Quarantine Studies : return to the aesthetic of beauty . Solo Exhibition by Zahrah

Solo Exhibition by Zahrah Quarantine Studies : return to the aesthetic of beauty

Setelah menyelesaikan studi di Glasgow School of Art, Zahrah atau sering dipanggil Zazu (Lahir di Bandung 1994) meninggalkan Skotlandia untuk solo travelling sebelum kembali ke Indonesia. Saat itulah ia menemukan dirinya membaca buku-buku filsafat yang kemudian mempengaruhi praktik artistiknya selama lockdown pertama pada tahun 2020. Setelah kembali ke Indonesia dan mengalami pendidikan seni di Skotlandia Ia mendapati dirinya menolak pendidikan seni kontemporer yang menjadi dasar ajaran disekolahnya, disinilah ia mencari bahasa seni yang ia yakini. Dan selama lockdown pertama ia mulai merasa nyaman mengeksplorasi ini yang disajikan di bawah pameran ‘Studi Karantina ‘.

Filosofi seni Zahrah sangat dipengaruhi oleh karya seorang filsuf Inggris Roger Scruton (1944 -2020), yang tulisannya meluas dari estetika hingga filsafat politik. Ia percaya bahwa seni adalah bentuk penting dalam menghadirkan citra kehidupan manusia, sebagai penegasan keyakinan kita melalui pengalaman visual. Bahwa hidup di dunia ini bermakna dan seni menyediakan sarana untuk memulihkan kembali keseimbangan moral dalam diri kita. Dia percaya pada pentingnya keindahan, beauty, sebagai aspek paling dasar dari sifat manusia yang membimbing kita untuk mencapai harmoni dengan orang lain dan dengan diri kita sendiri. Sejak saat itu Zahrah telah terinspirasi untuk membuat lukisan yang memegang nilai-nilai tersebut.

Artist’s Statement Background : After completing my studies at Glasgow School of Art, I left Scotland to travel before returning to Indonesia. It is during that time I found myself indulging in reading books on philosophy and aesthetics which later influenced my artistic practice during the first lockdown in 2020.

After I returned to Indonesia and having experienced art education in Scotland where I felt a strong hostility towards the dominant dogma of contemporary art education, that art should be a form of transgression, it is during the pandemic that I was craving for something more authentic, finding solace in the little things like nature. I began to develop a new language for the art that I believe in. And it is during the first lockdown that I took comfort in exploring this which is presented under this exhibition ‘Quarantine studies’.

I took inspiration from my daily experience walking in early mornings in Dago and my studio setting that is set out in the garden surrounded by tropical vegetation as well as a reminiscent of my time observing and exploring the majestic view of the Scottish Highlands. The paintings titled ‘plant I’, ‘plant II’, and ‘In the garden’ are inspired by my surroundings.

I use various shades of green for my painting, it is due to the clear tranquil quality that this colour green endows which makes it a natural choice of colour theme in my painting. This also resonates with my experience walking in nature during my time in Scotland. It is something that I would hope the viewers can experience as they stand in front of my paintings. Enjoying the inward silence, a contemplative experience of nature.

My latest piece, titled ‘father’ is a study of my father who recently suffered a stroke. Through the experience of spending the majority of my time with him as he requires full care I got to understand him better. The outcome of this painting is a reflection of who he is and our relationship through my lens.

‘Somewhere I have never been’ is a painting that I am yet to explore the possibility of where this may take me to. Inspired by the Austrian artist Egon Schiele’s decorative and stylistic

landscape painting in particular ‘Setting Sun’ (1913), I took his compositional idea and bold outlines by using a slightly raised painting material. The colour green is an introduction to the natural landscape, contrasted with the vibrant pink as a suggestion of an artificial reality, a romantic memory inviting the viewer into a dream-like landscape of their own.

My philosophy for art has been greatly influenced by the work of an English philosopher Roger Scruton (1944 -2020), whose writings extend from aesthetic to political philosophy. He believes that art is a crucial form in presenting the image of a human life, as a confirmation to our convictions through visual experience. That life in this world is meaningful and art provides the means of restoring a moral equilibrium in ourselves. He believes in the importance of beauty as the most basic aspect of human nature which guides us to find this world a place of belonging coming to rest in harmony with others and with ourselves. I have been inspired ever since to create paintings that hold these values.

I hope this exhibition can give limitless possibilities of interpretation to the viewers that life is a journey worth documenting and celebrating. I hope it can evoke an emotional response, that even in the darkest time we can look at our surroundings to find beauty and a home in this world. And through beauty may we find consolation in sorrow and affirmation in joy.

(Zahrah , August 2021)

WORKS

Father, 2021 (57x57cm) acrylic, oil, oil pastel, charcoal on canvas

‘Where nature preached the truth of the Spirit’ 2020-2021(46x64cm) acrylic on canvas

‘Evergreen Yestereve’ 2021 (46x64cm) acrylic on canvas

In the Garden, 2021 (51x61cm) acrylic, oil paint, oil pastel on canvas

Plant I, 2020 (83x83cm) charcoal, acrylic, oil paint and oil pastel on canvas

Plant II, 2020 (78x78cm) acrylic, oil paint, oil pastel on canvas

Colour studies (5 pieces 20x20cm) acrylic, white plaster and oil on canvas

Somewhere I have never been, 2021 (58x58cm) acrylic, white plaster, oil on canvas

Untitled, 2021 (60x80cm) acrylic, oil, oil pastel on canvas

Exhibition Views