Green World, acrylic on canvas, 200 x 150 cm

A young painter reflects on the animal kingdom and the lessons man can learn from it.

The painting depicts aggressive animals locked in a brutal clash. Their glistening fangs and facial features show that some of them are boars and bears while the stripes that dominate the canvas point to the presence of tigers. It is business-as-usual in the wild, wild world.

Yet, despite the overall violent ambience of the painting, one detail will surely force spectators to reconsider their initial interpretation. The painter has deliberately composed the painting in a way to reveal the animals as if they are of a single creature.

The conjoined torso, the connected heads and the overlapping stripes work together to produce that impression. It speaks about the unbroken connection that binds the animals together. The act of conflict — devouring the other or being devoured — is necessary and required to sustain life. At a deeper level, it underlines the interdependency among them: that one species will not survive without the existence and survival of the other species.

These messages on the connection and interdependency between creatures permeate 20 of I Made Somadita’s works in his upcoming exhibition Whatever at VIN+ Art Space in Petitenget, Seminyak, Bali. The painting of the fighting animals is part of the exhibit that will officially open to the public on Saturday. The exhibition will run until May 28.

Born in Tabanan in 1982, Somadita studied painting at Denpasar’s Indonesia Institute of the Arts and is known as one of the most promising young painters in Bali.

He is very active in participating in exhibitions here and abroad. His first joint exhibition was at Museum Bali in 1999 and ever since then, he participates in up to four joint exhibits annually that see his works displayed at galleries and art hubs in Germany, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, France, the Netherlands, India, Korea and Singapore.

Made Somadita

The exhibition at the VIN+ Artspace will be his fifth solo exhibition since his inaugural solo exhibition in 2002.

“The animal kingdom fascinates me. They have that ability to live, to always be, in the present moment. They lead their lives untainted by the regret of the past and fear of the future,” he said.

Up to 15 out of the 20 works on display are inspired by the animal kingdom. Moreover, in the remaining five paintings that deal with human subjects, Somadita still finds a way to incorporate animal elements into them.

“I think there are a lot of things that human being can learn from animals. Living in the present and the awareness that we must take only what we need for our survival instead of succumbing to our greed to devour all that we desire, which, I believe, is the core reason behind the ecological disaster that haunts our world now,” he said.

Somadita came to that realization while he was a senior high school student. At that time, he closely observed the animal kingdom and fell in love with the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk and peace activist, who places the ability to live in the present and the awareness on the interdependence of beings as vital to one’s spiritual growth.

“I try to discipline my mind through painting and hopefully my paintings will touch others in more ways than one,”

We Gone Walk Together, acrylic on paper, 75 x 65 cm

— Photos courtesy of Made Somadita

 

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WHATEVER

April 29-May 28, 2017

VIN+ Art Space

Jl. Kayu Jati, Petitenget

Seminyak Bali