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Lot Essay
Affandi's works have received critical acclaim for their powerful expressionistic quality, particularly outstanding in depicting the emotion and personality of his subjects. Fisherman (Lot 33), alongside other single figure works of the artist, is an excellent painting from the artist.
As early as in the 1950s, Affandi had given up using brush and applied paint directly onto the canvas out of the tube. With this free and spontaneous style that the artist explored his own emotions and those of his subjects. The strength of Affandi's fluid style lies in his ability to maintain a coherent structure of his subjects amidst the disarray of lines and colours. Details were meticulously kept, attesting much to the keen observation and to some extent the sense of humour of the artist.
Fisherman is a superlative work from the artist, executed in 1969, generally considered as the strongest decade of the artist. It is a rare large scale vertical work, highlighting the expressionistic quality of his paintings, particularly outstanding in depicting the emotion and personality of his subjects. The fisherman in the painting is a man of significant proportions; at once comfortable with, and in command of nature and its elements.
Depicting the fisherman returning to shore after a day out at sea, with the tools of his trade such as the oars of his boat easily draped over his right shoulder, the fisherman is master of his trade and commander of his destiny. His towering presence is emphasised by Affandi's very typical compositional treatment for paintings of single figures. The figure is situated in the vertical centre of the painting, in a heroic full-figure pose and the background heavily worked over. In Fisherman , the skin of the fisherman is a glowing orange-red, with complementary yellow and green tones in Affandi's characteristic undulating, swirling and spiralling application of paint directly from the tube onto the canvas, in the ultimate gesture of expressionistic abandon.
Hailed as a "towering figure in the history of Indonesian modern art." Affandi's paintings often display his emotional responses to the lives of a people struggling to move out of poverty towards dignity. A fisherman is not typically viewed or revered as a painting subject, but in Affandi's oeuvre, he enjoys a central place of significance. Proportion is ignored as Affandi deliberately exaggerates the scale between humans and inanimate objects. The swirling gestural paint lines depicting the sky and seas, showing the virtuosity of his painting style, and the presence of boats rendered down in scale all lend a part in the artist’s skilful storytelling using the canvas as a medium.
Affandi's art was rooted in the direct observation of the world around him, which he transformed to express his personal inner vision. His commitment to painting daily scenes of Indonesian life was a life-long passion; depicting, in his perception, the best and most beautiful aspects of his homeland. To capture the essence of each situation or object, he developed and continually replayed a group of subjects, such as rice terraces, Indonesian festivities, the sun, his self-portrait, and of course the dynamic energy of the village cockfight. These localised inspirations resulted in paintings which danced with a dynamic energy and a distinct rhythm full of emotional intensity - a perfect recording of the social emotions of the period in tune with the painter's own feelings and sentiments.
He advocated looking at paintings with his eyes and heart, rather than the intellect. Emotion is the essential element in the artist's work, capturing the essence and the soul of whatever he painted – and celebrating the soul of the people. He was always comparing himself in jest to van Gogh - a man of strong emotion, which in turn gave rise to works of art. Stylistically similar, the transcending of painting beyond just form and process gives rise to Affandi creating paintings radiating with optimism, inspiration and the pure joy of creating art.
As early as in the 1950s, Affandi had given up using brush and applied paint directly onto the canvas out of the tube. With this free and spontaneous style that the artist explored his own emotions and those of his subjects. The strength of Affandi's fluid style lies in his ability to maintain a coherent structure of his subjects amidst the disarray of lines and colours. Details were meticulously kept, attesting much to the keen observation and to some extent the sense of humour of the artist.
Fisherman is a superlative work from the artist, executed in 1969, generally considered as the strongest decade of the artist. It is a rare large scale vertical work, highlighting the expressionistic quality of his paintings, particularly outstanding in depicting the emotion and personality of his subjects. The fisherman in the painting is a man of significant proportions; at once comfortable with, and in command of nature and its elements.
Depicting the fisherman returning to shore after a day out at sea, with the tools of his trade such as the oars of his boat easily draped over his right shoulder, the fisherman is master of his trade and commander of his destiny. His towering presence is emphasised by Affandi's very typical compositional treatment for paintings of single figures. The figure is situated in the vertical centre of the painting, in a heroic full-figure pose and the background heavily worked over. In Fisherman , the skin of the fisherman is a glowing orange-red, with complementary yellow and green tones in Affandi's characteristic undulating, swirling and spiralling application of paint directly from the tube onto the canvas, in the ultimate gesture of expressionistic abandon.
Hailed as a "towering figure in the history of Indonesian modern art." Affandi's paintings often display his emotional responses to the lives of a people struggling to move out of poverty towards dignity. A fisherman is not typically viewed or revered as a painting subject, but in Affandi's oeuvre, he enjoys a central place of significance. Proportion is ignored as Affandi deliberately exaggerates the scale between humans and inanimate objects. The swirling gestural paint lines depicting the sky and seas, showing the virtuosity of his painting style, and the presence of boats rendered down in scale all lend a part in the artist’s skilful storytelling using the canvas as a medium.
Affandi's art was rooted in the direct observation of the world around him, which he transformed to express his personal inner vision. His commitment to painting daily scenes of Indonesian life was a life-long passion; depicting, in his perception, the best and most beautiful aspects of his homeland. To capture the essence of each situation or object, he developed and continually replayed a group of subjects, such as rice terraces, Indonesian festivities, the sun, his self-portrait, and of course the dynamic energy of the village cockfight. These localised inspirations resulted in paintings which danced with a dynamic energy and a distinct rhythm full of emotional intensity - a perfect recording of the social emotions of the period in tune with the painter's own feelings and sentiments.
He advocated looking at paintings with his eyes and heart, rather than the intellect. Emotion is the essential element in the artist's work, capturing the essence and the soul of whatever he painted – and celebrating the soul of the people. He was always comparing himself in jest to van Gogh - a man of strong emotion, which in turn gave rise to works of art. Stylistically similar, the transcending of painting beyond just form and process gives rise to Affandi creating paintings radiating with optimism, inspiration and the pure joy of creating art.