Harry Nazarudin

If Indonesia can be said to have a collective talent, art is certainly one of them. Being a land of such rich culture and unique diversity, Indonesians are used to seeing rainbows of colors and a myriad of patterns in their life.

Art is an integral part of Indonesian culture, it surfaces in the detailed pattern of the gorga (traditional Batak house) or in the intricate fractal nature of Javanese batik. Indonesians are literally born and raised with art.

For some people, these shapes, spaces, colors and presentation, have become a lifelong passion, even a true calling. These people are the artists of Indonesia: painters, sculptors, installation and visual artists.

On July 29, 2010, in Ballroom 1 and 2, The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Pacific Place, an important event was held to establish Jakarta as Indonesia’s capital of art. The four-day event was titled Bazaar Art Jakarta 2010 was undeniably the avant garde for Indonesian art society.

Thus, Bazaar Art Jakarta 2010 has become a playground for these creative individuals, from newcomers to old masters. Take Deddy PAW for example. Born in Magelang, Oct. 18, 1963, this journalist-turned-painter is obsessed with apples.

“Apples are the first fruit to be mentioned in both the Holy Bible and the Koran” he said. “Apple has a mysterious nature, even the goddesses of Greek Mythology could not agree on the nature of it.”

Thus, Deddy expressed his fascination on large canvases, painting different portrayals of apples: metallic apples, golden apples, combined with various images from the smiling Buddha to goldfish. His passion burnished his paintings, making them giant, impressive works of art.

Eddie Hara, born in 1957 in Salatiga, has a different passion. He found his passion in everyday objects, such as refrigerators and sofas. His work, Retro Refrigerator — Cool Your Nerve Down (2010) is a simple SMEG refrigerator painted in bright red, decorated by typical surrealist objects. It’s an object you’d expect to find in the funky studio apartment of the comic character the Punisher. Yet, the simple idea, turning everyday objects into works of art,  flourished.

Some artists are obsessed with movement, refusing to freeze their art within a two dimensional barrier of time. So Fauzan has chosen sand art as his passion. Accompanied by a dynamic Sundanese music, Fauzan mesmerized the audience as he disturbed a thin spread of sand on a backlit table, turning it into a scene from the Mahabarata.

His rapid hand movements, displayed on a large-screen LCD, showed how his brain moves from one scene to another, his seemingly random action then blooms into two wayang (shadow puppet) characters, Arjuna and Karna, in a final face-off before battle. The audience gave him a big applause when the scene ended.

The exhibition itself is a true explosion of creativity and spirit of creation, from classic calligraphy to contemporary art. Stepping into each booth feels like going into a different world, from the blurred image of cars from Waluyohadi to the mystical Balinese movements of Ida Bagus Indra.

Yet the eyes of a weaving girl, in the unique Chinese-style painting of Lee Man Fong, looks on as if to remind us that art is timeless.

His works, along with Affandi’s and Sudjojono’s, still show their passion even beyond their time, going into eternity.   

The Bazaar Art Jakarta 2010 also tries to get into the life of everyday people. It is using the Pacific Place mall as a display for various works of art, including hanging gigantic Heri Dono’s gruesome creatures on the main hall, creating an eerie sense of space in the interior of the building.

Seeing how these artists work with their hearts and souls remind us that everything done based on passion will always lead to something great. The Bazaar Art Jakarta 2010’s stage, which features mostly local artists, has proven that Indonesians can do this well. We just hope to see more of this spirit on the political stage of the country.