Closing in the year of 2005 pintu Merah Studio in collaboration with A.S.A.P held a sculpture exhibition. “Metasculpture”, showed three dimensional artwork by young sculptor that live in Bandung City, Indonesia.
The words of “meta” just come up in the discussion during preparing the exhibition. A word that felt right to described a condition of sculpturing aura, a quite big changing of sculpture art world in Indonesia. Might be more than a decade or longer.
To my self, these three artist art work, that prefer to called as sculptor, showing a little big differences. The choices of material and theme of the work is absolutely different from their sculptor generation before.
Although their still using the same method to understanding about the material, form and space, as generally as older sculptor. This three sculptor more free to choose the themes, materials and technique to use. To make a sculpture that truly different from the generally one that we known, to set their self free from a dogmatic “habits” of Indonesia sculpscene. I’m called it a dogmatist one because a generally sculptor seems had a difficulty to release their soul from theme, form and the material their choose nor the exploration technique legacy that already given to since pre-history ages. Even in some number sculpture exhibition (large or small scale) that had been held in Indonesia, sculpture always involved into temple, stupa or fretwork; some connected to monument and martial sculpture; and some other to omission western sculpture.
In a different phrases, sculptor automatically concern to empu (called for a master of keris; traditional sword of Java island), partisan, room decorator, materials and others object that had a special ability or some searching adventure for the truly true form. Complete with all the thing that surrounding it. Including the unfinished “peregrination” search of truth ness. . something that really hard to accept in this term of art outgrowth. The time when art become industrial and artist become a profession as other. To step on into gradually career that offer a lot of materialism.
In thee here sculptor, as other generation artist before, I found a certain things that very attractive and different from a common art work generation before. There’s no heroism, agony, martial, or other communal value or even revolutionary. It’s just a common thing. Very daily things, easy, straight to the problems, a little bit subjective, nevertheless still containing philosophies although un exclaimed. Art became an exceeding different although it’s not necessary to call new.
That’s why “meta” felt described the exhibition, because although almost resemble, meta wasn’t past furthermore new. “Meta” is a prefix. “Meta” is the other one.
Gusbarlian Lubis
Exhibition Producer