Orientation

By Esther de Charon de St. Germain

In August 1995 Indonesia will celebrate its fiftieth year of Independence. Although Indonesia was once a Dutch colony, Indonesian visual art developed independently of trends in the Netherlands. In Indonesia modern art began to emerge in the 1930s when a group of painters founded Persagi. Since that moment Indonesian art has never really looked back.
The struggle for Independence and the establishment of the Republic of Indonesia led to an inspired, revolutionary figurative art portraying important historical events which led to the founding of the Republic of Indonesia.
Up to a few years ago the younger generation could only participate in a small number of art exhibitions in Indonesia. The major exhibitions were devoted mainly to the work of older, more established artists. At present curators from countries such as Australia, Japan, the United States and Singapore pay regular visits to young Indonesian artists and their galleries.
Young artists in Indonesia seem to have benefitted from the international attention: the prestigious Ninth Biennale in Jakarta in 1993 was devoted exclusively to the artworks of the youngest generation. The curators of the exhibition of the Non-Aligned Countries in Jakarta, April 1995, also paid this generation a lot of attention.
The organizers of 'Orientation' have chosen to show the differences between the styles and contents and to emphasize the personal aspect of the artworks, rather than to pursue the entanglement of Dutch and Indonesian art. The only point of similarity between the artists is the post-colonial period in which they grew up and were educated.
The Indonesian artists have been selected for their ability to develop new solutions and perspectives to their artwork. Consequently the influence the exert in the present art world is very strong. Their work has specific communicative qualities, consequently these artworks appeal strongly to the public.

Ten young artists
Andar Manik (Bandung 1959) is a ceramist and sculptor from Bandung. He will create a clay installation especially for this exhibition. As a sculptor, he works mainly with clay. He puts it on the wall in circles, where it will hold only temporarily. It will definitely fall off the wall, but where and when are uncertain factors. Adar Manik sees the circle as a metaphor for destruction and vagueness. To him it seems a paradox that it simultaneously embodies life, experience and the time that is passing. For Andar Manik life and destruction are clearly inseparable.
Anusapati (Surakarta 1957) is a sculptor who creates wooden objects. He is inspired by the shape of objects such as fishtraps or rice-pestles. His own sculptures, however, do not have the function of these objects, therefore they are autonomous. Among other works Anusapati will show at the National Gallery is an installation made of small, carved wooden boxes. They are filled with wax and stone. The artwork is lit from the ceiling by small, simply shaped red balls and looks as if it is floating. It is like a separate island within the exhibiti- on.
Heri Dono (Jakarta 1960) is a painter as well as an installation and performance artist. He is constantly seeking new media to realize his ideas. Laughter and humour are very important to him as they serve to illustrate his discontent with the world around him. One of his works in "Orientation" is Glass Vehicles. This work comprises fifteen fibreglass dolls in krupuk (prawn cracker) - barrels, made of glass and metal. The dolls symbolize the people whose wings are clipped by State regulation. The work is a visual challenge and carries a strong message.
Nindityo Adipurnomo (Semarang 1961) is also a painter, installation and performance-artist. He is intrigued by Javanese culture. He sees the kondé, a hairpiece worn by Javanese women, as the symbol of the burden of Javanese society. The kond‚ reveals certain aspects of the women, who wear this hairpiece: social status, age, marital status and so forth. Among the works Nindityo will present is Siapa takut pada orang Jawa (who is afraid of Javanese people). This title refers ironically to the huge colour painting of the American artist Barnett Newman: Who is afraid of Red Yellow and Blue. Nindityo has used the shape of the Bonang, one of the most important in- struments of the gamelan. Instead of the usual bronze instruments, he has filled copper tins with traditional hairpieces and jewellery.
Yudhi Soerjoatmo (Jakarta 1963) is a photographer from Jakarta. Originally he worked as a photo-journalist for the recently banned magazine Tempo. As an artist- photographer he tries to capture the fleetingness of life. In a series of photographs of his seriously ill grandmother, he shows that every second, every photograph is precious and irrevocable. Photography as an independent art-form is fairly new in Indonesia. For this reason Yudhi has the impression that he lives between two worlds; journalists consider his work too 'artistic', while visual artists often consider photography is not a proper form of art.
The curators of the Indonesian part of the exhibition are Mella Jaarsma, artist and co-owner of Cemeti Gallery in Yogyakarta, Jim Supangkat, independent art critic from Jakarta and Esther de Charon de Saint Germain, art historian, specialized in Indonesian contemporary art from Amsterdam.
The five Dutch artists represent the youngest generation in the Netherlands in which a personal landscape is motivated. A poetic and figurative style dominates the form. The artists will be selected on grounds of quality and experimental views. These criteria are the same as those applied to the Indonesian part of the exhibition.
The curators of the Dutch exhibition are Els van der Plas, artistic director of the Gate Foundation, Jetteke Bolten, director of the Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal and Doris Wint- gens, curator at the same Museum. They will select the Dutch artworks.

The catalogue
A catalogue containing illustrations of the artworks exhibited and texts by the curators will be published. The catalogue will consist of an Indonesian and a Dutch section. During the exhibition in Jakarta the Dutch artists will be invited to present their work and to explain the content, material, techniques, starting-point and their source of inspiration. Artists and curators will also be asked to give guest lectures at the art institutes of Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Bandung.

The organizers
The Cemeti Art Foundation is the project-office of the Cemeti Gallery, which was founded in 1988 and organizes exhibitions, lectures and discussions. The gallery is a meeting-point for artists and the public. The artists' archives are used regularly by curators and scholars from all over the world. The gallery presents work of Indonesian artists as well as work of Japanese and Dutch artists like: Lucebert, Carla Kleekamp, Joyce Bloem and Hitory Nakayama.
The Gate Foundation which was established in 1988, is an international art foundation based in Amsterdam. It is devoted entirely to promoting the intercultural exchange of contemporary art as well as the propagation of knowledge and understanding of contemporary art and ar- tists, emphasizing Non-western and migrant cultures. The Gate Foundation also organizes exhibitions, lectures and discussions about above-mentioned subjects. The Information centre of the Foundation provides documentation, information and advisory services related to international contemporary art.
The "Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal" has a collection of international repute. Its exhibition policy is biased in favour of contemporary art.
The exhibition Orientation will be presented in the Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal during the spring of 1996.

Esther de Charon de St. Germain is one of the curators for the Indonesian selection of the exhibition 'Orientation'.