Dewa Putu Kantor, guardian of Batuan painting style

I Wayan Sunarta, Contributor, Ubud, Bali

Four children are happily playing with their crickets placed in hollow bamboo cylinders. Half naked, these village kids cheerfully laugh at each other.

The portrayal of the real and simple traditional life of Balinese children in old times are captured in many of Dewa Putu Kantor's canvasses.

Unlike the younger generation of Balinese artists who choose to leave their traditional roots and shift into a more contemporary artistic effort, Putu Kantor is one of the few remaining artists who still retain the strong Balinese traditional painting styles.

Putu Kantor, 46, the oldest son of Dewa Made Jarud and Ni Jro Tanjung, had shown his remarkable artistic skills when he was still a child.

"(Back then) there was no television and other forms of entertainment except wayang (shadow puppet) shows, Balinese dances and gamelan (traditional orchestra) music," he recalled.

Putu Kantor said he was fond of watching wayang shows and then created wayang figures from jepun (Plumeria) leaves and flowers.

He studied at an elementary school in a small village of Guwang, near Sukawati arts center in Gianyar regency, and had never acquired formal art lessons.

Despite his lack of formal education, Putu Kantor's bright talents had led him to learn painting and sculpture from a number of famous artists.

He learned wood sculpture from Made Pujanatih, a well-known sculptor in his own village.

Putu Kantor continued to learn traditional Batuan painting style from a number of artists such as Dewa Putu Mangku, Dewa Made Jaya, Wayan Kamarhena and Made Tubuh.

According to arts critics Jean Couteau, Bali is now invaded by "modern" and contemporary" arts, as if the Balinese village painters had lost both relevance and creativity. Much of Balinese "traditional" arts has indeed become repetitive and of mediocre craftsmanship. But there are some exceptions.

Couteau said there are a few artists whose memory of the Balinese tradition doesn't preclude their ability to innovate and generate a new modernity from within the field of tradition. One such artist is Putu Kantor.

Putu Kantor, who grew up among village artisans, said that his favorite teacher was I Made Tubuh, a master of Batuan style painting. "He has successfully transferred almost all of his painting skills and know-how to his pupils."

Batuan style is one of traditional Balinese styles that originated in the 14th century, when the Javanese people introduced the wayang style derived from the iconography of the shadow puppet show theater. The style was improved by Western artists like Walter Spies and Rudolf Bonnet of the Pita Maha Association in the 1930s. The Western artists had made technical influence including in the use of paper, chinese ink, color, detail to anatomy and perspectives. The Pita Maha style was preserved until the end of the 20th century, mainly in and around the villages of Ubud and Batuan in Gianyar.

In the l970s, the Batuan style was in the midst of a transformation toward miniaturism, with Made Tubuh as one of the masters, Couteau said.

Under the guidance of Made Tubuh, Putu Kantor quickly became a young master in his own right. During the eighties, Putu Kantor remained a faithful follower of the Batuan miniaturist style. The quality of his drawings and wash technique endeared him with the lovers of the Balinese post-classical tradition.

Many of his paintings focused on the wayang world derived from the famous Ramayana and Mahabharata epics.

However, Putu Kantor often feels disappointed. "Many art shops and galleries only wanted to buy my paintings at lower prices". Collectors of Kantor's paintings include local and foreign museums, like Musee Guimet in Paris.

Putu Kantor realized his sophisticated style did not correspond to the market demand. "As a traditional painter, I had to spend weeks or even months to finish one work but the people's appreciation and the price was discouraging."

In l989, he started to simplify his painting styles as well as change the themes of his works from the wayang style into everyday lives.

"This was actually the sad evolution of the Batuan style," reminded Couteau.

Putu Kantor's drawings mostly illustrate the daily lives of the Balinese commoners like rural girls, children, peasants, markets, folk stories, ricefields and other simple subjects.

The majority of his paintings depict the simple lives of the Balinese people and its society. The artist seemed obsessed by his happy childhood when Bali was quite free from outside influence. "I always remember my beautiful childhood memories."

A number of critics viewed Putu Kantor's creations as a reminder of the master, I Gusti Nyoman Lempad's outstanding works.

"Lempad mostly utilized contour by using ink techniques, with a mixture of light and bold lines. Mine, on the other hand, rely only on the strength of the lines."

Like other traditional painters, Putu Kantor has never felt secure -- in terms of artistic survival. "We cannot compete with contemporary artists who work very fast with acrylic or oil paint. Their works are accepted in the domestic market," he complained.

Carving a career as a traditional painter is not a promising job indeed. "I really enjoy my present profession but my family, especially my wife, never understand why I cannot make good money like other artists."

Despite lack of appreciation, Putu Kantor insisted to remain faithful to the Batuan style.

"In a frame of tradition, I will continue to explore new and fresh things. For me, learning is a life-long process".