
Hopefully, the results will be guided by the objective in the exhibition catalog by Dr. Nyoman Dantes, the director and the professor of the Singaraja School of Teacher Training and Education. The justification of the above research is to promote and publicize the legitimacy of glass painting in Bali, in particular from Nagasepaha village.