Masters of Modern Indonesian Portraiture, on display at Australia's National Portrait Gallery on Canberra until mid October, is a significant new development in our cultural contacts with Indonesia.
It is the first time works from the National Gallery of Indonesia have been exhibited here and Australia is honoured to show these works by eminent modern Indonesian artists, particularly in the 40th anniversary year of Australia's dialogue relations with ASEAN.
The 40 artworks range from representatives of the 'Indonesian New Painting' movement of the 1940s, 'a reaction against the dominance of colonial landscape painting,' says curator Rizki A. Zaelani, through works by one of Indonesia's greats, Affandi, to 2014 works by Teja Astawa and Willy Himawan. 'The exhibition is a chance to create a medium of understanding and acceptance between distance and time differences,' Zaelani says.
Besides curating and organising the exhibition, a delegation of from the National Gallery of Indonesia, along with visiting artists, is participating in seminars and roundtables with Australian arts sector representatives which, it is hoped, will create a continuous cultural dialogue between the two countries.
The exhibition was launched by Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs Senator Brett Mason, representing Prime Minister Tony Abbott (who was overseas) and His Excellency Mr Nadjib Riphat Kesoema, Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, who emphasised the value of public diplomacy and quoted William Morris Hunt on the 'universal language of art'.
The enthusiastic launch gathering included Indonesian students and diaspora along with DFAT 'Indonesia hands' such as former DFAT secretary Phillip Flood.
The exhibition runs until October 15. A selection of the portraits is posted on the NPG website and the DFAT exhibition launch gallery.
"Masters of modern Indonesian portraiture has been developed collaboratively by professional staff at the National Gallery of Indonesian and the National Portrait Gallery. It is the first formal project in what we hope will be an enduring relationship between the two national collecting institutions."
"Masters of modern Indonesian portraiture telah dikembangkan secara kolaboratif oleh staf profesional Galeri Nasional Indonesia dan Galeri Potret Nasional. Ini merupakan proyek formal perdana yang kami harap akan menjadi hubungan yang lestari antara kedua lembaga koleksi nasional."
Tubagus 'Andre' Sukmana, Head of the National Gallery of Indonesia, and NPG director Angus Trumble
