I Nyoman Masriadi

Private Asian Collection

T.K. Sabapathy, Nyoman Masriadi: Reconfiguring the Bod, Gajah Gallery, Singapore, 2010, p. 216, fig. 157

Excellent overall condition as viewed. There are very few small and faint pinhole sized accretions to the background, only visible upon very close inspection. Framed.
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The Indonesian-born artist, I Nyoman Masriadi, is lauded as one of the most original and visually engaging mid-career Southeast Asian artists today. His record-setting piece, The Man From Bantul (The Final Round), has broken the US$ 1,000,000 mark at Sotheby's Hong Kong October 2008 sale. Masriadi’s predilection towards figurative paintings prompted him to develop an exceptional understanding of the human anatomy. His mastery in portraying the (masculine) body would set him apart from his peers; and this fascination with corporeality would eventually become a common theme throughout his career. Masriadi has created a visual language that is instantly recognizable, where his characters are immediately discernible. His canvases typically feature men with strong, bulging muscles in perfectly chiseled bodies; their flesh and figure completely monumentalized. The physicality of his characters seems to always inspire a chain of narratives within his canvases. Bearing themes of confrontational situations in the daily existence, the crux of his works is directed towards towards Indonesia’s socio-political and economical climates. Thus, the subject matters of society and personal experiences have been the foundation of Masriadi’s oeuvre.

“It is difficult to explain a feeling. I paint based on what is happening in my life at that moment. Sometimes these experiences need to be interpreted in order to be remembered. Through painting I mark the meaning events in my life.” ¹

Witty, concise and direct, Masriadi’s images are punctuated with satire. His clean, bold and precise compositions belie their sophistication and intricacies. One would find delight in discovering a dash of sarcasm hidden in the peripheral details or scribbles. He never ceases to amuse his viewers with his cheeky humour, and certainly, he does not shy away from delivering a slice of reality. For this reason, his paintings are a breath of fresh air in many collectors’ eyes. Largely influenced by popular culture such as graphic novels, films and computer games, he deliberately features familiar archetypes that circulate in our consciousness; and therefore, his paintings act as allegories that are understood by a universal audience. The tongue-and-cheek way of parodying the daily life, evident in the 2010 work entitled Sok Ngirit (Pretending To Be Prudent), may recall paintings by the famous American pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. The art historian T.K. Sabapathy writes in Nyoman Masriadi: Reconfiguring the Body” that “the deliberate use of clichés operates like a Brechtian Verfremdungseffekt—by producing a predictable scene, it establishes an emotional distance between the audience and the work’s social protest. The overall impression is that the violence at the center stage is madness and yet so ordinary that it makes no headline.” ²

Behind the comic relief is a subtext of provocative and contemporaneously relevant social commentaries, born from Masriadi’s keen and intelligent observation of society and life.  It is this unique perspective, delivered with a style and conviction that conform only to Masriadi's own rules, that makes Masriadi truly inimitable.

The present painting Bagi Dua (Divide in Two) is completed in 2003, and to a certain extent, could be viewed as a pseudo self-portrait of the artist. Just before the turn of the millennium, Masriadi left Institute Seni Indonesia (ISI) without completing his final assessment, and turned to painting as a profession. Empty space fills the background of the canvas, which stands out from his typical action-filled compositions. Departing from his usual mise-en-scène of traditional foreground-background spatial relationship, Masriadi paints a lone figure standing atop of a log of wood or timber; however only the frontal views are shown here. Any sense of depth has been deliberately eliminated. The blinding white space impedes the eyes to travel any further and forces the gaze to return to the flattened shape of the timber. The semi-abstract form generously takes up the majority of the otherwise strangely vacant canvas. Taking the center stage is Masriadi’s signature rendition of a hugely powerful man, who is stronger and sturdier than ever. Rendered in a flawless male body, the protagonist sports a perfectly sun-kissed skintone– it even glistens on his impeccable statuesque physique. T.K. Sabapathy comments on Masriadi’s dramatization of the human body as “surrealistically bizarre” such that “the portraits disrupt their own claim to perfection.” ³ In Masriadi’s repertoire, the established binary oppositions are often challenged and contended. For example in the 1997 work entitled Batman and Rangda, the American hero Batman and the Bailnese mythological figure Rangda are juxtaposed such that the two imaginary worlds are set beside one another other. Our (varying degrees of) familiarity with these two realms enables us to move in and out of them. ⁴

Scale is a vital component in the present painting, which helps to structure our further understanding of the depicted subject. The central figure appears much smaller in relation to the timber that he is trying to cut open. Equipped with an axe, the man is still hopelessly failing at his task. His muscular physique is defeated by the sheer size of the wood. He is simply too little to complete the task, no matter how many times he tries or how strong he is.

Masriadi could be commenting on the 21^st century consumerist culture, and how natural resources are quickly being depleted. This is a common theme preoccupied by contemporary Indonesian artists of the same generation, such as Rudi Mantofani. On a more personal level, the painting could also be interpreted as a reflection of Masriadi’s mental state at the time. The painting captures a highly introspective moment in the artist’s life, as the man is standing alone in nature without a single soul around. Conceivably, depicting the central figure in full frontal view could be Masriadi’s subtle hint that, despite the immediate obstacles, he would still fully embrace the challenges ahead. Since, after all, he is full equipped. The present painting therefore exemplifies Masriadi’s unique ability to communicate the weight of human existence via a light-hearted yet impactful manner.

 ¹ The artist cited in an Interview in Yogyakarta, 28 April 2008

² T.K. Sabapathy, Nyoman Masriadi: Reconfiguring the Bod, Gajah Gallery, Singapore, 2010

³ Refer to 2

⁴ Refer to 2