“With color, people can lie. With theme, people can ngibuli [deceive] [its] viewers. With sketch, people cannot lie, he cannot be other than ‘bare’ [honest],” wrote Indonesian maestro S. Sudjojono, popularly known as Pak Djon, in October 1970.

The complete piece, entitled Buat Saya Sketsa itu Penting Sekali (For Me, Sketch is Important) can be viewed at the entrance of Hidup Mengalun Dendang exhibition.

Taking place at Bentara Budaya Jakarta cultural institute in West Jakarta, the exhibition displays over 100 sketches of the late artist alongside his paintings, painting reproductions and memorabilia of him with his wife, the singer Rose Pandanwangi, for seven days until June 13.

In the first room, among the displayed artwork curated by Ipong Purnama Sidhi, Daniel Komala and Siont Teja are sketches of one of his celebrated paintings The Battle of Sultan Agung and Jan Pieterszoon Coen (1973), sketches from Pangeran Diponegoro (Prince Diponegoro) (1979), a sketch of Ruangan Pancasila (Pancasila Room) and Rentjana Relief untuk Monumen Selamat Datang (Planned Relief for Selamat Datang Monument) (1961). There are also his handwriting and original recorded voice that can be listened by the visitors.

Meanwhile, in a separate room, there are kimono worn by Rose during her performance in Opera Madame Butterfly (Madame Butterfly Opera) in 1964, for which its flower motifs were handpainted by Pak Djon, Rose’s Bintang Radio (Radio Star) contest trophies, the artist's sketches of Rose and their children and a scarf that contains his sketches as a tribute to the painter by Indonesian designer label Stellarissa.

“This exhibition is a form of appreciation to Pak S. Sudjojono,” said curator Ipong Purnama Sidhi. “And we know that he’s a multi-talented person […] he’s not only known as a painter, sketch-maker, relief-maker and sculptor, but also a thinker who had documented things he felt during his era.”

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Visitors are encouraged to read the maestro’s handwritten notes in the many sketches, where one of them talks about a king’s costume. “They had never been publicized before, so they’re very authentic,” said Ipong.

On the same day, the institute also hosted the book launch of Pak Djon's autobiography titled S. Sudjojono: Cerita tentang Saya dan Orang-orang Sekitar Saya (S. Sudjojono: Story about Me and People around Me) and the biography of Rose Pandanwangi, Kisah Mawar Pandanwangi (Story of Rose Pandanwangi) written by Sori Siregar.

Maya, one of the couple's daughters, said her father had begun writing in the 1970s. “He actually already made the book’s layout starting from his childhood,” she said. “He had also recorded his voice as part of the book’s preparation following the book’s chapters.”

After Pak Djon's passing in 1986, Maya and her siblings needed some time before finally looking at their father’s archives and sketches. "We already got used to have parents who worked from home, so we suffered an enormous loss. We didn’t want to visit our father’s sanggar [studio] for around one year because we got used with the smell of the paint and it slowly faded away,” she said.

“I hope [the books] can serve as reference of art or voice institute […] because our parents are very nationalistic; they wanted us to present the books to Indonesia,” Maya stated.

Both of the events are part of a collaboration between S. Sudjojono Center (SSC) that preserves and maintain the maestro’s artworks and Kepustakaan Gramedia, Kompas Gramedia and Bentara Budaya Jakarta. (kes)

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