Opening:

Monday, 12 January 2009

At 19:30, KKF’s Gallery

Exhibition:

Will last  from 12 - 21 January 2009

open daily, at 11 a.m. - 9 p.m.

(except on Tuesday, KKF is off)

Returning the Painting to Its Skill

The growth young artists who work with the beautiful paintings and the price that exceed Soedjojono and Hendra Goenawan are leaving many questions; one of them is: what does become the background of their creation process?

To answer that, this is the story of a visit to the studio of Dani Agus Yuniarto (28 years) some time ago. After visiting for several time to the studio, which is said has many Kuntilanak and Pocong (Indonesian/Javanese ghosts), my attention is attracted to many smaller lines that fill the canvas. Those thin lines are stringed up into pile, forming volume and gradation of dark to light. He works in the same way I paint, start from the dark field and then turn to the light field. This technique is actually a hardboard-cut technique. This technique allows us to get the bright color in contrasts, such as the colors of the Beckman’s paintings, German expressionist painter; red, yellow, and other primary colors.

The interesting thing in Dani’s works is the lines. The lines, which are thin and soft, just like jembut (Javanese term for pubic hair). To complete a small field he can spend a whole day. Those pubic hair lines make the working process slower. Dani’s theme of his paintings is personal problems, such as fear, love, and so forth.

When viewing the works of artists lately, probably theme is not too important. We often get stuck on questions about big narratives. They no longer pay attention to the themes. They are interested in something from the surface, such as images on the tapes covers, comic images, the images on t-shirts, and tattoos. They are not interested in the content of the picture itself. The interesting things for them are the seen-thing not the background of it. They are the generation that filled with much information from all sides, so that they had no time to examine and precipitate them. What they received and then they transformed it back into their works.

Unlike the previous generation, which only received limited information, the ecstasy is located in the search for the unseen. Those unseen things then popped up in their works as part of their creation strategy, until those become works with strong themes and narrations, as a competitor’s of the state information monopoly. Those young painters describe the information that they have got is not important. They thought that the lovers of their works also know information. Indeed, that the lovers of their works are their own friends, who use the works in a T-shirt and music albums covers. In case that the collectors hunt for their works, just like the mass hunt for the chicken thief is another matter, beyond their estimates.

Most appropriate way to assess their works is to compare them with the skill arts. Indonesian ancient skill arts – for example Majapahit (The biggest Kingdom in Java in 1200s) skill arts, was not as seen on the campuses of art at this time. Indonesian ancient skill art is the “summit” of all sophisticated process of techniques and media. We will be speechless when we see how soft, complex, and detail the skill art is. There will be no opportunity to ask about the “political purposes” of the making process. Stunned and silent. I experienced a similar feeling when I saw the Dani’s works, stunned with his lines technique, and then I just ignored the reasons why the works made. For me, enjoying the “surface” was clearly more interesting than busily looked for the content or the big narrative which definitely will not be found.

The closest comparison of these youngsters’ works is textile in batik (traditional Javanese motifs on fabrics) motifs, not the philosophy of batik motifs. Textile with batik motifs can represent how the works, which inspired by the Juxtapoz magazine, San Francisco edition, California, existed. In making the textiles, the first time was to imagine a universe that later on will be filled with complex contents. No part is left to be empty. So “make batik”, in the context of visual design, is the war against the “hurriedness”, all things that are quickly and in a hurry; it is a kind contemporary meditation. And that process, that is being done by Dani and his friends. Not rebelled or fight through the works, just perfunctory; being busy in the world of fast information which they precipitated in complex paintings that needs patience and perseverance, like the batik makers or keris (Javanese traditional weapon) craftsmen.

Enjoy the color and the lines; just forget about those critical contents. Painting nowadays is a work with complicated techniques, it is not a themes and narration games, so enjoy it in that way. Do not expect too much, I am one hundred percent sure that you will be disappointed. Welcome back to Indonesian skill arts which is re-appear through the works of these young painters. Thank you for bringing back the skill arts from its ingloriousness.

Agung Kurniawan, Artistic Director of KKF