Hardi, forged paintings and history

By Yusuf Susilo

JAKARTA (JP): Hardi, 50, a proponent of the now-defunct New Fine Art Movement, has himself fallen victim to art forgery. He discovered a forged copy of one of his paintings at The Old Painting Pre-World War II exhibition in Jakarta in November 2000, although he could not find out the identity of the counterfeiter.

It all began when he was looking through a 138-page catalog sent to him by the organizing committee of the exhibition a few days before the exhibition and auction were due to begin.

He was surprised when he saw a photo of a painting titled 2 Dancers on page 23, because he was sure that it was his painting, Two Dancers, which Else Sigit bought in 1995. He became more convinced something unusual was taking place when he saw something "strange" in the works of other painters like Affandi, S. Sudjojono and Picasso, which were also part of the exhibition.

To make sure that his painting had been forged, Hardi searched through his neatly arranged documents and found a photograph of Two Dancers and a catalog from an exhibition held at Balai Budaya in 1995, which carried a photo of this painting. Then he compared these photos with that of the painting of 2 Dancers, which had been signed "Arie, Bali '52" in the bottom right-hand corner. The organizing committee listed Arie Smit as the painter of 2 Dancers. Hardi found the two paintings were extremely similar.

Furious, he wrote an article about the exhibition, bringing up the issue of forgery. A Jakarta-based magazine published the to accompany its cover story. This article and cover story caused quite a stir in Indonesia's art world, especially following various reports and comments carried in domestic and overseas print and electronic media

Hardi's strong reaction to art forgery and various articles and comments made by experts in the mass media soon bore fruit. First Lady Mrs. Shinta Abdurrahman Wahid canceled her appearance to open the exhibition. And when the exhibition did open, people came just to look at works by Indonesian artists and foreign masters such as Picasso, Amadeo Modigliani, Renoir, Chagal and Vincent van Goh which were considered forgeries by many experts.

The stir peaked with the cancellation of the auction, originally expected to rake in several billion rupiah. Accompanied by J. Syahdam, who had gathered the paintings, and Jonathan H. Gunawan of the Batavia Auction Bureau, the chairwoman of the exhibition's organizing committee, Adelia Rangkuti, announced the cancellation of the auction, though she said it would be held within three months. To date, there are still no signs this auction will be held.

Hardi attended the tense opening ceremony of the exhibition. And he graciously complied with an invitation to meet with organizers for a discussion.

Hardi was detained by the Jakarta Police in 1980 for an exhibition of his graphic works at Taman Ismail Marzuki called Suhardi, President RI 2001.

But Hardi refuses to bow to pressure, as reflected in his article, seeing it as a matter of both conviction and accountability.

"As a common man, I felt scared when I came to the exhibition, which was guarded by men wearing batik shirts with crewcuts," said Hardi, who is known as a controversial and sharp-tongued artist with a penchant for treating his colleagues to dinner and giving them a helping hand if needed.

In discussing the canceled art auction, Hardi expresses his disappointed with the police and other law enforcers for taking not action. He believes the police should have taken action without even waiting for complaints from the public.

But the police argued someone first had to file a complaint before they could do anything.

"If a party is going to file a complaint it should be an institution like the National Gallery, not an individual like myself. If I did (file a complaint), what would people say? Even now I have been portrayed as trying to play hero," said Hardi, a former chairman of the Association of Jakarta Artists, during an interview at his studio in Pejompongan, Central Jakarta.

The ethics of creation

Raden Suhardi, his full name, realizes that putting a stop to art forgery is a very steep challenge. The reason lies not solely in insufficient facilities and infrastructure, but also the country's lack of appreciation for copyright laws. If there is a group that is serious about eradicating art forgery, Hardi is willing to lend his moral support.

Although one of his works has been forged, Hardi swears it is not karma because he has never copied anybody's paintings. As an artist who studied for several years at the Indonesian Fine Art Academy (ASRI) in Yogyakarta before being expelled, Hardi knows the ethics of creation.

Jokingly, as usual, he said he could copy others' works if he wished because he has excellent technique.

A father of three, Hardi, who likes Santana's music and traditional Javanese comedy, has been intensely involved in the art world for over 30 years. During the course of his lengthy and tiring creative journey, Hardi has devoted himself to the observation of various schools of art and a wide-range of objects, simply following his conscience, the era he lives in and his responsibility as the breadwinner of the family.

Experimental arts

Hardi, who at one time made his home in Bali, painted in the realist tradition in the early years of his career (1970 to 1972). It was during this period that he painted his Beautiful Bali series. Between 1973 and 1975, he began to create abstract works. When this period began to show signs of running its course, Hardi began with his experimental painting (1974 to 1979).

During this period, he visited Holland, where he studied fine art at the Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht (1975 to 1977).

While politicians kept quiet and turned a blind eye to the repressive acts of the New Order regime, in 1980 Hardi began to explore social themes in his works. One of his more famous paintings is Paperboy Being Chased by Police. This "social-theme period" lasted until 1987.

Following the art boom in 1987, Hardi switched to themes that were more pleasing to the eye, as if reentering his Beautiful Bali period. He began to create paintings that featured dancers.

As money began to make its way into his pocket at increasing speeds, his slowly but surely began to lose his image as an idealist or a painter-cum-fighter.

Hardi, who studied at the Surabaya Fine Art Academy prior to joining ASRI, saw his reputation among artistic circles slide further when he painted Pak Harto Stricking a Drum at a time when Soeharto was much despised, which he then followed with his paintings of President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

On the other hand, his reputation in the marketplace scaled the heights. He began to use models after he returned from the haj pilgrimage in 1996. Presently, he is engrossed by the idea of nudity and therefore is keeping a bigger distance from the market.

Unfazed

Hardi realizes his name has been intentionally omitted from the history of the country's fine arts by contemporary fine art authorities, be they institutions, observers or writers. Some of them are his former peers at college or fellow members of the New Fine Art Movement.

"Let me give you an example. I was interviewed for two hours but only one line of this interview appeared in print. Then a major graphics exhibition was held at Bentara Budaya and I was uninvited. In fact, I was detained by the police because of my graphic works President of 2001," he said.

Nevertheless, Hardi is of the view that fine art is a vehicle of life, a gift from God, and he is therefore unfazed. He is convinced that the history of Indonesia's fine arts, which is now twisted, will some day be straightened out, just like the country's history or that of Bung Karno, Indonesia's first president.

He considers his current situation -- accepted by the market but rejected by the market, a creator of paintings yet not considered a painter -- as part of his ups and downs as an artist in a messy state.

Hardi, much acclaimed by the Japanese mass media during his 1999 solo exhibition in Tokyo, will just go on painting, holding exhibitions, writing occasionally, giving interviews, speaking at seminars and appearing on TV talk shows. He will continue having a good time in his favorite malls and plazas, appreciating all kinds of beauty. Who knows, maybe he can pick up something for his models while he's there.