Tri Hita Karana Catalogue

Chapter 11: TRI HITA KARANA

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Catalogue for ‘Tri Hita Karana’

Featuring Fraksi Epos, Bagus Ari Maruta, Eka Sudarma Putra, Surya Subratha, I Gede Sukarya 11 Nov 2022 - 12 Nov 2022 at Museum Pasifika, Nusa Dua.

Curated by Cakravala

Text by Adella Bahar

Published by Issuu Catalogue Design by Brina Paska

Digital Catalogue

About Cakravala

Cakravala is a digital platform showcas ing the works of new and emerging artists. Holding solo and group exhibitions, the plat form highlights Indonesia’s diverse art and culture scene by representing it through a contemporary narrative. The platform high lights Indonesia’s diverse art and culture scene by representing it through a contem porary narrative.

No different than a physical gallery, we aim to traverse the offline to an enriching online experience with a means to nurture the connection between you and our artists, without being restricted by the absence of physical space.

Defining Cakravala

Cakravala is derived from the Indonesian word ‘Cakrawala’ which translates to ‘the horizon’. The horizon is defined as the line where the surface of the earth and the sky appear to meet - a sight of a line that divides two substances. Cakravala teaches the notion of looking at things from more than a one-dimensional perspective and raising curiosity toward other worlds. Cakravala is the horizon through which people can ac cess and experience a heterogeneity space, making art accessible for younger genera tions and beyond.

Curatorial Statement

The Balinese philosophy of Tri Hita Karana is formed by three compo nents of life that bring harmony to our existence - Parahyangan, which is our relationship with God, Pawongan our relationship with fellow humans, and Palemahan, our relationship with the natural world. These teachings have brought hope to the island and brought us closer together, finding ways to cope and adjust to come out of the pandem ic stronger than ever.

Collaborating with Bali-based collec tive Fraksi Epos, this exhibition brings together emerging artists from different disciplines who explore all the elements that make up Tri Hita Karana. Drawing on personal experiences and shared knowledge passed down from Balinese teachings, each artist uses art to foster a stronger sense of connection, recon ciliation and renewal that can be shared between people from different cultures and backgrounds.

Fraksi Epos

About Fraksi Epos

Fraksi Epos is a loose collective run by Bali-based youths from all around Indone sia. Earlier this year, they worked together to create a cultural event that was held for two months involving as much as 100 artists from different collectives, disciplines and backgrounds, including six galleries and a number of performance spaces. The event showcased a range of music perfor mances, art exhibitions, theatre, concep tual performances, workshops and discus sions. We aimed to bridge artist working with different disciplines to create unique and exciting experiences.

MISS-BAR by Fraksi Epos

Humans are adaptive beings. What was evident due to the effects of the pandemic is the change of activities in Tohpati-Pe natih streets. Parking lots that were once overnight stations for buses transformed into what we call angkringan – food stalls by the streets that are only open at night. Angkringan holds a number of characteris tics: affordable food prices, mats for cus tomers to sit and eat, live music every night where some customers would contribute songs, and most importantly — carts dis playing a wide range of food from light food to heavy.

This phenomena quickly spread into the streets of Denpasar, including Mahendra

data, an area not far from our workplace. Once in a while, we would venture there to experience the angkringan and indulge ourselves in the colourful flavours of our native dishes, embracing change and savouring an unexpected moment in time.

Observing city life — MISS-BAR reminds us of the ways different societies persevere through difficult times by forming strate gies to maintain the human cycle. Through adaptation, history has proven that we are beings who are capable of facing change in various environments and circumstanc es.

Bagus Ari Maruta

I Gusti Agung Bagus Ari Maruta (b.1991) is an Ubud-based artist who graduated from the Indonesian Art Institute of Yog yakarta in 2014. Exploring new sceneries to inspire his work by, Bagus’ creative process involves riding through the streets of Bali as he surveys through vil lages and takes note of everything he en counters. This sense of closeness to his social environment encourages the artist to express his experiences through colour in which he calls his series the dilemma of joy. Working with this concept, his paint ings capture the surrounding atmosphere

of Bali and our relationship with it as a form of admiration and curiosity towards his own culture.

Bagus won the best painting award at the Faculty of Fine Art, ISI Yogyakarta, was a finalist at the Nusantara Fine Art Exhibi tion in 2011 and 2015, and became one of the 20 finalists at the REDBASE Young Artist Award 2016.

Eternal Love (2021)

Bagus Ari Maruta Acrylic, Oil Marker on Canvas 140 cm x 170 cm 40,000,000 IDR

Eka Sudarma Putra

Eka Sudarma Putra (b.1988) is originally a tattoo artist from Sanur, Bali who start ed his career as a graphic designer for international fashion brands. Venturing into the world of painting, his works are composed of bold lines which remain in black and white, illustrating the Balinese concept of dualism, balance and the art of opposites known as Rwa Bhineda.

Eko portrays the intimate moments in his life to capture the ordinariness and ex traordinariness of everyday experiences, reminding us that our journeys continue through all our losses and our gains.

The artist’s recent solo shows include ‘Trip in Grey’ at Crate Gallery, Canggu, and ‘Grey Trip’ at Purga Gallery, Ubud.

Surya Subratha

Surya Subratha (b.1995) is an emerging artist from Bali whose work is influenced by the stories of his personal realities. Pro cessing various mediums to form dimen sions or flat visual compositions, he creates new spaces of consciousness as an explo ration into our social phenomenas. In this exhibition, the artist presents us with the reality of an unfavourable situation and the ways we can welcome hope and acceptance in the midst of helplessness. He overwrites his characters with paint in spontaneity, forming layers of figures on canvas without stretching it over wooden wedges as an effort to discover new ideals and flexibility within his work.

Surya won the Titian Prize at Titian Art Space, Ubud in 2020 and was a finalist at the UOB painting of the year in 2021. His works were recently showcased at Art Ja karta and ‘The Wounds That No One Can See’ exhibition at Artotel, Sanur.

Bad Season (2021)

Surya Subratha Acrylic, Spray Paint on Canvas 150 cm x 97 cm 13,000,000 IDR

Body Reflection #2 (2021)

Surya Subratha Acrylic on Canvas 144 cm x 92 cm 13,000,000 IDR

I Gede Sukarya

Gunung (2022)

I Gede Sukarya Cow Skin and Rattan 200 cm x 75 cm 12,000,000 IDR

I Gede Sukarya (b.1995) is an artist from Buleleng whose art is inspired by the Balinese cultural heritage of Seni Tatah, an ancient art often found in the tradi tional costumes of Barong, Rangda, and Wayang. Using cow skin, he converts costumery art into fine art by creating forms that embody ornaments. The de tails in his work are a closer look into the reality of our lives, transforming its

surrounding space into a place of won der — sparking an illusory of imagination and experience. In Sukarya’s own inter pretation, the series ‘Gunung’ is inspired by ‘Kayonan’, a traditional puppet show known as the Wayang. It is a utopian scene composed of mountains, symbol ising earth as a place where all its beings live in harmony.

This year, the artist had a solo exhibition ‘Skin and Shadow’ at Studio Gelom bang Batuan and recently showcased his works at Ubud Print Fair, Titik Dua, Ubud, as well as Oikumene at IndieArt House, Yogyakarta.