Lee Man Fong

Leo Haks and Guus Maris, Lexicon of Foreign Artists Who Visualized indonesia (1600 - 1950), Archipelago Press, Singapore, 1995, p.491, Colorplate 257

The work is in good condition overall, as is the board, which is free from warping and cracks. There is evidence of light wear and handling around the edges of the painting but the paint layers are healthy and in tact. Examination under ultraviolet light shows two old specks of touch up located beneath the weaver's right earlobe and below her right breast. This is not visible with the naked eye. Framed.
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 Lee Man Fong has firmly established himself as a seminal figure in Southeast Asian painting. Much of the artist’s oeuvre was influenced by, and features prominently, the culture and people of Indonesia. The young Balinese woman portrayed in A Balinese Woman Weaving is a favourite motif, and one most often associated with his paintings documenting rural life. Women deep in activity, unaware of the external eye, were Lee Man Fong’s celebrated female archetype throughout his illustrious career. The present painting perfectly exemplifies this relationship. Concentrating on her weaving, the young woman exists within her own world, her attention towards the loom and the task at hand. It is an intimate scene, and yet the moment becomes increasingly compelling as the young weaver continues to look away.

His fascination with domesticity, and the security it promised, was a response to the tension surrounding the Persagi (Persatuan Ahli-ahli Gambar Indonesia) and Indische-Holland kunstkring community. Lee Man Fong’s paintings were a deliberate divorce from his environment. He desired a quiet aesthetics as seen in his works, images that are innocent from revolutions, existing within a harmonious frame.

Lee Man Fong embraced the Chinese principle “Breath, Resonance, Life, Motion” within his portraits. He sought to capture an individual’s spirit through their posture, rather than through a formal likeness. Therefore the young weaver’s kneeling position, the delicate curve of her hand holding the thread, her downward gaze, all serve as vehicle for transmitting such ideals.  A Balinese Woman Weaving is an excellent portrayal of the artist’s respect towards the feminine. Untouched, and alone, the young woman commands an ageless world that is separate from the penetrating gaze of the viewer. With her loom and thread, she is witness to what once was.