Reflections
on the Art Trip to Bandung
By
Peggy Ball
Having
grown up in a very small town in Montana (a sparsely populated
state in America known for its mountains and wheat ranches),
I never had much opportunity to rub shoulders with celebrities.
You can imagine my delight in finding during my time in
Indonesia that being a member of the Heritage Society has
offered a rare opportunity to come into contact with people
at the tops of their fields ...and I'm loving it! Case
in point is the Contemporary Art Study Group trip to Bandung.
I not only met some of the premier contemporary artists
in Indonesia, I even got a few autographs!
The discomfort of getting to the 06:00 train to Bandung from Gambir station
was quickly forgotten as the train pulled us into the mountains. It's a beautiful
trip with some spectacular scenery! Our guide, Daniel, met us at the station
and took us directly to the campus of ITB, the venerable Bandung Institute
of Technology. Built in the 1920s, it has been preserved as an architectural
gem with few "modernizations" to the exterior. It was particularly
interesting to visit this campus as many of the artists we were to meet on
our trip were graduates of the Institute and returned as professors in the
art department. We toured the various art departments and saw a nice selection
of student work, proving to us that creativity is alive and well in the youth
of today.
After lunch, we went to the museum of painter Pirous. His
work is frequently known as luminously textural and abstract,
and it was a rare treat to hear him discuss how much of it
is inspired by spiritual feelings, nature or by current events.
What struck me before as simply beautiful became alive with
meaning. He then invited us to his home and studio, a stunning
contemporary structure perched on a ridge above Bandung...and
designed by his wife! They are an amazingly gracious, talented
couple.
We went on to the home and studio of painter Srihadi Sudarsono,
a real icon on the art scene and one of my personal favorites.
Again, a beautiful property - quiet, tasteful and filled with
his wonderful paintings. The studio was buzzing with activity
however, mostly coming from him, as he bolted up and down stairs,
leading us to see how he operated. Both his physical energy
and his willingness to answer our questions seemed limitless,
which I found astonishing for a man in his mid-70s. His art
is also spiritually driven ...he said he has spent most of
his life trying to depict the "essence of things" on
canvas, from the spirituality of a temple like Borobudur to
the movement of dancers. Srihadi is known sometimes for his
very large paintings and we were able to see a fascinating
contraption of his design that explained how he could do it
- it was a platform replete with ladders, pulleys, cables and
a revolving chair that made it possible for him to work freely
on large canvases. I got his autograph on a postcard that he
gave us as a souvenir... alas, perhaps the only piece signed
by him that I'll ever own.
The next morning we were up early and went to the museum of
Sujana Kerton, designed and built by him and now managed by
his daughter Tjandra. To see the work of one of the fathers
of contemporary Indonesian art was quite enlightening. Born
in Bandung, Indonesia in 1922, Sudjana Kerton was one of the
first Indonesian artists to study abroad, first going to Amsterdam,
Paris and later to New York.
He returned to Indonesia in the 1970s where he continued to
paint until his death in 1994. During his career, Kerton most
often painted scenes of the lives of the common Indonesian
people. His good nature and gentle humor was evident in his
pieces, even in the more serious themes.
That evening, Nina Taneja had arranged for us to go to the
home of long-time friends whom she had known while living in
Bandung. We were treated to a fabulous paella dinner and, after,
a tour of a creative outdoor restaurant designed and established
by his wife. Wonderful hospitality in yet another fabulously
designed house ...this was also turning into an architectural
trip for the group.
Could it get any better? Well, ya! We went to the museum of
Sunaryo...primarily known to many of us for his sensitive paintings
of dancers preparing for performance. The museum, however,
was exhibiting his abstract works and it was a first time look
at his diversity for many of us. We weren't able to meet him,
as Sunaryo was away during this time arranging for an exhibition
in Jakarta. Our group participated in a charcoal drawing workshop
given at the museum by the talented young artist, Rahid. We
were later invited to his studio to view his magnificent drawings.
We finished our afternoon with a stop at the Jeihan museum
and also visited the studios of Aming D. Rahman (beautiful,
sensitive paintings) and Heyi Ma'mum, known for her collages.
Another architectural bonus was in store for us that evening.
We'd been invited to the home of friends of Susana Rubio's
who had not only designed the home themselves but much of its
furniture and cabinetry as well. It was a complex balance of
space, form, and color with a unique blend of the ultra-modern
with the traditional ...all perfectly set off by their art
pieces. We were able to view their personal collection of unusual
works by Sunaryo, these using a very different color palette
from the reds, whites and blacks we were more familiar with,
as well as seeing their superb ceramic pieces. Our enthusiasm
for these led our host to arrange for us all to go to the studio
of ceramics artist, Hayati.
On Wednesday, we visited the museum housing Popo Iskandar's
work. I'd admired his pieces, frequently featuring cat and
chicken motifs, but seeing this large collection in person
was stunning! The museum is open to the public and worth a
visit.
We then went to the home and studio of prolific sculptor Rita
Widagdo. Upon meeting her, it was difficult to connect this
small, perfectly groomed, soft-spoken woman to the monumental
abstract sculptures I'd seen in Jakarta! We were stunned as
she began showing us photos from the installation processes
for several large pieces around Indonesia... her vast talent
includes a considerable knowledge of engineering. We toured
her studio, saw her retrospective pieces and others in progress.
It was fascinating to see the steps leading from a model to
a full-sized piece. Though a woman and a foreigner, she has
done so much in her 40 years in Indonesia... including garnering
the tremendous respect and support of the Bandung art community.
We then visited the museum, sculpture park and studio of Nyoman Nuarta, a sculptor
with social and political concerns contributing to his designs. A gregarious
gentleman who is comfortable in the public eye, his studio has been chosen
to produce the 22-meter tall statue of Wisnu for the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Foundation
in Bali.
Our final stop was a visit to the Barli Museum. We had the
honor of meeting Barli Sasmi-tawinata, one of the early giants
of Indonesian art. To our delight, he and his lovely wife presented
us with a book of his work to keep in our Library.
Works by several artists visited are featured in the Heritage
Society's "Art Cards" series, if you'd like to see
some examples. We all appreciated the effort that Cobi Wilson
and Sharon Ho made in organizing our trip, and the patience
shown by our guide Daniel in shepherding around 14 women. We
are also indebted to the friends of Nina and Susana for welcoming
us into their homes and making our evenings a special extension
to the days' inspirations. In thinking back on the graciousness
of the artists we met, their awesome works, our new friends,
the beauty of Bandung and the wonderful times we had with each
other, the only conclusion one can draw is that this was a
brilliant trip!
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