Young RI cartoonist goes international
Young RI cartoonist goes international
Boudewijn Brands, Contributor/Amsterdam
Within the wide span of the definition of art, one would not
immediately think of cartoons as art. Cartoons are often
associated with people who are too lazy (or not-yet-educated
enough) to read.
Cartoons existed a long time before that electronic visual
medium, the television, was introduced. Then, and this could
still be the case, cartoons were a means of teaching children in
a visual manner, and were often used as aids in teaching reading
and writing.
In the contemporary world, cartoons are still popular and also
used as political tools. In Indonesia, the traditional wayang
(puppet) performance may actually be seen as a form of animation.
Eko Nugroho is a young visual artist from Yogyakarta who
explores the borders between cartoons and the graphic arts. Born
in 1977 in Yogyakarta, Eko still attends Yogyakarta's Indonesian
Institute of Arts (ISI).
His involvement in cartoon-drawing may have originated in the
need to finance his studies. He is an active member of the Daging
Tumbuh (Growing flesh) group, which produces and sells cartoons.
Eko, however, likes to explore other media. For example, he
has drawn cartoons and then involved people in his kampong by
asking their help to transfer them onto textiles.
And so, kartun-bordir (embroidered cartoons) were created.
When he received an invitation to stage his first solo
exhibition, Bercerobong at the Cemeti Art House (2002), he
developed a cartoon video!
In doing so, his cartoons became 'animated', thus testing
another border, this time between cartoons and animation.
The Netherlands has a very active art world. Active not only
in the numbers involved, but also in the sense that the Dutch
like to engage in exchanges with other countries. Recent research
has also shown that a cultural climate that is open to creativity
and innovation results in a more creative and productive economy.
The late Prince Claus had a lively interest in the promotion
of economic and artistic development. It should come as no
surprise, therefore, that he established a fund that also
promotes the development of art in 'non-Western' countries.
Dutch institutions like to know what is happening elsewhere,
and so the Amsterdams Grafisch Atelier (graphic workshop in
Amsterdam) organizes projects that are aimed at forging
collaboration with Indonesian artists, among other things. In
cooperation with the Cemeti Art House, Eko was invited to spend a
three-months residency in the Netherlands. He was
asked to work on a technique that is actually quite popular in
Yogyakarta: silk-screen printing.
In addition, he was asked to encapsulate his impressions in
cartoon form.
The result is a book with 36 cartoons, silk-screen printed in
a limited edition of 100. Each book is signed and numbered. These
cartoons register some of his impressions and also function as a
kind of mirror for the Dutch, showing their tolerance of drugs,
love of pets, and the stunning level of bicycle theft.
Eko's work was exhibited in the Netherlands in De Schone
Kunsten, a gallery in Haarlem, and can still be viewed in the
Bremmer Gallery in Tilburg until July 31. In Indonesia, he
currently has a solo exhibition, Welcome back Mayo'nnaise, at the
Cemeti Art House in Yogyakarta. Eko also has work on display at
the Reformasi exhibition in Singapore.