Legacy: A statue stands in front of Ciputra World in Jakarta.

The nation’s arts and culture community lauds Ciputra for having ushered in new awareness through his “artpreneurship”.

Ciputra repeatedly stated that, ever since he became acquainted with works of fine art, he always wanted to know their artists better. For him, artists and their creations are inseparable and they should both be positioned on an equal footing.

“I’ve often noticed that when artworks are considerably honored, there’s no mention of their artists, and when they are sold at high prices, their creators enjoy nothing of the economic gain. This is unfair,” Ciputra once said, referring to painter Vincent van Gogh as a classic example.

The traditional thought separating the economic aspect of artists from that of their works has made artists believe that they are not economic beings and are thus sidelined as economic players. So, they have chosen to be mere homo aesteticus (esthetic art creators) and avoid the image of homo economicus (economic actors).

“This case has led to the assumption that artists having to do with the economy are not genuine or true artists. So, they are abandoning the economic world because the public has even from the beginning regarded artists as non-economic individuals. This is a big mistake,” he pointed out.

Ciputra felt that this way of thinking had to change.

Artists should understand the economy, or at least the economic aspect of their works. They should therefore maintain management. They are required to have the spirit of entrepreneurship.

“In the context of art, I call it artpreneurship,” he said.

This concept of artpreneurship had been proposed through various informal discussions, lectures and public speeches since the 1970s.

One of his artpreneurial moves was his effort to set up Pasar Seni Ancol (Ancol Art Market) in Jakarta in 1975, which was opened by then-governor Ali Sadikin.

The market was part of an amusement park area he built along the coast. There, Ciputra hoped artists could be engaged in “self-management” and “artwork management”.

Self-management encompasses artists’ discipline in practicing their art in the presence of visitors by creating their works according to their genuine expressions while receiving many people’s input for their artistic advancement.

Meanwhile, artwork management is about the artists’ willingness to implement direct economic transactions with art lovers, as their works eventually have to be distributed. This way, the artists’ livelihood will not depend on other parties.

“I think after over three decades, Pasar Seni Ancol has succeeded in popularizing artpreneurship among artists, as proven by what they have delightedly implemented without any awkwardness,” Ciputra said of the market.

“As time goes by, new methods in visual art management are emerging, along with an increasing number of auction centers, galleries, art shops, art exhibition committees like art fairs and others.”

Meanwhile, Ciputra also began to identify and anticipate a new problem that might not have been realized by artists back then.

He made an attempt to solve it by initiating an artpreneurship learning movement, which was marked by the establishment of the Ciputra Artpreneur (CA) in 2005. Rina Ciputra Sastrawinata, Ciputra’s daughter, fully understood this concept and was entrusted to manage it.

Ciputra expected the artpreneurship organized in the CA to optimally benefit the artists and to be accepted by the public. He held the view that artists should in fact have the spirit and creativity of entrepreneurs, always trying to process less valuable things, like turning waste into gold.

“Artists also strive to make all abstract ideas in their minds visibly and tangibly come true. They create something out of nothing and this should be further managed and enhanced to become an object with an incredible exchange value, making it most worthy economically,” he said.

He was convinced that the artpreneurship he propagated through the CA would become a new paradigm in the 21st century world of art.

His vision has come to fruition.

The CA has held various important programs to bring artwork on display together with economic interests. This success prompted Rina to pay tribute to all these achievements in the form of a huge building complex named the Ciputra World in Jakarta. It combines hotels, shopping malls, meeting rooms, performance halls and other facilities.

The Ciputra World features an art space with an area of 6,000 square meters. The space consists of performance halls, display rooms, galleries and a museum exhibiting the paintings of Hendra Gunawan, whom Ciputra admired very much.

Ciputra, the pioneer of a new path in Indonesian art, has departed forever, leaving behind his invaluable heritage and philosophy of art.

Pak Ci, rest in peace.

Disclaimer: The writer is an art consultant for Ciputra.

— Photos by Agus Dermawan T.

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