I Made Sumadiyasa: Young, promising Balinese painter

I Made Sumadiyasa: Young, promising Balinese painter

By Putu Wirata

Young Balinese painter Made Sumadiyasa has received acclaim
both at home and abroad for his works. This article relates the
genesis of his paintings of the past few years.

DENPASAR (JP): Two paintings exhibited at Art Asia Hong Kong
in November last year, Menari dengan Singa (Dancing with a Lion,
1994) and Jalan Pembebasan (Road to Freedom, 1994), received
extraordinary acclaim. The painter was I Made Sumadiyasa, 24, who
is still studying at Yogyakarta's School of Fine Arts and Design.

"After 30 years, at last I can now take pride in something
from Indonesia, that is, through art works by Made Sumadiyasa,"
said Kornie, an American-born promoter who organized Made's
exhibition in Hong Kong. They carried the flag of the Neka Museum
in Ubud, the first Indonesian museum to participate in the Art
Asia Hong Kong exhibition.

"If you want to compete in technology, there are Germany and
Japan. Indonesia, however, can rise to prominence because of its
art works. I have chosen the works of Made because he is the
youngest among many talented painters," said Kornie at the Neka
Museum prior to his trip to Hong Kong.

Collectors showed interest in Made's paintings when they were
exhibited at the Bambu Gallery owned by Wayan Suteja Neka. The
works quickly fetched prices of between Rp 20 million and Rp 45
million (between US$8,602 and $17,204) a piece.

Among the many strong Balinese painters with character, Made
Sumadiyasa is the youngest. The abstract concept of his works
resembles the expression of the universe in Balinese culture. It
is not far different from that of his predecessors, including
Nyoman Erawan, Jirna and Wayan Budiana. These painters have often
participated in prestigious events worldwide. Erawan's and
Budiana's works were exhibited in the Festival of Indonesia in
the United States in 1990 to 1991 and the Indonesian Dutch
Cultural Exhibition in 1993.

"Now it is Made Sumadiyasa's turn," said Kornie.

Who is Made Sumadiyasa, the quiet young man with braided hair?

Made was born in Lalang Linggah, Tabanan in 1971. His
grandfather was a priest in a temple on a small hill just outside
his village. His father followed in the footsteps of his
grandfather. Like other Balinese children, Made was raised in an
environment full of rites and mystic beliefs. But, of course, his
contact with rites is not as intense as that of his forefathers
because the modern social environment has given him more rational
inputs. Nonetheless, the spirit of an ancestral ritual culture
radiates from his works.

Garrett Kam, an observer of Balinese fine arts and culture
living in Bedahulu, Gianyar, sees those allusions in Sumadiyasa's
work.

In Menari dengan Singa, Kam wrote, Made's impressive strokes
remind the Balinese of the myth of an animal resembling a lion, a
protective spirit in Bali. In Jalan Menuju Keabadian, Made shows
the strength of inner emotions, the sediment of the ritual spirit
long experienced. In this work, according to Kam, Sumadiyasa
succeeded in attaining a deep visualization of the abstract
world. The process of creation is colored by interruption, which
shows that the search for eternity is a hard struggle.

Made, as Garrett Kam says, may not be aware of a traditional
undercurrent linked to the expression in his works. He admits
that his works express a number of variations. His ideas, he
says, come directly from events and objects in his environment,
sometimes from the mass media, including television, dialogs and
polemics. It is these outward experiences which have settled in
him to later become personal expressions.

His expression of the spiritual world of Balinese culture is
clearly seen in these works. The majority of these works are
stimulated by Balinese cultural art forms. This can be derived
from the titles of such works as Lemak Legong Keraton (1993),
Mahabaratha (1993), Kucing Hutan (1994), Menari dengan Singa
(1994), Kemana Mereka Pergi (1994), Penari Baris (1993),
Kesaktian Baris Gede, Ngerupuk (1994), Ngaben (1993), Nyala Api
(1995), Jalan Menuju Keabadian (1994), and Sandhi Kala (1994).

The Balinese community, which in general still believes in
mystic forces, is steeped in arts expressed by, among other
things, irrational ways. What is referred to as the soul, the
spirit, vibration in modern artists vocabulary, is called taksu
in Balinese. Although not all agree, the composition of forms,
the etching and brushing of colors by Made Sumadiyasa radiate
vibration.

In Jalan Menuju Keabadian, Made paints red, green, light
brown, black, white, and marine blue in a story on a cremation in
a Ngaben procession in Bali. According to Balinese Hindu belief,
a cremation with all the supporting offerings of the ritual is
the way to eternity in the hereafter. As there is no one able to
describe the hereafter from personal experience, except through
meditations, myths and subconscious imaginations, people
generally fantasize about a darkness where the soul is liberated.
And, at the time of liberation, the soul leaves the coarse body
-- in the form of a red ray -- and goes into the skies.

An attractive empiric experience on vibration is perhaps found
in Made Sumadiyasa's painting entitled Sandhi Kala (Transition
from dusk to evening) dating from 1994 and belonging to an
unnamed collector. The owner admitted to having strange dreams
and when he consulted a medicine man. The latter said to return
the painting to the painter's house. It was said that after the
collector did so, he could sleep soundly.

Although Made Sumadiyasa says he is not aware and does not
understand the existence of magic forces in his works, in the
belief of the Balinese Hindu community, Sandhi Kala is a critical
and dangerous transition time from twilight to evening. Usually,
at such moments, the Balinese present their offerings to Bhuta
Kala (guardian of the evil world), who, according to mythology,
is given the power by the god Siwa to inflict disaster on people
who have violated Sandhi Kala taboos. Some of the taboos are to
pass streets, quiet places, village crossroads, or in front of
haunted places during this time.

Is the medicine man correct in saying that the Sandhi Kala
painting is the cause of strange dreams? No proof has been
established but in Balinese culture, various forms of the magic
power of paintings are known. Rajah (paintings with magical
powers) are used for Usadha (traditional therapy) or for Pengiwa
(black magic). And the painters are experts who have studied
everything on fine arts, or people who are naturally endowed with
paranormal abilities. With some study, using certain magic
formulae, their brush strokes can have magic power.

Made Sumadiyasa says he does not intentionally express
paranormal vibrations in his works. He is a vegetarian and
practices yoga diligently. Pande Wayan Suteja Neka, the sponsor
for Made's participation in the Art Asia Hong Kong, confirms that
Made's works are much sought after.

"In the beginning, we exhibited his works at the Neka Museum.
Many people like them and have started collecting them," he said.
An estimated 45,000 visitors saw the works of artists from Asia,
Europe and America on exhibition in Hong Kong. "This is purely
art, there is no trading," said Suteja Neka.

Surprisingly, Made Sumadiyasa's works attracted the attention
of collectors. The prices paid are comparable to those for Made
Wianta's works (up to Rp 100 million), Nyoman Gunarsa (up to Rp
40 million) or Arie Smit (up to Rp 76 million).

The quiet and unpretentious Made is not a productive painter.
In one month, he often does only one painting, or nothing at all.

Made admits he paints according to his mood.

"Although I am not an idealist, I do not want to accept
orders. In executing an order, even if I am allowed freedom, my
soul would not be in the work," said Made.