The beauty of our world is not always captured for the entertainment of the public. Sometimes art poke at our neatly tended wounds and rips off the bandages.
Such works are presented by the Indonesian sculptor Dolorosa Sinaga and her former protégé Budi Santoso. Their joint exhibition entitled “Statues and Activism” deals with Indonesia’s turbulent history and today’s problems.
“Their works encourage us to question things that we ourselves do not dare to question,” said Alexander Supartono, curator of the exhibition, during a press tour on July 19.
The exhibition, which runs until August 19 in Building A of the National Gallery, features over 200 works by the two artists.
Images of the past: Budi Santoso stands in front of his work “Anatomi Kerja” (“Working Anatomy”, 2023) during an exhibition at the National Gallery in Jakarta on July 19, 2024. The artwork is inspired by anthropometric photos of Indonesian plantation workers from 1882. (JP/Sylviana Hamdani)
Sociopolitical activism
In front of the main building, just below the white marble steps, a thin man sits slumped over a coffin on a thick book entitled Indonesian history of mass murder 1965-1966his wide open mouth seemed to emit a silent scream.
