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Naufal Abshar new solo exhibition seeks audience interaction
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The art and the artist: Indonesian artist Naufal Abshar explains one of his works during the gallery tour of his exhibition at ASHTA District 8 Jakarta on Nov. 25. (JP/Radhiyya Indra) (JP/Radhiyya Indra)
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enowned for his social commentary artworks, Naufal Abshar’s new exhibition pushes the social aspect further with a focus on visitor participation.
Modern art gallery CAN’S GALLERY presents new artworks from famed local artist Naufal Abshar at ASHTA District 8 shopping mall, South Jakarta, running from Nov. 26 until Dec. 18.
Titled FLASH, POW, BHAM!, the exhibition consists of artworks Naufal created during the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 to recent ones this year. It shows a variety of paintings that Naufal has made a name out of, such as his impressionistic collages and drawings of people, especially how they interact with various forms of entertainment in the digital era.
Born in Bandung in 1993, Naufal is an established name in the Indonesian and global art world, with intertextual artworks of people and buildings that serve as a social commentary of his surroundings. He is also known for creating the award-winning album cover of singer-songwriter Kunto Aji’s 2018 Mantra Mantra.
Laughter is one of the main focuses in Naufal’s works, apparent in the smiles and laughs from near-faceless people to donkeys in suits in the exhibition. Now, complete with an enormous board game of snakes and ladders, Naufal further incorporates the essence of human existence and social interactivity, inviting visitors to play with arm-sized donkey statues as the board game pins with two football-sized dice to roll.
“This exhibition is not only specific for the art community; it’s for everyone,” he said to the press on Nov. 25.
“Because this [mall] is a public space, people will come here randomly and post these artworks [on social media]. And when they post them, that’s one of the works; they create their content on top of the exhibition,” he explained.
Teasing the senses with different styles, the exhibition features Naufal’s most extensive works yet, going from simple two-dimensional to three-dimensional forms on over 30 artworks.
Texts are written on top of paintings, showing his thoughts and logic, making sense of the world. Some artworks include a stack of old televisions, encouraging visitors to record the exhibition and taking a jab at social media’s double-edged effects on society.
Throughout the exhibition, several public programs will be held every weekend to maximize the social process, including short documentary screenings, gallery tours and drawing sessions in the small studio Naufal reconstructed within the SPAC8 room at ASHTA District Jakarta.
