Zakii brings out the old Bali icons
Zakii brings out the old Bali icons
Bambang Asrini Widjanarko, Contributor/Jakarta
Bali has long attracted artists from all over the world and their stays -- fleeting or permanent -- have contributed to the development of the fine arts on the island.
The legendary Walter Spies, who came to Ubud in 1925, established a community called Pitamaha together with W.G. Hofker and Rudolf Bonnet, who arrived later on. The three added modern touches to the traditional Balinese painting styles that are still loyally followed by both local and foreign artists today.
The beauty of Bali, which in the past was only depicted as representative mythical objects, part of the spiritual devotion to the gods, is now explored in greater detail -- including both people and nature.
A painting of a male torso, the sensuality of a village virgin, the everyday faces of the Balinese people and the tall figures of Legong dancers are richly captured on canvas and paper, and in wood and other mediums, reflecting what could be termed exotic voyeurism.
Some artists are still faithful to the myths of Rangda and Barong as the symbols of bad and evil, which are depicted in many kinds of art works.
Malaysian painter Ahmad Zakii Anwar has a strong desire to remind us of the beauty of Bali in the past. Exhibiting 30 paintings at the Taksu Gallery from June 10 through June 30, Zakii, as he is familiarly known, wishes to showcase the old Balinese icons -- harking back to Spies' Pitamaha workshop.
His paintings are in black charcoal and display many acrobatic tricks using an amazing dark-light technique on large (2 x 1.5 meter) canvasses.
The exhibition demonstrates Zakii's expertise in handling this medium in depicting classical themes. Zakii has traveled around the world to master painting with acrylic and oil in Hong Kong, Australia and the U.S.
In his 30 works -- some of them were already sold before the exhibition even began -- Zakii depicts Balinese Legong dancers, a dancer wearing the classic Rangda mask, and a few examples of Balinese women dressed in traditional clothes.
Most surprising is a series of depictions of his friends' faces that he painted during his stay in Bali. This, once again, proves his abilities in developing the realism of close-up facial portraits. Even the skin pores of his subjects can be seen in detail.
Zakii, an artist who graduated from the MARA Institute of Technology in Malaysia, is loyal to classical realism. Harmony, interior design and light are all perfectly presented in his drawings.
The influence of Goya, Velasquez and Monet can be found in Zakii's work as he highlights an artistic style that harks back to classical European paintings.
We can also find this in his own writings about his impressions of Bali in 1998 in Distant Gamelan, about how far the taksu (positive energy or the inspiration) of Balinese artists influenced him, especially as regards how he sees the visual aura from different perspectives.
His meetings with the families of puppeteer-cum-painter Ida Bagus Belawa, 92, and Ida bagus Made, 83, have had a profound spiritual influence on his work.
"Bali nowadays is like a Pandora's box that has been opened, and it deeply affects the people's lives on this island of the gods. At the same time, is it quickly converting Balinese spiritual-artistic values into merely commercial commodities?" he asks.
It is this sad possibility that encourages Zakii to always look back to Bali again -- to the place that has played an important part in his life and influenced his career as an artist since 1994.
As philosopher Jaques Derrida said "Objects or events in the past can always be utilized as an imaginary reference, a place where an art form identifies itself in a dialogist way. Elements from the past ... also play a role as cultural codes that exist behind the reality of the past."
That is why Zakii is determined to tackle the reality of Bali's past icons and their fading beauty, and transpose them onto canvass.
Arangbali, Ahmad Zakii Anwar; June 10 through June 30; Gallery Taksu, Jl. Kemang Barat 5-7, South Jakarta; Tel: 62-21 718 0456, email: jkt@taksu.com.