Indonesian cultural community loses its finest artists

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian cultural community again mourned its prominent figures who died in l996.

Indonesia lost one of its finest artists when realist painter Dullah died on the first day of l996.

Dullah, 76, died of complications caused by a combination of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and a lower respiratory tract infection at the Panti Rapih hospital in Yogyakarta.

Dullah was buried next to his wife, Jan Jaerabby Fatima, at Purwoloyo cemetery in Surakarta.

In June l993, Dullah suffered a stroke. Even though he lost control of his right hand, this did not discourage the artist from working. He succeeded in completing several sketches with his left hand.

Due to illness, he had to close his museum, the Dullah Museum, in Surakarta in l993. The museum holds more than 500 paintings, including rare works by Raden Saleh, Abdullah, Basuki Abdullah, Affandi and several other prominent painters.

The museum also houses 100 important drawings recording the battle of Yogyakarta between the Tentara Nasional Indonesia troops and Dutch soldiers. The drawings, which were made by Dullah's students in the l940s, have become significant historical assets to the nation.

Dullah, the eldest of five brothers, was born in l9l9. His mother Kati was a batik maker and painter.

Dullah is known as one of Indonesia's pioneer realist painters. He first picked up the brush at the age of 16 and is known mainly for his paintings depicting Indonesia's guerrillas during the independence war against the Dutch colonial forces in the second half of the 1940s.

Dullah is known as a revolutionary period painter. Through his canvases Dullah recorded a series of historic events and the grim memories of the country's pre-independence period. Dullah produced 700 paintings, many of which belong to art collectors here and abroad. Some are on display at his museum.

One of his most famous paintings, Preparation for Guerrilla War in Yogyakarta, hangs at the State Palace in Jakarta.

Indonesia's first president Sukarno appointed Dullah the official painter of the presidential palace, a post he held from l950 to l960. Dullah also acted as curator of the president's huge art collection.

Sukarno also asked Dullah to take care of and protect Indonesia's original red-and-white flag. Dullah was also ordered to modify the position of the Garuda (giant eagle) in the nation's emblem. Previously, the Garuda gripped the ribbon inscribed with the nation's motto, Bhineka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity). Dullah was ordered to place the ribbon in front of the eagle's feet.

His greatest contribution to the local fine art world was his tireless effort to document rare paintings, reproductions and other artwork belonging to the late president Sukarno in four books. The books were published by the People's Arts Center in Beijing. "They are the first written documents on Indonesian fine arts," Dullah once said.

Film Director William Umboh Achmad Salim, or Wim Umboh, died on Jan. 24 at 63 in his humble home in Depok, about 15 kilometers south of Jakarta, after he had been ill for more than 20 years.

Regarded as one of Indonesia's best directors, Wim brought a handful of innovations to the local film industry.

Wim began his directing career with the film Harimau dan Merpati (A Tiger and a Pigeon), followed by Terang Bulan Terang di Kali (Moonlight on the River) in the early l950s.

He directed Sepiring Nasi (A Bowl of Rice) in 1955, followed by Djuara Sepatu Roda (The Skating Champion) in 1958.

In l961, he established a film company called Aries Film with producer Ani Mambo. Wim directed several films, including Istana Hilang (The Lost Palace), in l965.

In l971, he produced and directed the teenage love story Pengantin Remaja (Teenage Bride and Groom), which featured teenage singer Widyawati of Trio Visca and the then unknown Sophan Sophian. Widyawati and Sophan later married and are now the most successful couple in the Indonesian film industry.

It was Wim who first introduced the black and white Cinemascope technique in his film Macan Kemayoran (Kemayoran Tiger) in l965. He was also the first director to use color in his work Sembilan (Nine) in l967. A few years later, he introduced the use of a 70 millimeter camera for his film Mama (l972).

Lack of formal education didn't prevent Wim from producing high-quality films. Wim eagerly collaborated with other directors to transform his ideas and put them on screen. He often shared ideas and experiences with more educated directors like Sumandjaya, Djayakusuma and Asrul Sani, and younger directors like the late Arifin C. Noer, Teguh Karya and Chaerul Umam.

He worked closely with the late Sumandjaya, a prominent Indonesian director, to create Pengantin Remaja and Mama between l971 and l972.

Wim and the late director and playwright Arifin C. Noer experimented with surrealistic ideas in Senyum di Pagi Bulan Desember (Smile on a December Morning) in 1974, and Sesuatu Yang Indah (Something Beautiful) in l976.

His efforts bore fruit. He garnered film awards from domestic and international film societies. His films Pengemis dan Tukang Becak (The Beggar and the Becak Driver), starring Christine Hakim, Perkawinan (The Wedding) and Pengantin Remaja, which won best film awards at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival.

Born in Watulinrei in North Sulawesi 63 years ago, Wim also received several honors from the Indonesian government for his dedication to film, including the Seni Sinema award in l990 and the Bintang Kesetiaan Profesi in l993.

Teguh (Slamet Rahardjo) Srimulat, one of Indonesia's masters of comedy, died of heart failure in Surakarta, Central Java, on Sept. 22 this year. He is survived by a wife, Djudjuk, four children and four grandchildren.

Teguh was born as Kho Djien Tjong to a humble family of Chinese origin in Klaten, Central Java, in l926. He never finished secondary school as he was so fond of playing music and singing. Instead of doing his homework, young Teguh joined the Miss Ribut Orion theater group and collaborated with Gesang (composer of Bengawan Solo) in the Bunga Mawar Keroncong group.

In l950, he married Srimulat, a prima donna of the local theater group called Gema Malam Srimulat. The couple recruited numerous members for its new genre of comedy.

He combined the style of dagelan Mataram (Javanese comedy) and modern comic elements. He let his members improvise and experiment with their own plesetan (parody) style of comedy.

The group attracted audiences all across the country. It also produced a number of prominent comedians such as Tarsan, Asmuni, the late Gepeng, Karjo A.C/D.C., Kadir and Basuki. Srimulat programs are still shown on the Indosiar television station every Thursday night.

Trisnojuwono, a noted writer and the oldest skydiver in Asia, died on Oct. 29 of a stroke at his house in Bandung, West Java. He would have been 71 on Nov. 12. He is survived by four children and seven grandchildren.

Trisno worked as a journalist for Pikiran Rakyat, a leading daily in the province, since 1961.

He founded Aves, an association of Indonesian divers. His son, Tristian Wirawan, also a member of Aves, died in 1980 at the age of 24 after his parachute failed to open.

Trisno had logged more than 1,000 skydives since he started in 1950. He was a member of the SOS-USA (Skydivers Over Sixty in the United States).

During the independence years of 1945-1950, Trisno fought in the Armed Forces. He was member of the Mataram People's Army, the Student Corps, and the Siliwangi Army. In 1950, he was selected to take part in combat intelligence training in Bandung and surrounding areas.

He started writing in 1950 after befriending writers S.M. Ardan, Soekanto S.A., Ajip Rosjidi and playwright Syumandjaja,

He won a number of literary prizes, including one for his short story Tinggul published in his anthology Laki-laki dan Mesiu (Man and Gunpowder). One of his more recent works is Surat-surat Cinta (Love Letters), a novel which tells of a married man's affair with a student in Bandung. (raw)