Be invigorated by From Indonesia with Love
By Pavan Kapoor
JAKARTA (JP): When Indonesian painters express their fascination for their homeland through their paintings - the thoroughbred Indonesian shows through. But when a painter who has lived most of her formative years abroad and then returns to paint her country, the "East meets West" flavor is invigorating and intriguing.
Sasya Tranggono and her teacher of many years, Benny Setiawan, are presenting their works in an exhibition entitled From Indonesia with Love II at Dharmawangsa from Nov. 14 to Nov. 19.
"Being an artist came naturally to me," says Sasya. "I knew I would do something positive in my life and after completing studies in America, all I knew was that I wanted to paint and spend my hours surrounded with books related to art, studying and creating an art style."
Sasya finished her B.Sc. in engineering and then accomplished an MBA in the Rotterdam School of Management in General Management and Human Resource in 1991. The year 1992 saw her studying mixed media and oil painting under Ben Stolk in The Netherlands. Under Jose Moons and Hans Kemner she also studied silk painting, gauche and finally in what was to become her destined medium - watercolors.
Explaining the difference between From Indonesia With Love exhibition which took place in 1998 and From Indonesia With Love II, Sasya explains her desire to simplify and minimize her paintings, creating a greater impact with just a few colors. As they say, "a person of few words is more effective."
She concentrates on a limited number of bold colors, leaning towards red and black which are symbolic of the chorus of emotions involved in love and hate that each individual experiences.
"The change in my style is a reflection of the process of change and maturity in the direction of my own life," says Sasya reflectively. The result of studying a broad spectrum of art from America and Europe is evidenced in the balance and structure of the still lifes which dominate Sasya's works. While most of the paintings are eloquently Indonesian with ethnic artifacts, Sasya includes intrinsically Asian subjects as well. For example the statue head of Buddha, Chinese ceramics, clay horses, Bali masks, Delft blue ceramics, batik cloth, and the ikat weave.
Combining the education in Western techniques and the use of Asian subjects is perhaps what gives Sasya's watercolors that perfect blend. The painting Love is a Beautiful Thing (70 x 113 cm) was painted in 1999. In it are an array of vases of varying shapes with red and white lilies bending gracefully from their mouths. Oblique light throws intriguing shadows over the vases and some of the petals. The transparency of the glass vases and white petals creates the feeling of introspective serenity.
No Pretensions (55 x 75 cm) is one of Sasya's bright watercolors featuring a clay horse, a bunch of bananas and a stem heavy with red lilies in full bloom. One notices the young painter's fascination with batik in the intricate design of the backdrop. The brick-red of the clay horse is balanced with the red leaves and patterned batik on the right side of the painting. The yellow green bananas synchronize with the green of the batik pattern on the left.
The fascination with Indonesian artifacts and especially the painting of batik cloth patterns is credited to Sasya's teacher of many years, Benny Setiawan, who accompanies her with 25 paintings of his own. Benny was a designer of batik patterns on cloth before he decided to shift to painting his mastery of detail onto paper. Thus emerged a unique style that has made him one of the most popular watercolorists in the Jakarta. Benny has also exhibited in Malaysia and Thailand.
The use of bold color with gradations of hue is what keeps an onlooker pondering in front of a painting for a little while longer. The subtle changes in tint by increasing the amount of water is known to every artist but actually creating scores of colors so close in hue yet different is perhaps where Benny's mastery of intricate detail lies. The blues change to turquoise in a mosaic of painted lines each a fraction different than the other.
In his painting Mercu Suar di Pulau (The Island Lighthouse - 55 x 37.5 cm), Benny presents a tall, bricked lighthouse with the sea and sky in the background. Lush green vegetation at the base of the lighthouse contrasts with the ochres and browns of the beach behind. Then waves breaking upon waves roll onto the beach in light transparent blues grading to darker blues in the depths. In contrast to the delicious blues are ferries and trawlers in blazes of white.
As in most of his paintings which include landscapes and still lifes, Benny presents views of simplistic themes with a unique detail in texture and depth created through his effective style of color gradation.
Art lovers will truly enjoy this diverse collection of beautiful watercolors painted by teacher and pupil. Joined by a love of the medium and related through years of study, they present two distinctive styles reflective of their individual talents. From Indonesia With Love II should prove to be a truly rewarding experience in the contemporary sense.