Having fun: Local children enjoy a fun time while learning English at the Kulidan indoor venue.(Courtesy of Kulidan)

Visitors who desperately need a regular dose of contemporary arts and intellectual stimulation should not hesitate to visit Bali. Despite its laid-back atmosphere and its omnipresent traditional arts, the tropical island boasts a thriving modern art landscape with fascinating exhibitions and captivating discussions taking place on a regular basis.

The rise in the last few years of cultural hubs in Sanur, Seminyak and Ubud is the primary reason behind the blossoming of this contemporary art landscape.

While most of the island’s art galleries are still focusing on traditional and modern paintings and, sometimes, sculptures, these cultural hubs elevated their game by embracing younger creators from a diverse creative spectrum, ranging from street art and avant-garde photography to poetry and music.  

They are also enthusiastically involved in social activism, organizing charity events and concerts for various grassroot social movements, which easily won them a huge following among the island’s youth.

Leading the pack is Rumah Sanur (Instagram: @rumahsanur), which lies within walking distance from Massimo, Sanur’s iconic Italian restaurant famous for its heavenly gelato.

It combines a venue that in the past has hosted events ranging from acoustic concerts and movie screenings to charity auctions and workshops, the Kumpul, a co-working space with an excellent internet connection, a to-ko, a concept store featuring curated products of the country’s green and emerging creators, the Kopi Kultur, a coffee house with single-origin brews and a charming barista who sketches (@rieskysutandy), and the Teras Gandum beer garden.

It has grown into a favorite hang-out and watering place for the island’s creative people and activists. During a typical evening at the hub a visitor would be entertained by melancholic blues tunes courtesy of Made Mawut (@mademawut), an eye-opening discourse over cups of hot coffee on the resilience of the country’s indigenous artisans with Rumah Sanur’s co-founder Ayip Budiman (@ayip.budiman), or an exhilarating banter with JRX (@jrxsid), a daredevil musician and one of the leaders of a popular social movement against the planned reclamation of Benoa Bay.

Hot coffee: Participants in a barista workshop sample different types of single-origin coffee.(Courtesy of Rumah Sanur)

Another important cultural hub is Uma Seminyak (@umaseminyak), which nestles amid posh restaurants and trendy cafes in Seminyak. It hosts, among other things, a progressive art gallery that recently showcased the works of Slinat (@slinat), an influential street artist who is very critical of the island’s tourism development, Titik Temu, which serves excellent coffee and mouth-watering sweet treats, Pasar-pasaran (@pasarpasaran), a market and showroom for handmade goods, indie designers and local makers.

Other cultural hubs on the rise are the CushCush Gallery (@cushcushgallery), which focuses on creative collaborations in art and design, the Maha Art Gallery (@mahaart.gallery), Cata Odata (@cataodata), which offers residency and internship programs and interdisciplinary collaborations, and Kulidan Kitchen and Space (@kulidan.kitchen), which offers workshops for children and youths.

Bringing diverse people and different ideas together in a setting rich with good art, delicious foods, unique coffee and chilled beers, have apparently become a key strategy shared by these cultural hubs. To a large extent, they represent the island’s age-old cultural openness toward new ideas and collaborations.

Any visitor who wants to taste that cultural openness should include a visit to one of these hubs on his or her itinerary.