Guess What? Astari Rasjid

Guess What? Astari Rasjid

The day-long fast passes by rapidly for artist Astari Rasjid as she hops around town checking on various preparations for the non-aligned nations exhibit in April.

The day starts with hovering around the Fine Arts Gallery in Gambir, Central Jakarta, accompanying officials in charge of palace protocol. One step wrong in the arrangements and Mrs. Rasjid, the head of the organizing committee, will naturally take all the blame.

"No studio time yet," she says briefly between rounds. "Studio time" does not only include painting and welding, but also picking around in the garbage for odd pieces of wood. One piece was wiped, fashioned into a crude arrow and glued in between two completed canvasses.

The meaning? "I don't know," says the mother of four, "It just belongs there." (anr)