Pirous' artworks show how the medium is the message

Yusuf Susilo Hartono, Contributor, Jakarta

To celebrate his 70th birthday, Abdul Djalil Pirous, a painter and fine arts teacher, is displaying his art works in a solo exhibition titled Retrospektif II (In Retrospect II) at the National Gallery from March 11 through to March 31.

Organized by Serambi Pirous in cooperation with the National Gallery, the show is highlighted by the launching of A.D.Pirous: Vision, Faith and A Journey in Indonesian Art, 1955-2002, a 267- page monograph written jointly by Kenneth M. George, a professor of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA and author Mamannoor, a writer on fine arts.

As a professor at the School of Fine Arts and Design at Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) with several awards from Indonesia and abroad to his credit, Pirous is also a noted calligraphic painter. He is one of the pioneers in the development of Arab calligraphic paintings as a new genre in the map of Indonesia's modern fine arts that now enjoy international recognition.

His art works from 1955 (before he became an ITB student) to 2002, show a social religious spirit. He has explored the spirit indefatigably using different techniques and styles.

What matters most in painting for Pirous, born in Meulaboh, Aceh, is the message to convey to other people, not the techniques or the styles, which painters of earlier generation have focused on. A painter need only select the most appropriate technique or style to express his ideas.

At first, Pirous presented figures naturalistically in his paintings. In the 1960s, especially after the abortive coup allegedly committed by the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) on Sept. 30, 1965, his paintings featured poor tramps emerging in the transition from the Old Order to the New Order regime. He also produced cubist and abstract paintings, including a painting titled The Sun after September 1965.

In the 1970s, Pirous questioned himself: "As a painter from Aceh, a Muslim and an intellectual, what should I do to help solve the nation's problems?" His answer: alms and thought.

For that purpose, he turned to the verses of the Koran, which contain advice, suggestions and teachings related to the universe. Based on this concept, he introduced calligraphic paintings that contain themes, among others, of children, life and the fatherland.

Figures usually present in oil paintings or graphic design paintings disappeared. He turned his attention from the lower part to the upper part of the human body. Pirous's calligraphic paintings have two salient features -- esthetics and spiritual counsel.

In its later development, Pirous' calligraphy has shown its own characteristics, quite different, for example, from those of Amang Rahman, Syaiful Adnan, Amri Yahya and even his mentor, Sadali.

The use of texture from fine marble powder blended with six other substances, the color composition, the harmony, the choice of verses and his meticulousness have brought forth modern calligraphic paintings to the level of visual dzikir, or a visual form of the worship of God. His works portray not only a Godliness but also a humanity, the relationship between a human being and God as well as between one person and another, and between heaven and earth.

Take a close look at his works, starting from Malam (Nocturne, 1975), which is still simple, and on to trademark pieces such as Ya Rabbi, Dengarlah Kami (Oh God, Please Listen to Us, 1991); Surga Seluas Langit dan Bumi Bagi Yang Beriman KepadaNya (Heaven is as Wide as the Sky and the Earth for Those Having Faith in God, 2000); Nasib Suatu Kaum Terletak di Tangannya Sendiri (Men's Destiny Lies in His Own Hands, 2001); Tamsil Perahu, Mengarungi Kehidupan (A Parable on a Boat, Sailing Through Life, 2002) -- the latter is taken from a verse about a boat by Hamzah Fanshuri's 16th century Tuhan, Kita Begitu Dekat (God, We are so close, 2002), quoted from a poem by Abdul Hadi W.M. -- up to his latest pieces like Hari-hari Manusia (Human Days); Tiada Yang Dapat Memberi Pertolongan Kepadanya, Kecuali Amal Yang Saleh (Nothing Can Help a Man But His Good Deeds, 2002), quoted from the epitaph of Syech Mushlihuddin Sa'adi who lived between 1184 and 1292.

According to Mamannoor, the curator of Pirous' current exhibition, there are two big themes in Pirous' art works, namely calligraphy and non-calligraphy.

The theme of his calligraphic pieces contain three elements. First, Pirous begins with the Koran's holy verses, the hadith (Prophet Muhammad's sayings), verses, old tales and words of wisdom. Second, he develops new realities by interpreting the source texts to establish the integrity between content and meaning. Third, he establishes a relationship between modern Islamic calligraphy and painting or graphic art.

As for his non-calligraphic theme, it starts from his encounters with real life such as inanimate objects, creatures and events.

In this reform era, Pirous has produced a series of paintings titled Hikayat Perang Sabil (Holy War Tales), the main strength of his retrospective exhibit; in defense of his birthplace of Aceh.

Figures missing for many years are back in several canvases of various sizes. Headless bodies and even the figure of Teuku Umar (an Acehnese hero) swishing his saber amid blood splashes on a mosaic of Arabic verses.

With full admiration, Pirous created an art work entitled: Once Upon a Time, There Was a Holy War in Aceh: A Tribute to Courageous Hero Teuku Umar, 1885 to 1899. This painting was made in 1998. It is also his art work that will welcome each person entering the National Gallery. Not far from this painting, Pirous presents an art work symbolizing the shackling of a holy war book, and a rencong (Acehnese dagger) among stone artifacts and mute old Acehnese verses. He has successfully conveyed the message of the suffering and the hopes of the Acehnese. He has done this with the same finesse with which he has put Acehnese elements on canvas since the 1970s in the form of stones, ancient gravestones, pandak mats and characteristic Acehnese colors.

With this series of Acehnese paintings, we would not be wrong in saying that Pirous is a painter, a teacher and above all else a fighter. The message and language of fine arts are his bullets.