Raden Saleh’s masterpieces on display at National Gallery

Over 40 paintings and drawings by Raden Saleh, the colorful artist often referred to as the “father of Indonesian modernity” will be displayed in the National Gallery, Jakarta, starting this Sunday amid allegations of widespread forgery of the works of several Indonesian masters.

According to the exhibition’s statement, the exhibition is the first ever monographic display of Raden Saleh’s work in Indonesia. 

The artist was born in Semarang, C. Java, in 1811, when Indonesia was still a colony of the Dutch. He traveled to Europe when he was around 18 years old and spent over 20 years there, training as a painter. 

“There was no other painter in the colony — European or Javanese — who was [Raden Saleh]’s equal. 

He was largely responsible for broad segments of the Javanese elite discovering, during the second half of the 19th-century, that realistic painting … could constitute an aesthetic pleasure. These first small steps marked the start of Indonesian art’s journey towards the vibrant scene it has become today,” Curator Werner Kraus says in his exhibition notes. 

Raden Saleh’s paintings comprise portraits, scenes involving animals, especially lions, and landscapes. One of his famous paintings, depicting the capture of national hero Pangeran Diponegoro, is said to contain hidden nationalistic symbolism. 

The master’s reputation extends beyond that of an acclaimed painter. He was also known as an architect, a landscape gardener and a collector of ethnographic and archaeological documents. 

He was known for his idiosyncratic and somewhat flamboyant fashion style as well, as he was said to design his own costumes, which combined various styles including Javanese and European. Thus, he is sometimes dubbed as Indonesia’s “first fashion designer”.

Despite the substantial time he spent in Europe, Raden Saleh was said to have remained loyal to his roots. He returned to Indonesia —or the Netherlands East Indies as it was known then — and was said to have tried to introduce modernity to various cultural and scientific aspects. However, he became disenchanted with the treatment he received from the colonial powers in his homeland. 

The exhibition, titled “Raden Saleh and the Beginning of Modern Indonesian Painting” is scheduled to run until June 17, and will feature, apart from the original drawings and paintings, the reproduction of works that cannot be brought to Indonesia. 

It will include various events such as a wayang performance on the opening day, a fashion show in which local fashion designers have been invited to participate in a competition with Raden Saleh as its inspiration, and an essay competition, which calls for essays highlighting the artist’s personal and artistic achievements. 

The fashion show is scheduled on June 9 and a discussion about Raden Saleh is scheduled to be held a week later.

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Adventures in the domestic sphere

The domestic realm can be both a labyrinth and treasure chest, although it is at times seen as second best to the outside, which is seen as foreign, exciting and full of lure.

Take for example the emotions and associations that the words “home” or “family” conjure. Even a single object such as an old radio set or a teacup can open the door to hours of nostalgic discussion.

A group of artists took up the challenge of presenting the domestic realm through the medium of visual art in an exhibition entitled “Domestic Stuff”, which is running in Salihara until this Sunday.

Netherlands-born artist Mella Jaarsma, who has been residing in Indonesia since 1986, curated the exhibition and chose seven female artists: Lydiawati Lim, Melati Suryodarmo, Maria Indriasari, Ariani Darmawan, Sekarputri, Restu Ratnaningtyas and Mie Cornoedus to collaborate with other artists as “partners” in creating their works for the project.

Among the artists chosen as partners are Afrizal Malna and Mufty “Amenk” Priyanka.

Jaarsma pointed out during the discussion about the exhibition last month that female artists clustered together in exhibitions often tended to have their work judged on a gender basis, and not in terms of quality.

“We are often dissatisfied because of [that judgement]. Thus, if we only feature female artists, it will not be very interesting. A dialog between two genders was more interesting, so I went from there. The seven female artists looked for dialog partners. They [the partners] didn’t have to be males, but I hoped they were, and the dialogs lead to themes,” Jaarsma said during the discussion on the exhibition.

The dialogs range from the emotions of those who have lost mothers in the home, or the way a household views material possessions, to challenges such as losing out on a social life, or of being a new parents.

“Agung tells of his dream about his mother buying a new set of dining chairs. And coincidentally, I have recently dreamed of my late mother. I saw her cooking an abundance of meat, stacked highly in the kitchen. I didn’t understand the meaning of the dream. What is certain is that I often dream of my mother in the kitchen, and it’s always the same dream, in our first house,” reads the dialog between Retnu Ratnaningtyas and project partner Agung Kurniawan in the exhibition’s book.

What resulted from that dialog is a somewhat surreal depiction of the kitchen, involving drawings of a floating figure enveloped in blanket-like material.

Another piece of art involves what appears to be a baby mobile but includes objects that seemingly correspond not only to a baby’s direct senses but also to more abstract subjects and issues revolving around parenting. One example is a picture of a compass and a disc with names of religions written on it.

Jaarsma cited Austrian Valie Export as one of the early artists who created domestic-themed artwork, in which the latter wrapped her body in a cardboard box and invited people to put their hands through the hole in the box and feel her body.

Art critic Wicaksono Adi, however, said that the objects used in the exhibition did not explore the borders in which the public and private sphere clashes, resulting in chaos.

“Indonesian visual art about the private world is yet to be clearly worked on. I’m yet to see a view on the intimate, private world after 20 years,” he said during the discussion.

Jaarsma pointed out that while visual art might be a more challenging medium through which to convey domestic issues, as compared to other art forms such as literature, which usually have a bigger canvas to depict issues in detail, visual art still gives a chance to viewers to reflect and interpret the work.

Given the spectrum of emotions and personal experiences one has concerning domestic issues, such as child-raising or living within a neighborhood, visiting an exhibition about “Domestic Stuff” might produce interesting insights on one’s own life, or on the world outside.

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