Art Work That Broke a Barrier Between Art and Life
Tunggul Wirajuda (The Djakarta Post)
Jakarta ● Wed, Baronial 30, 2017
The two blackbirds seem lost in each other's company, fifty-fifty as they stand withal in time and space. Titled "Awas Tegangan Tinggi" (Beware! High Voltage), their ardent chemical science is literally cast in atomic number 26 by their creator, Indonesian artist Patrick Wowor.
"Like other birds, the blackbirds stand for freedom, as they fly off when they please. But in this case, their pose symbolizes the strong undercurrent of love and other strong emotions between two individuals," said Patrick of his latest work, which was inspired by blackbirds converging on power lines in the US city of Seattle, a sight that reminded him of society'southward communal spirit.
He approached the theme with none of the negative connotations associated with blackbirds in folklore, whether in Republic of indonesia or elsewhere, as typified by Edgar Allan Poe'southward famous poem, "The Raven".
"'Awas Tegangan Tinggi' is a deviation from my previous work, nearly of which were paintings," said Patrick, who divides his fourth dimension between Jakarta and Seattle. "I made it with a giddiness and joy that one would experience with a new toy."
But curator Afrizal Malna finds a sinister edge to "Awas Tegangan Tinggi", not least considering of its bare-bones appearance. "It looks torn down to the bones," he noted. "The sculpture shows how civilisation can bring out the fell side of nature, equally if nature is a vulnerable creature lost in today'southward civilisation."
Unveiling the creative journey
"Awas Tegangan Tinggi" is a highlight of the eponymously named exhibition of Patrick's latest artwork, which was recently displayed at the Cemara 6 gallery and museum.
The artworks in Awas Tegangan Tinggi seeks to attain out to viewers past "breaking the fourth wall" between the audience and Patrick's fine art.
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"I believe that art's telescopic is limitless. It can be as open as possible," said the Jakarta Institute of Fine Arts alumnus, who has been exhibiting in Jakarta and Seattle since 2005. "I starting time explored this concept with my exhibition Open Studio, which I held at Balai Budaja in 2014. While information technology was a homage to the place'southward significance in modernistic Indonesian fine art, the gallery's dilapidated land perfectly replicates an art studio."
"Awas Tegangan Tinggi and Open Studio are similar considering they highlight the creative process, not the finished piece of work. This is dissimilar from the mindset of many Indonesians who focus more on the event, not the procedure, which they tend to take for granted," lamented Patrick. "Similar life, one savors the journey – or rather, the creative process. I create fine art for its own sake, not considering of a need to showroom."
Despite the insight it offers into Patrick's piece of work and his ongoing development every bit an artist, Awas Tegangan Tinggi is a different animal compared to Open Studio and his other exhibitions. "Awas Tegangan Tinggi alludes to how we answer to life's pressures and challenges. Its also describes how we know our strengths and weaknesses," Patrick said. "Information technology warns most high voltage or high pressure, making it more imperative for us to determine whether we are strong enough to face those challenges."
Patrick's mixed media installation "Entah" (Either) epitomizes these thoughts. Using a suitcase as his canvas, the centerpiece opens a hole that seems to claiming the viewer to go and discover out what'southward on the other side. "'Entah' is a metaphor for life as journey. Similar life or other voyages taken spontaneously, it symbolizes the unknown directions that it will accept," he explained.
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"Similar those journeys, i has to allow it unfold naturally and however have control, which is a dichotomy I address in my work," he said. "As with the other artwork in Awas Tegangan Tinggi, 'Entah' is at ease with the dark. Darkness balances light, so it's neither negative nor something to fright; fright of the dark reflects public concerns about uncertainty and uncomfortable truths."
Stepping up to new forms
As seen in the championship sculpture, "Awas Tegangan Tinggi" sees Patrick stepping out of his comfort zone of painting and trying out new artistic mediums. Among them are his "Black bird" [sic] linocut-on-newspaper serial, whose stark, thin, yet striking lines evoke the works of Pedro Joseph de Lemos.
Featuring diverse views of blackbirds, the illustrations manage to turn the idea of perspectives on its head.
"The birds' faces are always positioned toward certain directions, presenting a nonexistent space equally the space missing from the bird's habitat," Afrizal noted.
The linocuts "Black bird #2" and "Black bird #three" epitomize this premise. The birds stare back with fascination at passersby, just as humans would in their habitat, leaving one to wonder what the birds are thinking.
Other works, like Patrick'due south "Garis Langit #i-#18" and "Bardo", see Patrick put a twist on the mundane and everyday. "The study of lines in my works was based on electrical lines and the patterns that they make on the urban skyline. The more I look at them, the more than I find their symmetry," Patrick said of the theme, which he showtime encountered in Seattle. "They might seem to be disorderly, but their structure does have a pattern, logic and will that are subtle and intangible. Applied to human figures, the lines show how governments silence the public, though for the most function [the artwork] are studies."
Patrick pointed out that his work in Awas Tegangan Tinggi, as well as in prior exhibitions, reverberate his conflict between needing to control or assuasive the creative process take its grade, also as getting alee of the bend. "Reinvention plays a big function in my piece of work, equally does unpredictability. I also seek to instill an element of surprise," he said. "If I lose the element of surprise, I'd rather destroy the work."
Patrick added that he would continue to exhibit his work in Jakarta and Seattle, though he has a particularly soft spot for the quondam.
"Jakarta provides a spark for my work, perhaps because of its changes and raw energy, and the potential Indonesians take to connect with my piece of work correct abroad, despite their reluctance to step out of their comfort zone, while American viewers might take a while to grasp my concepts," he said. "I am also exploring new ideas, amid them the notion of the bathroom as a meditative infinite where we can get our ideas and inspiration. This contrasts with the long-held belief of the bathroom as a defiled place that is all but taboo."
How Patrick intends to convey his concepts or when remains to be seen. Just if his previous works are a measure, they are certainly worth looking forward to. (kes)
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A media practitioner for over ten years in both TV and print. Tunggul Wirajuda institute a niche in the latter, especially as a features writer. He often writes about visual or performing arts, only simply is at habitation in writing about automotive, culinary and picture show, among other things.
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Source: https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2017/08/30/patrick-wowor-breaking-down-barriers-between-art-and-audience.html