Liku, Laku – Cosmic Pavement of Nyoman Dharmawan
25 Desember 2023
We’re delighted to present the solo exhibition Liku, Laku; Cosmic Pavement of Nyoman Darmawan. Darmawan invites viewers into a captivating, artistically mind-liberating experience. This exhibition captures Nyoman’s artistic presence, firmly rooted in Balinese culture, and emphasizes his belief in tradition’s ongoing evolution. He challenges the conventional binary opposition – where tradition is static and modernity is dynamic – underscoring the potential for a cohesive existence between the two and highlighting art’s capacity for authentic expression within a tradition-rich community while engaging meaningfully in the pluralistic contemporary art scene.
Darmawan’s approach to art mirrors his life’s autobiographical narration; his canvas is akin to a diary. His artworks capture vivid moments of emotion, articulating his artistic thoughts on substantial and smaller canvasses against the cosmic-like space he creates. This symbolic representation of space and time summarises his “Cosmic Pavement,” and critically deconstructs the conventional notion of the male gaze.
Underlying this exhibition’s core is Darmawan’s affirmation that Balinese aesthetic development and narratives concerning body, sexuality, spirituality, and collective life are as vital to the evolution of global art as any other influence. “Liku, Laku; Cosmic Pavement of Nyoman Darmawan” navigates the “polycentric aesthetics” space to challenge dominant gaze theories. It champions the robust and layered aesthetics that exist beyond the European paradigm and encourages open-ended dialogues in visual culture.
Nyoman, like many contemporary Balinese artists of his generation, comes from a background where the knowledge of art was acquired through a collision of traditional communal learning and modern academic experiences. This creates an intriguing complexity that his artwork encapsulates, and understanding his creative process becomes a fascinating exercise. Nyoman’s self-awareness allows him to position himself as the subject in this dynamic context. As a Balinese artist of the present day, he fluently navigates the intersection of academic and communal knowledge. This knowledge, absorbed through varied experiences, becomes tacit in nature, subtly manifesting in his artworks. His creations thus serve as a unique reflection of the junction of traditional and contemporary artistic knowledge he operates within. They provide a tantalizing look into a shifting Balinese art landscape, which is increasingly characterized by the convergence of myriad influences.
Darmawan’s approach to art mirrors his life’s autobiographical narration; his canvas is akin to a diary. His artworks capture crisp moments of emotion, articulating his artistic thoughts on substantial and smaller canvasses against the cosmic-like space he creates. This symbolic representation of space and time summarises his “Cosmic Pavement,” and critically deconstructs the conventional notion of the male gaze.
