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Lot Essay
A TRIBUTE TO INDONESIA : AFFANDI AND GUNAWAN AT THE HEART OF A PRESTIGIOUS COLLECTION
The present group of three paintings by Affandi and Hendra Gunawan have been carefully chosen by a European diplomat who was based in Jakarta from 1971 to 1974. His particular interest in art and music has led him to build an impressive collection of eclectic art reflecting his travels, acquired throughout his various postings in Bombay, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Rio de Janeiro, Porto, Brazzaville, Lagos and Lomé.
Affandi and Gunawan are both highly prominent leaders of modern Indonesian painting. It is no wonder our collector would have been drawn to their work, as Penari Bali (Balinese Dancer) (Lot 30), Horsemen (Lot 31), and Three Women (Lot 32) beautifully depict lively and colourful traditional scenes anchoring Indonesian culture into a larger world map. Christie’s is honoured to present such a coherent group, thoughtfully selected and revealing different aspects of Indonesian heritage.
The two artists’ chance encounter in 1939 would allow for mutual exchange and artistic influence, encouraging a unique blend of Western techniques and Indonesian imagery which would later drive them to lead the Indonesian modernist art movement, together with artist S. Sudjojono, under the shadow of one of the most tumultuous eras of Indonesian history. They lived through the Japanese invasion of Indonesia, saw the conclusion of World War II, witnessed the country’s fight against Dutch occupation and the achievement of independence. This success was followed soon thereafter by interna lpolitical turmoil under Sukarno’s “New Order” regime. It was during this latter period that Hendra Gunawan suffered the most, and had a thirteen-year incarceration as punishment for his involvement in the communist-sponsored Lembaga Kebudayaan Rakyat (known as LEKRA, or the People’s Cultural Association).
The subject matters of Indonesian rural life depicted here highly contrast with the heavy political climate of 20th Century Indonesia... Affandi famously said: 'When I paint, I always want to become one with the object I paint. I lose myself, and then there is a feeling as if I'm going to fight against something.'
Another expression of reverence toward patriotism transpires in Affandi’s Penari Bali. Here, Indonesian art and culture are celebrated through the spontaneous and dynamic strokes rendering a beautiful Balinese dancer. Having gained international recognition in the 1950s, Affandi travelled, worked, exhibited throughout Asia, Europe, Australia, the United States and South America. His time spent outside of Indonesia would have strengthened the artist’s appreciation for and pride in his own cultural heritage.
By the time Penari Bali and Horsemen were painted, Affandi had found his signature style by painting directly from the paint tube and his fingers. This would reveal his need for urgency and immediacy in connecting with his work and subject matter. The renowned art critic Herbert Read had hailed Affandi as a painter who had succeeded in'developing a new course of Expressionism'. New expressionism is indeed a description that is applicable to an understanding of Affandi's works.
Penari Bali is a singularly striking portrait of a dancer in a posture suggesting youth and vitality. She is full of confidence in her stance, one arm akimbo, the other holding a fan languidly. Affandi clearly revels in the act of painting, applying with judicious care details of the dancer's accoutrements, from the decorative motif of her skirt to the lavish ornateness of her headdress and the overflowing decoration of her dancer's costume. The lack of detail in the background and the darker colours used to depict it contrast with the shining quality of the central figure. Such contrast is further enhanced by the presence of a dog feeding her puppies at the entrance of the temple. Here, the artist successfully translates how the reality of everyday life and context is heightened by cultural tradition.
Both Affandi and Gunawan continuously sought to translate the inner essence and qualities of their subjects, and craved to additionally convey their own emotions into the painting. The selection of these three exceptional paintings particularly demonstrate the importance of local customs and traditions as a tool for personal identification and pride. Through their eyes, the mundane is depicted as a valuable human experience, a moment worth looking for as it defines a people and core cultural values, and therefore guarantees posterity. It is no coincidence then that these paintings would have been chosen by our collector to accompany him subsequently throughout his life as a way to commemorate his time in Indonesia.
The present group of three paintings by Affandi and Hendra Gunawan have been carefully chosen by a European diplomat who was based in Jakarta from 1971 to 1974. His particular interest in art and music has led him to build an impressive collection of eclectic art reflecting his travels, acquired throughout his various postings in Bombay, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Rio de Janeiro, Porto, Brazzaville, Lagos and Lomé.
Affandi and Gunawan are both highly prominent leaders of modern Indonesian painting. It is no wonder our collector would have been drawn to their work, as Penari Bali (Balinese Dancer) (Lot 30), Horsemen (Lot 31), and Three Women (Lot 32) beautifully depict lively and colourful traditional scenes anchoring Indonesian culture into a larger world map. Christie’s is honoured to present such a coherent group, thoughtfully selected and revealing different aspects of Indonesian heritage.
The two artists’ chance encounter in 1939 would allow for mutual exchange and artistic influence, encouraging a unique blend of Western techniques and Indonesian imagery which would later drive them to lead the Indonesian modernist art movement, together with artist S. Sudjojono, under the shadow of one of the most tumultuous eras of Indonesian history. They lived through the Japanese invasion of Indonesia, saw the conclusion of World War II, witnessed the country’s fight against Dutch occupation and the achievement of independence. This success was followed soon thereafter by interna lpolitical turmoil under Sukarno’s “New Order” regime. It was during this latter period that Hendra Gunawan suffered the most, and had a thirteen-year incarceration as punishment for his involvement in the communist-sponsored Lembaga Kebudayaan Rakyat (known as LEKRA, or the People’s Cultural Association).
The subject matters of Indonesian rural life depicted here highly contrast with the heavy political climate of 20th Century Indonesia... Affandi famously said: 'When I paint, I always want to become one with the object I paint. I lose myself, and then there is a feeling as if I'm going to fight against something.'
Another expression of reverence toward patriotism transpires in Affandi’s Penari Bali. Here, Indonesian art and culture are celebrated through the spontaneous and dynamic strokes rendering a beautiful Balinese dancer. Having gained international recognition in the 1950s, Affandi travelled, worked, exhibited throughout Asia, Europe, Australia, the United States and South America. His time spent outside of Indonesia would have strengthened the artist’s appreciation for and pride in his own cultural heritage.
By the time Penari Bali and Horsemen were painted, Affandi had found his signature style by painting directly from the paint tube and his fingers. This would reveal his need for urgency and immediacy in connecting with his work and subject matter. The renowned art critic Herbert Read had hailed Affandi as a painter who had succeeded in'developing a new course of Expressionism'. New expressionism is indeed a description that is applicable to an understanding of Affandi's works.
Penari Bali is a singularly striking portrait of a dancer in a posture suggesting youth and vitality. She is full of confidence in her stance, one arm akimbo, the other holding a fan languidly. Affandi clearly revels in the act of painting, applying with judicious care details of the dancer's accoutrements, from the decorative motif of her skirt to the lavish ornateness of her headdress and the overflowing decoration of her dancer's costume. The lack of detail in the background and the darker colours used to depict it contrast with the shining quality of the central figure. Such contrast is further enhanced by the presence of a dog feeding her puppies at the entrance of the temple. Here, the artist successfully translates how the reality of everyday life and context is heightened by cultural tradition.
Both Affandi and Gunawan continuously sought to translate the inner essence and qualities of their subjects, and craved to additionally convey their own emotions into the painting. The selection of these three exceptional paintings particularly demonstrate the importance of local customs and traditions as a tool for personal identification and pride. Through their eyes, the mundane is depicted as a valuable human experience, a moment worth looking for as it defines a people and core cultural values, and therefore guarantees posterity. It is no coincidence then that these paintings would have been chosen by our collector to accompany him subsequently throughout his life as a way to commemorate his time in Indonesia.