Rusli, a painter of principle
Tarko Sudiarno, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta
Rusli's eyes shone brightly and were moist with great emotion behind his glasses. As his trembling hands tightly gripped the microphone, the old man clearly addressed the audience in a halting voice from his wheelchair.
His booming voice and substance of his address captivated the hundreds of guests present at the recent 53rd anniversary ceremony of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta.
The 90-year-old Rusli is one of Indonesia's senior artists, who, on Dec. 19, 2002, received the Hamengku Buwono IX Award from Gadjah Mada University.
Rusli, who lives in Yogyakarta, is a famous artist, but few know that he is also a war veteran who took part in the struggle for Indonesia's independence.
After attending a Dutch elementary school in his birthplace of Medan, North Sumatra, Rusli decided to migrate to Yogyakarta to study and teach at Taman Siswa Educational Institution during the Dutch colonial times. There he became a freedom fighter and also a painter.
"I don't remember when I came to Yogyakarta. I don't even remember my own birthday. But I know that I'm about 90 years old," he said.
He recalled memorable moments when he and fellow freedom fighters, buoyed by their youthful spirit, lowered the Japanese flag and then hoisted Indonesia's national flag at the Gedung Agung, now the presidential palace in Yogyakarta.
This flag lowering incident did not turn violent, because Rusli and his colleagues were able to persuade Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX to come over and talk with the Japanese officials.
"This incident is still fresh in my mind although I don't remember the date any more. It must have been shortly after Japan unconditionally surrendered to the Allied Forces in 1945," he said.
Rusli continued to serve as a fighter up until the time when efforts were still being made to maintain the hard-fought independence of Indonesia. His commander during the guerrilla war then was Lt. Col. Soeharto, who later became president of the country for three decades.
"Soeharto gave me this house and museum as a token of his appreciation for me, a former freedom fighter," he said.
Only his home is evidence of his former days as a freedom fighter. He is reluctant to have any official documents proving that he is a war veteran, and as a result, he does not receive any pension as a war veteran. He cannot remember his last rank during his military service.
After leaving the military, young Rusli devoted himself to painting, and began to deeply explore semiabstract painting at a school that was then gaining popularity. He began to develop his own way of painting using watercolors, which is now his signature style. His watercolor paintings have free, expressive patterns in bright and cheerful colors.
Rusli is also known as the founder of the Indonesian Artist Center (PTPI) along with other artists of his generation, such as Affandi, Jayeng Asmara, Suyono and Hendra. They rented a simple house to serve as their headquarters in Yogyakarta. This institution later became a venue for young artists to come together and work as well as a place where young people interested in art could learn painting for free.
The center, set up during the Dutch colonial times, was taken over by the Indonesian government in 1954 and turned into the Indonesia Fine Arts Academy (ASRI), which was later renamed the Indonesian Fine Arts Institute (ISI) of Yogyakarta.
Rusli, Affandi and his colleagues, however, did not want to be affiliated with this new institution. Only Jayeng Asmara joined ASRI as its deputy chairman.
"Although there has no been official recognition of this fact, it was because of PTPI that ASRI could come into being," said Rusli, who, after the establishment of ASRI, set up his own young Indonesian artists center.
Despite his separation from ASRI, Rusli, just like Affandi and Hendra, eventually gained great popularity and has been put in the category of great semiabstract artists by European critics.
Collectors admire his expressive work, but Rusli does not sell many of his paintings.
"I've never offered my paintings to collectors, much less sell them on a large scale. Less than 10 of my paintings are in the hands of collectors."
Rusli always devotes himself to the process of creating a painting. If he does not think that what he has painted expresses what is in his heart, he will simply throw it into the fire.
"I paint really for the sake of pure art, not commercial art. So when I create my paintings I carry no burden at all."
"It is usually just my close friends who receive my paintings, and even then, I don't sell the paintings to them. They give me some money, yes, but the amount is insignificant. So, only true collectors and art observers will visit me at my house. Art traders will never come here because they know I'm really selective in letting other people have my paintings," said Rusli, who fell short of mentioning the general price of his paintings.
A watercolor painting on an A-3-sized piece of paper can reportedly fetch up to Rp 20 million.
"I don't remember who collects my paintings, the titles of the paintings in their collection or how much they have given me in exchange for them. I've heard that there are a lot of paintings that are passed off as mine. Some of them have even found their way into Christie's in Singapore and have been sold at very high prices. Let it happen as I don't want to get involved in this forgery matter," said Rusli, who has just renovated his museum.
Rusli has a strong conviction that he will always be able to find something to eat. "Wherever I go, friends give me some food. So why should I sell my paintings just to fill my stomach?"
Rusli's strong principles as an artist and his great devotion to the world of art convinced Gadjah Mada University to choose him as the winner of the Hamengku Buwono IX Award.
Rusli, who has spent three years studying painting and dancing at Rabindranath Tagore's Shantiniketan University in India, is considered meritorious in art education.
"Usually, this award, which is Gadjah Mada University's version of the Nobel, is given to scientists. However, the assessment team believes Rusli has done quite a lot for art. He is comparable to Affandi," Gadjah Mada University rector Sofian Effendi said.
From his wheelchair, Rusli communicates to his guests, who range from students wishing to write papers to international art observers. Many guests have asked to learn painting from him and Rusli gives them painting lessons, even though he is confined to a wheelchair.
Rusli, who stopped painting six years ago due to physical limitations, is a man of principle, who will never tolerate the slightest flaw in paintings.
"I don't want to see an inferior painting. We must paint with great care -- the same amount of care we exercise when we explore our wife," he said chuckling.