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Sri Astari: Weaving the personal into art
Courtesy Sri AstariSri Astari is an artist who weaves her personal stories into her art
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Courtesy Sri Astari
Sri Astari is an artist who weaves her personal stories into her art. The phrase “personal is political” certainly rings true with Astari’s work.
Her paintings, sculptures and art installations take her experiences as a modern woman brought up in Javanese culture and challenge the traditional concept of a woman’s social position.
From her first solo exhibition in 1999 to her recent works, there is a continuous thread that reflects the theme of women and Javanese culture.
One art work exhibited in Paris in 2009 was a humorous gender-bending piece. She painted herself as the Javanese wayang character Petruk – originally a male. She juxtaposed the Javanese character with a Western masculine superhero icon, as she painted herself as Petruk carrying superman.
“You see Superman, who’s usually carrying a woman, is now being carried by a female-version of Petruk,” she said.
Astari was sitting in her office in her art-filled house in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. She told The Jakarta Post that despite the heavy feminist flavor in her work, she never explicitly attempted to send across feminist messages.
“I just do art. My art is inspired by my life experiences. And there’s always a continuous theme there,” she said.
She said that as a woman, she had her share of being treated unequally. These experiences she expressed in her work. “I’m not an activist that rallies feminist issues. But, after people see my art, they think that I am,” she said.
Astari said that her art was the means to express her views as a woman. “I can’t depend on anyone else but myself. I have my art to express my views,” she said.
Once a wife of a business man, Astari said that she was then bogged down carrying out “corporate wife” obligations such as attending functions; joining Dharmawanita, the organization for wives of government officials or CEOs; and charity work.
Being a corporate wife, she said, was somewhat of a job. Astari used to tell her friends in Dharmawanita to find their own creative endeavors other than the organization. “It’s an obligation as a result of your husband’s job.
If you retire, what will you do? You will end up with nothing if you don’t find creativity for yourself,” she told them.
Astari often came back to her Javanese roots in her work. A daughter of a diplomat, she grew up in India, Burma and Thailand before settling in Indonesia. “When I returned to Indonesia as a child, I had to learn Indonesian, because I could only speak Javanese and English,” she said.
In her latest project, Astari has opted for a different venture from her usual visual arts projects. She is currently part of the team behind a Javanese play, Matah Ati, slated for performance from Oct. 22 to 23 at the Esplanade Theater in Singapore.
Astari will be in charge of dressing up 95 performers for the play in Javanese attire. The play, directed by Atilah Soeryadjaja, is a story of Rubiah, the wife of Javanese King Raden Mas Said or the first Mangkunegara.
“I was invited by Atilah to take part in the play,” she said. Astari will also help in the presentation of an exhibition of antique Javanese attire that will run simultaneously with the dates of the play.
“Dance and theater is very much related to art. Of course I would gain more experience in that department,” she said.
Coming from Solo, she said she was very excited to be part of the play that tells about her ancestors. “Even though I’m not from Mangkunegaran, somehow I believe there’s a connection,” she said.
Astari, having been active in the Jakarta Arts Council (DKJ), she became involved in the arts scene not only as an artist but also as an organizer.
She was the chairwoman for the Non Aligned countries exhibition during the former president Soeharto era.
With curator Jim Supangkat, she convinced the government to renovate the National Gallery into the building it is today. She was also the organizer for the 9th Jakarta Biennale.
Astari has brandished herself now as a full-time artist. Dividing her time between Bali and Jakarta, she creates her art in her home in Bali.
“I can’t concentrate in Jakarta as there are a lot of social obligations that I can’t refuse. In Bali I can concentrate on my art,” she said.
She is taking a break from organizing work, saying that after several arts events, she became disillusioned. “I want to focus on my art. Now it’s my time,” she said.
