Bali’s International Art Community

Published in NOW! Bali, August 2009

Last month I was invited to the 50th birthday party of renowned Bali-based, New York artist Ashley Bickerton at the trendy beach-side Semaya Villas in Seminyak. Ashley’s Jakartan wife Renjani had arranged a long white dining table in a white tent in the garden, and also the illumination of the Indian Ocean.

It was most atmospheric!

Renjani Damais-Arifin and her husband Ashley Bickerton.

LEFT: Cynthia and John Hardy.
RIGHT: Millie Togasa of Kaizan Restaurant, Seminyak.

LEFT: Publisher-photographer Leonard Lueras & Sati, a batik artist from Jogyakarta.
RIGHT: Ashley B (shirt by Sati) and Made Wijaya.

LEFT: H.E. the Italian Ambassador to Indonesia Roberto Palmieri and Signora Adriana Palmieri.
RIGHT: Restu Imansari Kusumaningrum of The Bali Purnati Center For The Arts, one of the event’s organizers.

LEFT: Italian Honorary Consul in Bali Pino Confessa and Idanna Pucci
RIGHT: Milo and Idanna Pucci

LEFT: Bapak Merta and Terence Ward.
RIGHT: Fiona Waworuntu-Pury.

Mystical magical musical Sumo-meets-Semar Jowo Chub-a-thon at Galeri Nasional, Jakarta, 5th June 2009

Published in NOW! Jakarta - July 2009

Imagine a production line ala Cabaret of thirty steamy Semars in psychedelic Monty Python meets Pakubuwono costumes..... grinding, voguing, fondling and foraging....in front of the neo-classical ‘Galeri Nasional’, Jakarta ......Greg Churchill, the Governor of Jakarta, Dr. Fauzi Bowo and the ever-gorgeous Nina Akbar Tanjung in the front row of a packed ‘house’ (carpark) of enthusiastic Java-o-philes and Chub-chasers...... and you have an idea of the incredible, mind-expanding event and heart-warming event that mushroomed like an atomic cloud in Central Jakarta last night!!! The expert cast—a mixture of Jakarta and Solo’s finest , fattest Semars and Java’s best kidung, wayang and stage performers—entertained with an exciting mix of the modern and the ancient, the secular and the profoundly profane, the steamy and the showy........with giant puppets, a brilliant netherworld-inspiring set, and one 250 kilo grand master Semar, Slamet Gundono who strummed the ukulele while strutting around as a Bob Fosse class ringmaster! Hebat!!!
The performance was held in conjunction with the launch of Greg Churchill, Subandi Martha, Hanuri Setiadi and Sigit Prakasa’s book ‘Semar Semarak – Images of Semar in Indonesian Folk Arts and an exhibition of twenty Semar ceramic sculptures by F. Widayanto.

LEFT: Sculptor F.Widyanto signs one of his Semar collection books
RIGHT: Greg Churchill (back) and Mr. Brian Gumulya.

Governor of DKI Jakarta, Dr. Fauzi Bowo being interviewed.


LEFT: (From left to right) On stage Pia Alisyahbana, Tubagus ‘Andre’ Sukmana, Gregory Churchill and Romo Sindhu
RIGHT: (From left to right) Barbara Johnson, Wieneke de Groot, Mark Edleson and Mary Edleson.

Other info from Greg re the production: Dr. Fauzi Bowo, Governor of DKI Jakarta, Pia Alisyahbana, Femina Group, and Tubagus ‘Andre’ Sukmana, Head of ‘Galeri Nasional Indonesia’. The dalang was Slamet Gundono with his ‘Komunitas Wayang Suket’ who also helped with sets and costumes. The exhibit designer was Wiediantoro. The poet was Romo Sindhu (Dr. GP. Sindhunata, SJ, a Catholic priest). The Semar puppets and glass paintings also on display inside the museum were mostly from the Greg Churchill collection with some from dalang Tizar Purbaya.

THIS REPORT PROUDLY SPONSORED BY THE FOUR SEASONS JAKARTA.

Slamet Gundono,the master of ceremonies, performs with his ukulele

Tante Betty goes to Manado

Published in NOW! Jakarta - June 2009

Photos Courtesy of Pintor Sirait

The welcoming committee at Manado Airport, 11th May 2009.

This month I went to Manado for the World Ocean Conference and Coral Triangle Initiative.

To commemorate the event Indonesian artist Pintor Sirait was commissioned to build a ‘monument’ expressing the importance of marine conservation. The parties around the event were a mixture of extreme marine biology, extreme Manadonese Bossanova and Coral Triangle Tourism Promotion.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudoyono greets the Director General of WWF International,
Jim Leape as Indonesia’s Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Admiral Freddy Numberi looks on




Monument artist Pintor Sirait (left) talks to Indonesia’s Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Admiral Freddy Numberi.


The Artist’s concept drawing for the monument showing the flags of the six nations taking part.


Day and night views of Pintor Sirait’s 10 metre-high stainless steel ‘monument’,
erected to commemorate the World Ocean Conference.

A Manadonese ‘groover’ singing love songs at the airport.

Around the Region

Published in NOW! Jakarta - May 2009

Famous N.Y. artist Julian Schnabel and actress du jour,
star of Slumdog Millionaire, Freida Pinto.

In Singapore last month, Tante Betty got to meet her two favourite creative geniuses: artist-filmmaker extraordinaire Julian Schnabel and fashion maestro Christian Lacroix. Le tout Jakarta had tripped to the Lion City to see the retrospectives.
In the crowd at the Schnabel show at HT Contemporary Space, Tante Betty spotted artists Astari and Pintor Sirait, and I.H.T. art critic Sonia Kalishnikove-Jessop. At the Lacroix retrospective at the National Museum of Singapore I saw Patrick Bensard and Agnes Montenay from Paris’ Cinémathèque Française de la Danse who flew in from Bali are doing a film on Christian Lacroix. Bensard had just been in Jakarta interviewing pop-singer Rebecca.

Julian Schnabel tells how it is to loving disciples,
(left to right) Pintor Sirait, Sonia Kalishnikove-Jessop, Astari.


The Christian Lacroix show at National Museum of Singapore

LEFT: left to right: Andrew Jessop and Sonia Kalishnikove-Jessop, Patrick Bensard, Agnes Montenay,
Astari at the “Christian Lacroix Costumier Exhibition” at the National Museum of Singapore.
RIGHT: A Lacroix drawing for a dress design.

* * * * *

Last month I also followed Gus De Surya and Komang Bebek, Bali’s answer to the Hilton Sisters, to the Sydney opera house for the state memorial for Danish architect Jorn Utzon, the iconic building’s architect. The Balinese duo had been invited to represent Indonesia by Lin Utzon with whom they had worked on various art projects in East Bali. During their stay in Sydney the pair also served as hosts at the Australian book launch of “The Best of Stranger in Paradise.” Held at Palm Beach Studios, at which former Australian ambassadors to Indonesia Bill Morrison and Dick Woolcott were joint guests of honour, and placed offerings at the Bali bomb memorial in Coogee on Kuningan, Balinese all souls day. Indonesia-Australian relations were much enhanced by the stellar press fleshing of this engaging duo.

LEFT: Former Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Bill Morrison and daughter Melanie.
RIGHT: At Sydney’s Botanical garden – a Hilton Sisters’ pose.

Pressing the flesh: the Balinese doing what comes naturally.

Elegant Book Launch in Solo

Published in Now! Jakarta, April 2009

The batik studio of Hardjonagoro Go Tik Swan produced some of the great batiks of the 20th century—collected avidly by President Soekarno and his court. Today, 103 days after the famous impresario’s death, Team Buku Srihana, headed by Neneng Iskandar, is launching a book of Hardjonagoro’s life and work, entitled ‘Batik Indonesia and Sang Empu – Go Tik Swan Panembahan Hardjonagoro’.
During the small launch ceremony, the book’s author, Madam Neneng Iskandar, presented the first book to Ibu Supiyah Anggriyani, wife of Hardjonagoro’s hier K.R.A. Harjosoewarno (Mas Warno), who is to continue the batik studio.
Mas Warno and his wife, were in pink accented Hardjonagoro batiks and looked sensational.
“Only gagah males can wear pink,” commented Hudi Soeharnoko, “I would get carried away.....kemayu (or ‘light in loafers’)”
To celebrate, a lavish Solonese lunch is prepared in Hardjonagoro’s home preceded by two classical Javanese dances in the famous golden pavilion.
It was a beautiful morning of exquisite dance and sumptuous Solonese food: a fitting welcome for the arrival of this important new book on the life’s work of one of Java’s cultural heroes.

The book-launching ceremony.

LEFT: Famed Solo singer reads the prayer of invocation.
RIGHT: Hardjonagoro’s adopted family enter the launching pavilion.


LEFT: The book’s printing team Guntur Santoso and Bapak Erwin Indarto.
RIGHT: Hudi Soeharnoko and K.R.A. Hardjosoewarno.


Mas Warno’s children formed the reception committee.


LEFT: A photo of Persident Soekarno and his wife Fatmawati at the Hardjonagoro home.
RIGHT: Lovebirds in the back courtyard.

LEFT: Ika Wulandari dancing the Adaninggar Kelaswara Dance.
RIGHT: Agustina, the star dancer.

Dancers from I.S.I. Solo perform the beautiful Srimpi Gandakusuma Dance.