Ajining dhiri ana ing lathi – ajining salira ana ing busana, is an old Javanese wisdom about the way we should lead our lives meaning that a person’s self worth comes from the strength of their words and a person’s greatness comes from their attire. Consequently the life and truth that we pursue is an indication of the faith of the outside world in us. Art is an illusion and the clothes that I wear to express my intellectual and emotional milieu relate both to my outer and inner world.
I agree with the words of Picasso that “art is lies to reveal the truth”, but I also believe that the illusions created by artists are a sequence of realities. Jackson Pollock thought that the illusions created by artists in the process of producing works were not accidents but rather a subconscious awareness. One characteristic of contemporary life is the narrowing of boundaries between day and night, dark and light, good and bad. However the al-Koran explains that this is one of the signs of the end of time where it is increasingly difficult to differentiate between truth and the primordial, men and women, fauna and flora.
In addition, my artwork is a palette where I mix colours of my beliefs and doubts about reality and illusion. It is strongly influenced by naivety and unconscious experiences. Like Kandinsky I believe that every element found in nature has a soul, including the dry grass, old shoes found in a rubbish bin and shirt buttons at the side of the road. Their voices are more often silent than heard. Each word and letter, line and colour, note and sound has a soul which resides within a home inside my works of art.
1973
Born in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia
1994-95
Art Educator – PPLH (Environmental Education Centre) Seloliman, East Java
1995-96
Radio Presenter, Panorama Radio, Prigen, East Java
1997-2000
Bachelor of Fine Art - National Art School, Sydney
1998
Group Exhibition “From Sydney to Alice” Bondi Beach Pavilion
Amnesty International Group Show, Tap Gallery, Darlinghurst
1999
Australian Volunteers International Exhibition for East Timor, Sydney Office
Surrey Hills
“Three of Us” Group Show, KulturShop Gallery, Bronte
2000
Selected for group show “drawing week” National Art School, Mary Place Gallery,
Paddington
Graduating Students Exhibition, National Art School
2001
Group Exhibition, Bondi Wadi Gallery, Woollahra
2002
Winner of Waverly Art Prize
Selected for Mosman Art Prize
Self-funded Residency, 3 months in Indonesia
Solo Exhibition “The Green Paintings” , French Cultural Centre, Surabaya, Indonesia
Solo Exhibition “Dreams & Memories”, Hill on Hargrave Gallery, Woollahra
Group Exhibition “Christmas Show”, Hill on Hargrave Gallery
2003
Selected for Salon de Refuses, SH Erwin Gallery Sydney