Everybody welcome in Andree's house
JAKARTA (JP): A home is Andree Suryaman's inspiration. This is clearly seen in his first solo exhibition, Silahkan Masuk (Please, Come in).
Andree, 28, recipient of 74 fine arts awards, including ones from Japan and India, is displaying 50 of his works, which can be generally described as "paintings of interior comfort", at the Kafe Linggar gallery, on Jl. Kemang Timur 36, South Jakarta. The exhibition is open to the public from the Nov. 20 to Dec. 6. All of the exhibited paintings are oils on canvas.
Andree, a graduate of the Bandung Institute of Technology's School of Fine Arts and Design, is particularly expert in depicting interior atmospheres. All the elements that go into the design of an interior, which are arranged in all styles and manners, reflect the aesthetic tastes of professional interior designers.
According to Andree, "a house is building for people to go home to". A home is for everybody. It is for families to build lives, and for people to escape the commotion of the world, escaping into the peace and quiet of their homes". Therefore, in all of his paintings, Andree projects a feeling of comfort and security.
Uniquely, the rooms depicted in Andree's paintings are always unoccupied, as if they were open to the public. Naturally, this is the exact feeling and idea that Andree wished to convey.
"I welcome everybody to enter, and to enjoy a few moments in the rooms of my paintings," he said. So, the occupants of each room in the paintings are the members of the audience who have come to see the paintings.
The works of Andree are rich with perspective. Through a window in a room in one of the paintings, one will often see beautiful scenery, such as the peaceful countryside, glittering city lights or the majestic glow of a sunset.
An art critic, Agus Dermawan T., writes in the catalog for exhibition: "Andree paints space and material nature, and he is undoubtedly a flexible and artistic painter. He always succeeds in blending the components of fine arts in a such a harmonious way. The optical illusion that yields a perspective of the nooks in space all demonstrate his admiration for light. Further, the air in Andree's home is particularly fitting for everybody who seeks refuge."
However, Andree also paints scenes that take place outside of the house, including scenes of social communities. One painting, titled Sebelum Tengah Mei 1998 (Before mid-May 1998), depicts an old city, calm and prosperous, with lots of passersby. Another of his works, Beranda Yogya, Suatu Siang (One afternoon on a Terrace in Yogya), captures the atmosphere in Yogyakarta, secure and serene, despite the current political problems.
Although Andree is a Yogyakarta artist, he was born in Kerawang, West Java, on March 22, 1970. He went to Yogyakarta's High School of Arts, then continued his studies in Bandung, graduating in 1995.
Andree, besides being known as a brilliant artist and the director of a handmade antique company, also modeled on the catwalk and magazine covers. He was once a finalist for a male- model competition held by the teen-magazine Gadis, as well as the cover boy for a Sunday newspaper.