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'LOVE@RTH': Pushing the limits of watercolor
JP/Wendra AjistyatamaHuge withered water lily stems, flowers and leaves are hanging at the corner of the National Galleryâs exhibition hall in Jakarta
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JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
Huge withered water lily stems, flowers and leaves are hanging at the corner of the National Gallery's exhibition hall in Jakarta.
For the installation, titled The Swamp Elegy, artist Agus Budiyanto said he brushed special thick papers with semi-opaque shades of dark olive green, brown and pale goldenrod to create nuance in his depiction of the dying plants. He then bent the stems and curled the edges of the leaves.
'We are losing swamps, our ground-water reservoirs, because of the greed of humans,' Agus said about his installation.
The installation is part of 177 watercolor pieces on display at LOVE@RTH (Love Earth through Art), which runs at the gallery until Sept. 14.
As many as 145 watercolorists from 23 countries present their explorations at the exhibition, which is also the debut of the Indonesian chapter of the International Watercolor Society (IWS), which was founded by Canadian-Turkish artist Atanur Dogan in 2012. IWS has a presence in 67 countries.
Agus, who is also chairman of IWS Indonesia, said the exhibition aimed to rediscover and popularize the art of watercolors, largely perceived as second-class paintings in the country.
'In comparison to other art forms, watercolors lack exploration. So, don't blame the public for having little interest toward watercolor paintings. It is the duty of watercolor artists to produce breakthrough works,' he said.
Eddy Soetriyono, who curates the exhibition with Efix Mulyadi, said the show highlighted various styles and techniques of watercolor paintings under the theme of humans and nature.
'What we prioritize is visual exploration. But we also maintain styles that are already widely known,' Eddy said, referring to a number of landscape paintings at the venue.
Among the popular impressionist landscape paintings, Tornado by Yana Daloe stands out from the crowd with its semi-opaque cobalt blue tornado painted with bold strokes in the middle of golden sky.
Mexican artist, Patricia Guzmán delivers an impressive realistic portrait in Longing, Dignity, in which a man in a traditional costume stares deeply. Dogan's piece Nazi Concentration Camp, displaying barefoot men with sorrowful stares, shows a strong emotional depth.
JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
The exhibition also gives space to pop art, such as Kinkin's The End of the Red Bikini, which tells the tragic battle scene of Superman and a Chinese martial arts master with face resembling Jet Li in an American comic style.
Artist Dodit Artawan presents Poolside Bar #3, in which Barbie enjoys an alcoholic beverage by the pool. While the painting displays the vivid colors of Barbie and the bottles, it also explores the vulnerability of staining watercolors to create the pool's ripples.
Ngurah Darma presents four paintings of women, which all exhibit the beautiful washes of sedimentary watercolors. One of the paintings, Legong Dancer Preparation, is largely based on granulating paints, where the color sediment absorbs broadly into the paper, creating an uneven texture within the color. In contrast with that, Ngurah drew the little intricate details of the sarong patterns.
'The [style] reflects the watercolor painting as the art of navigating the watercolor. The art of how an artist makes sure that the color sediment settles in a desired spot,' Eddy said.
Painter Ichsan Harja said the exhibition was a perfect medium to foster young artists' interest to learn watercolors.
'I hope more people will learn watercolor. I guess not many painters choose watercolor as their main medium because of its unpredictability. We have limited control on where and how the sediment will settle on the paper,' he said.
'Generally, you will get one desired-for result after trying for ten times. But once you get it right, it feels very satisfying,' he said.
At the opening ceremony, businesswoman Dewi Motik lent her collection, the watercolor painting of late maestro painter Basoeki Abdullah. Titled Honeymoon, the 1942 painting shows Dewi's parents, HBR Motik and Zainab, adorned in Palembang traditional costume.
'My parents had just married and moved to Jakarta. Basoeki, who lived next door to my parents, admired my mother's beauty and wanted to paint her,' Dewi said.
'But he was concerned he would offend my father if my mother was the only object of the painting. So, he invited my father to join in,' she added, laughing.
The canvas looks old and yellowish, but the watercolor shades of white, red and green are still vibrant. Due to security concerns, the painting was only exhibited during the opening ceremony.
After Jakarta, the exhibition will travel to Bentara Budaya Bali from Oct. 24 until Nov. 2.
