Indonesian artists going back to the past?

Boudewijn Brands, Art critic, boudewijnb@yahoo.com

Art history describes and documents what has happened in the past. Those seriously interested in Indonesian modern art history have several books at their disposal. One English language publication is Astri Wright's Soul, Spirit and Mountain; Preoccupations of Contemporary Indonesian Painters (Oxford Press 1994).

In the 70's of last century, student movements in the "West" made a kind of revolution against the education system of that time. It was perceived as being too authoritarian. They occupied universities in Amsterdam and Paris, to name a few.

In Indonesia, there were student protests in 1973, 1974 and 1978, but they had more to do with economic conditions and protests against corruption. They were efficiently put down by the (literally) armed forces.

I am not aware of any protests against the way education in Indonesia in general was organized.

What is well documented in the art sector, however, is that a group of art students challenged "the aesthetic values prescribed by art academies, senior artists, and critics ...". They held their first exhibition at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) in Jakarta in 1975. They went under the name of New Art Movement (Gerakan Seni Rupa Baru -- GRSB).

It questioned aesthetic universalism as emphasized under the New Order. Members of this group were F.X. Harsono, Dadang Christianto, Dede Eri Supria, Jim Supangkat, Agus Dermawan T., Moelyono, Gendut Riyanto, Harris Purnama, Bonyong Munny Ardhie, Satyagraha and others.

You might recognize some of these names as most of them are still active in the art world as writers, critics and curators. The art that they produced at the time was critical to very critical toward such "achievements" of the New Order as pollution, corruption and what they perceived as the degeneration of Indonesian culture and morale, all in the name of progress. It was often three dimensional, what we call "installations", hardly collectible and/or impossible to preserve.

An example is a work by Bonyong entitled Hotel Asian Tower. It puts a hopeless and exhausted beggar against a wall surrounding a major hotel construction project. This was regarded as offensive at the time (Astri Wright pp 207-213). So, what happens to artists that produce the sort of works that collectors do not want to acquire and pay for? Do they fade away or change profession?

It is to the great credit of Gallery Gelaran that it has decided to bring the members of the GRSB back to Yogyakarta. They already staged a show of Moelyono's work last year.

Last week, Bonyong put his installation works on show at Gelaran.

His job as an art teacher in Solo provides him with a stable income. He is still creating artworks and exhibiting them. Are his works collectible now or will they make the headlines? When we met with the artist, we saw a man whom we suspect had hardly changed his ways since he was 27 or so. Long hair, relaxed clothing and still a very independent stance at the age of 56 today.

Entering the exhibition hall from the courtyard, we first saw the drawing that was also featured in the exhibition poster. It shows the face of a handsome youngster. However, in the area where his brain is supposed to be, there is a gun. The title is Pemuda Masakini (Contemporary youngster) as Bonyong feels that too many youngsters like aggression.

Other works are compositions of drawings or drawings in combination with three dimensional objects. At least three works show the degradation of farmers who have, according to Bonyong, become plain workers instead of landowners. Di Mana Kepalaku (Where is your head going?) criticizes the use of computers. Tedi Udah Nggak Sekolah (Tedi no longer goes to school) points to the fact that many do not send their children to school as they feel they do not have enough money to pay tuition fees.

Pointing out situations perceived as being wrong might have merit. However, it comes to mind that many of the artist's statements are made without being based on data or research. Land cannot be reproduced but humans can. Does a farmer think of this when he has five children? Not sending children to school can save money but does it justify the purchase of a television set? Is the government necessarily wrong when it tries to create employment even when it cannot increase productivity? Are farmers willing to understand government policies and the impact on their lives, and willing to act on them, for instance by voting?

The exhibition reveals an angry, elderly, young man. However, is the criticism still valid? The great merit of this artist and his friends from the GSRB is to show that art is not only about beauty. The merit of the Gallery is that it also reveals from where many now-successful young Yogyakarta artists have drawn their inspirations.