Idealistic fires still burn in Semsar Siahaan

Text by Emmy Fitri, photos by IGGP Bayu Ismoyo

JAKARTA (JP): Semsar Siahaan is not a new name on the country's fine arts scene.

The 46-year-old artist is well-known for harsh but realistic depictions of society.

While preparing his two-week Ecoseed exhibition, scheduled to open at Cemeti Gallery in Yogyakarta in early March, he took time out for an interview with The Jakarta Post.

For the exhibition's theme of environmental awareness, he said he would present both installations and paintings.

Semsar picked the theme after learning from simple things around him.

His love for nature is reflected in his everyday life. He collects mango seeds from a tree which grows near the terrace of his shady, modest home in Cinere, South Jakarta, and spreads them everywhere he goes.

"I always bring a bunch of seeds in my pockets when I go out, and later I like to check whether they have grown," he said.

He also plans to have what he termed a "momentous" solo exhibition in 2000.

"I am determined to have that single exhibition because it marks the beginning of a new century."

Semsar can now sit at ease recalling his struggle as artist and activist, one which has made him wiser and more mature.

His involvement in the pro-democracy movement has earned him the reputation of a rebellious artist, and some of his exhibitions have run foul of the authorities.

Ask him his aims, however, and he will tell you they are basic and very human.

"One of my ideas is how everybody in this nation can feel and cherish their rich and beautiful country.

"Development is not to be blamed but the executives' goodwill to develop well is missing here."

The second son of a high-ranking North Sumatran military officer and a Punjabi mother asked: "Why should we have a plane manufacturer while we still don't know how to mine iron properly?"

His paintings, most of which depict struggles of humanity, are the outlets for what he witnesses and feels.

"I have to see and feel, then I can express it through my paint on canvas," he said, giving the example of Homage to Christo's Mother, one of his favorite works.

It is dedicated to his late son, Inen Christo, and his former wife, Asnaini,

While he seems to have more or less reconciled himself to the divorce from his beloved Asnaini, he still rages with grief over the death of his only child, who died after 25 hours hooked up to an oxygen tank.

His deep devotion to Asnaini, whom he describes as a typically agrarian woman, tough but feminine, is obvious in the way he talks about her.

"She is the most beautiful creature I've ever seen as she can be so motherly and, at the same time, she can be my best friend to share everything with... "

Now Semsar lives all alone with his idealism for the nation, and the development of fine arts.

His is a simple existence. He takes crowded public minibuses, eats at local food stalls and entertains himself with his precious Gibson electric guitar.

He said these were his choices and what he enjoyed.

"Yes, art is for sake of art, but art is not only for artist; art is for human beings, and if necessary artists should die for art," Semsar said.

For him, the choice to be an artist has brought difficulties and many blessings in disguise.

"I have to accept whatever it takes and be loyal to what I believe to the last destination.

"I'm not doing business by making art, I'm expressing something by making art."

He does not seem to care whether his paintings sell, just as long as he can get by in his career and with his friendships.

His most fitting description is one he provides himself: "I am merely an artist who cares."