Gunarsa's museum safeguards Bali's heritage

Gunarsa's museum safeguards Bali's heritage

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Semarapura, Bali

Nyoman Gunarsa carefully opened the rolled white cloth to reveal
his museum's newest acquisition; an ancient Kamasan-style
painting believed to be the collective creation of 15th century
Balinese artists.

"The original fabric was so delicate that I had it sewn onto
this new white cloth. Hopefully, this method will sustain the
painting for many years to come," he said while gazing admiringly
at the faded painting.

Nature and age has certainly taken their toll on the painting.
Its colors have lost much of their freshness, the lines are hazy
and the edges are shredded at several points, but the painting is
still a masterpiece.

"Every time I fix my eyes on it I feel a sense of tranquility
embraces me," he said.

It probably is the highest praise to ever come from Gunarsa,
an internationally-recognized painter himself.

The painting, which depicts a classical Hindu story of Tantri
-- a virgin girl who tricks a lustful king -- used to be the
property of the Bale Batur temple in nearby Kamasan village.

When the villagers were short of cash while renovating the
temple they took down the painting and paid Gunarsa a visit.
After a brief discussion the villagers went home with Rp 300
million (US$35,294) and Gunarsa's Balinese Classical Arts Museum
got the newest addition to its collection.

Gunarsa confessed that he always felt reluctant to buy
historic paintings and artifacts from individuals and communities
that for centuries had taken care of those cultural heritages.

However, he also firmly believes that it would do the Balinese
greater good in the future if these works of art are kept in Bali
instead of being flown overseas by foreign collectors.

Some people have accused him of being greedy in this matter.
One of his close friends, a prince of the House of Karangasem,
even scolded Gunarsa after learning that the Museum had just
acquiring a beautiful set of gamelan instruments that once
belonged to the Karangasem Palace.

"Honestly, greed wasn't the motivation. I simply fall in love
with these beautiful things. Moreover, the Balinese believe in
the importance of safeguarding tetamian anak lingsir (the
forefathers' inheritance). That's why I built this museum, to
safeguard our legacy," he said.

"We don't want our children to learn about their own culture
in some far away museums in foreign countries, do we?," he added.

Set on a one-hectare plot of land in Gunarsa's home village of
Banda in Klungkung regency, the Museum is just a few kilometers
from Gelgel, the seat of the kingdom of Dalem Waturenggong, the
15th century ruler of Bali.

"His rule was the golden age, a classical age of Balinese
arts, culture and religion. Banda's proximity to Gelgel was one
of the main reasons I built the museum here instead of in the
island's capital of Denpasar or Ubud," he disclosed.

Gunarsa spent some Rp 3 billion to build the three-story
museum, and an undisclosed sum of money to build up the museum's
collection.

Currently, the collection comprises some 300 paintings, 50
daggers, dozens of stone and wooden statues, hundreds of shadow
puppets, several complete sets of traditional gamelan
instruments, beautifully carved palace gates and wooden
pavilions.

Most of the works in the collection come from the 18th, 19th
and early 20th century and were created by anonymous artists with
three exceptions, a painting created by I Matjong in 1905 and
several paintings made by I Nyoman Mandra and Mangku Mura, the
contemporary masters of Kamasan style.

"Mandra and Mura have provided a significant contribution to
ensure the continued existence of the ancient Kamasan style of
painting," Gunarsa noted.

The museum also boasts the largest collection in Bali of 50
rare Ulantaga paintings. Reportedly made of rice pulp, Ulantaga
paper was imported by ancient Balinese nobles to be used mainly
as a media for sacred rerajahan (magical letters, symbols and
drawings) required in the cremation ceremony.

The majority of the pieces were acquired from individuals and
traditional communities in Bali. The rest was the fruit of
Gunarsa's relentless search abroad.

In 1986, he visited Florence, Italy, knowing that the Dutch
painter, WOJ Nieuwenkamp, who had traveled extensively in Bali in
the early 20th century and witnessed the fall of Klungkung
kingdom into the hands of the Dutch colonial forces, married a
native of the city.

He left the city with a big grin and 10 newly-acquired
Ulantaga paintings, the most expensive one worth $8,000, in his
baggage.

"It was an exhilarating experience, knowing that you had
succeeded in bringing the cultural treasure of your people back
home," he proudly stated.

In spite of its magnificent collection the museum obviously
suffers from two major problems; poor presentation and lack of
adequate restoration and conservation technology.

It also does not have an artificial temperature and humidity
control system, thus, leaving the collection to the mercy of the
elements.

"I admit that we have a big problem with these things,
particularly restoration and conservation," Gunarsa told.

He noted that Balinese traditional paintings, which are made
using water-soluble color pigments, would be completely damaged
by conservation technologies generally applied to western
paintings, which are made of oil-soluble color pigments.

"I desperately need an expert who knows how to tackle this
issue, otherwise this cultural treasure of ours will likely
vanish forever, " he said.