Social and cultural concerns dominate arts

JAKARTA (JP): The development of fine arts in a country is always reflected in its culture, traditions and social and political conditions.

This assertion appears to be borne out if we consider the majority of art works presented at the Sixth Indonesian Art Awards Competition. The event is held by the Indonesian Fine Arts Foundation (YSRI) in collaboration with the Philip Morris Group of Companies.

Just over 100 works were selected as finalists in the competition, and are on display until Oct. 20 at the National Gallery in Central Jakarta.

Most of the displayed items express social, cultural and political concerns of the current situation in Indonesia.

Chairwoman of YSRI Susrinah Sanyoto said the country's turmoils, which began two years ago, have heavily influenced the creative process of most local artists.

"The themes of this year's competition doesn't shift from the l998 (competition) -- violence, power struggles, commotion, pain and disappointment," explained Susrinah.

The current situation has had consequences for the continuity of various art festivals and activities, including the Indonesian Arts Awards Competition, which has been held since l993.

"I was rather pessimistic when I realized that the situation in the country was getting worse all the time. I was afraid nobody would enter the competition," she acknowledged.

Despite the ongoing crisis, the committee registered more than 900 entries, a slight drop from last year's participants.

After several months of selection and evaluation processes, the jury members -- prominent art figures such as Mamannoor, Soedarso Sp, Jean Coetau, Bambang Sugiharto, Soen Roedjito, Merwan Yusuf and Hendro Wiyanto -- decided to select the best five works to be sent early next month to the ASEAN Arts Awards in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The jury's coordinator, Mamannoor, said the best works of the contest were illustrated in a "modern" yet popular way and showed the strength, both cultural and political, of ordinary people in Java.

Both the iconography and composition are inspired by the culture of the lower strata of Javanese society and show complex layering of local and outside influences: traditional Javanese, Moslem, Christian and modern Indonesia.

The theme of power conflicts is expressed in a dualistic way, which is reminiscent of Javanese tradition. The combination of popular inspiration and a modern thematic approach is further enhanced by an original multimedia technique.

Several works bluntly express the people's anger and distress, albeit often in a humorous and satirical way. The overall atmosphere is dark and painful to contemplate. Some works are eclectic: the style is local, but the message is conveyed in an alien artistic language.

The general trend is pessimistic, as artists try to formulate a new artistic language that can express the critical state of their society and in particular the deterioration of the prestige and authority of the political elite.

Almost all the works are loaded with pessimism, which is perhaps the reason behind the absence of color variations. A wide range of styles is covered: naive popular, hyperrealist, conceptual, informal, as well as caricatures.

The thematic aspect tends to be prominent, while technique and form are given relatively little attention; there are only a few abstract works.

The above descriptions are clearly reflected in the best five works. One of these Ristyo Eko Hartanto's Permainan untuk Rakyat Indonesia, (Games for the Indonesian people).

The painting by a graduate from the School of Fine Arts at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) portrays people from diverse religious, ethnic and professional backgrounds, characteristics which shaped the country's political elite.

Dipo Andy Muttaqien from the Yogyakarta Arts Institute presents an impressive work titled Kaligrafi Kekuasaan, (The Calligraphy of Power).

He exploits a great variety of popular media and techniques, such advertising, poster styles, letters and graffiti.

The numbers 66 and 98 symbolize the New Order regime's time in power from l966 to l998. The period ended when former president Soeharto, the icon of the regime, was forced to step down.

Galam Zulkifli's Day After expresses the manipulation of people's voices for elite political purposes.

In his work, Galam presents photographs of the elite politicians with bald heads, such as Abdurrahman Wahid, popularly known as Gus Dur, Amien Rais, Megawati Soekarnoputri, President B.J. Habibie and former president Sukarno.

Arin Dwihartanto's Disputing Ego expresses people's anxiety as a human being, who in certain circumstances can easily be transformed from a holy person into a one with monster-like features.

Hadi Soesanto from the Yogyakarta Arts Institute presents a mixed-media work titled Waiting (forever?) depicting an old Javanese woman with a hollow expression, who appears to wondering when the chaotic, violent and uncertain conditions will end.

In a dark and gloomy atmosphere, the old woman represents the general feeling and minds of the majority of the people.

Another member of the judging panel, Soedarso Sp, mentioned that the winners mostly hailed from two of Indonesia's most well known art centers: Yogyakarta and Bandung, West Java.

It is hoped that in coming years, talented artists from other provinces will be able to also achieve the same level of excellence.

"The competition may reflect the current development of arts in Indonesia's regions, which is probably discouraging if the winners are only those coming from well-known art centers," Soedarso Sp said.

Many observers express cynicism that the awards are only given to art students or artists from certain cities.

Soedarso said that the competition, regardless of its shortcomings, could certainly enhance the development of the arts among local artists and in particular for the younger generation. (raw)