Vibrant visual arts scene encapsulates the soul
Vibrant visual arts scene encapsulates the soul
Carla Bianpoen, Contributor, Jakarta
For the art world 2005 was a year of milestones, one of which no doubt was the 20th anniversary of Edwin Gallery which was celebrated with a major extension of the premises and a memorable exhibition of selected works by artists who had been part of the gallery's history.
The anniversary also induced the birth of the Indonesian Gallery Association, which intends to set strategies and regulations for the dos and don'ts for artists, galleries and auctions in the art commerce world.
The vibrancy in the arts this year was marked by numerous exhibitions and the emergence of new auction houses, like Heritage (a sister company of Master Piece auction house) and Sidharta Auctioneer, launched at the beginning of this month.
The Borobudur auction house set its mark by successfully launching its first auction outside the country (Singapore). While Sidharta Auctioneer (in Jakarta) distinguished itself from other auction houses with a more than usual affordable collection, the Borobudur Auction house (in Singapore) made it a point to present only the masters in the visual arts.
No doubt women took center stage, with the 100-year-old Masmundari appearing in a solo exhibition of works that could be classified from folk art to contemporary art.
Rita Widagdo, the German-born Indonesian grande dame of sculpture, showed her impeccable oeuvre with a retrospective of 100 works, and even went beyond that with the launch of her superb oeuvre at Summarecon Kelapa Gading to mark the company's 30th anniversary.
Yani Mariani Sastranegara, who jumped from monolith sculptures to splendid installation art works in 2002, this year was a star of the Indonesian delegation in Venice, while her huge white cocoons amid the lush gardens of the Arma Museum in Ubud belonged to the cutting edge of the Bali Biennale.
The same can be said of Titarubi, the star of the second and last CP Biennale here, whose truck filled with (ceramic) corpses might have given an impression of Jews on their way to the gas chamber, but might also refer to victims of colonial times (the truck being a vehicle for sugarcane transportation here), or might ultimately talk of mass killings in our time.
Dyan Anggraeni's solo exhibition at CSIS on the political discourse in the country reflected a bold analysis unusual for a woman artist. Sidharta Auctioneer's main focus on Emiria Sunassa in their inaugural auction was another notable mark in relation to women artists.
Amid an almost exuberant sculpture art, the sculptures of Teguh Ostenrik, a non-Catholic, is worth noting. Featuring Jesus Christ and the Roman Catholic pantheon of saints and scenes at Nadi Gallery here, and his Corpus Christi bathing in a pool on the premises of the Ubud Arma Museum, they worked as an antidote to radical notions of religious nature.
Three biennales marked the second half of the year. While this may have seemed too much initially -- both for participating artists as well as for the viewing public -- as they proceeded, they appeared to become a beacon amid socio-political and economic uncertainties.
As this year end report is being submitted, preparations for the 8th Yogya Biennale are in full swing, and the only comment available today is that participating works will be exposed in heritage-valued places.
Bali's first ever Biennale kicked off on Nov. 27 and will run through early 2006. It is imbued with an invigorating sensation as the selected choices of the curators unfold in a wide variety of works emanating creative dynamics.
A special focus on cartoon/comics in the Bali Biennale's Cartoon Pavilion at the Danes Art Veranda in Denpasar seems to solidify the rise of this trend in the visual arts scene.
The second -- and the last -- CP Biennale which closed on Oct. 5 might primarily be remembered for its controversy with the Islam Defenders Front and its curator's emotional response of declaring this their last biennale.
Other highlights of the year included attention drawn to paper making as well as to paper as a material in the making of visual art works.
Indonesian paper art artist Setiawan Sabana's works at Bentara Budaya exemplified the versatile quality of paper and its ability to move between fragility and robustness. The works of a group of Dutch paper artists at the Dutch Cultural Center Erasmus Huis featured jewelry, sculptures and wall decorations based on Western paper making, while Mexican Sergio Lopez Orozco's works at Arma Bali Museum drew attention to the ancient Balinese Kamasan art made on ulan taga (bark cloth) paper, which had the same characteristics as the paper the Mexican artist used for his oeuvre, i.e. amate paper made with ancient Mexican techniques.
Landscapes and still lifes, the art of yore, may have disappeared for some time, but they're making a comeback, if the virtually sold-out works of the Jendela and Sakato groups showing at Nadi's gallery this year are a sign.
A cooperation between master artist Jeihan Sukmanto and noted playwright Ratna Sarumpaet in the staging of Sarumpaet's latest soul-searching play Pelacur dan Sang Presiden (The Prostitute and the President) was an awe-inspiring experience.
Performed by the young actors and actresses of Satu Merah Panggung theater troupe at Balai Sudirman, on a stage with selected monumental sculptures from Jeihan's most recent inspiration, it may be seen as a groundbreaking event that calls for more of the kind.
The issue of humanity that rings through in the play as well as Jeihan's sculptures brings back the memory of the great German artist Guenther Uecker's retrospective exhibition, a cooperation between Goethe Institut Jakarta -- the German IFA (Institution for Foreign Cultural Affairs -- and Bentara Budaya Gallery here earlier in the year, which referred to the very core of art: to evoke the stirring of the soul.