The Way of Grace | Roby Dwi Antono

INTRODUCTION TEXT

Roby Dwi Antono

Event Bazaar Art, Jakarta, 27-30 July 2012

You are new to the Roby Dwi Antono's work? For me, Roby is an extraordinary talented young man. Comes from Ambarawa, Central Java, and he is only 22 years old (born in1990), but Roby can display his maximum ability on drawing techniques. In his daily lives, Roby is busy with his profession as an illustrator and graphic designer in Yogyakarta. Roby do not have an educational background in academy level or even in the art college. His painting skills come naturally since he was a child. Then he deepened during his study in SMK (Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan) Negeri Grafika (Central Java), majoring in Graphic Design. He also learns a lot and observes anyone's works which later inspired him. One of them is Mark Ryden (American artist known from his pop surrealism style) who still become his favorite artist till now; also drawings by Rachel Goodyear which are simple but meaningful, according to Roby. Roby still do not have a great exhibition track record in  his curriculum vitae. However, recently his works are able to penetrate the Elle Magazine and online media sites Juxtapoz Magazine.

At this time presentation, Roby brought us into imagination world more deeply. His last solo exhibition in Tirana Artspace, New York (April 2012) entitled 'Imajinasi', has made him more mature in working. Feedback which is obtained in his first solo exhibition, makes him think again and encourage him to learn more intensively. Roby deliberately wants to deepen his technical concept for the presentation at this time. We can enjoy the techniques from 5 acrylic works which are worked on canvas and 7 works on paper drawing. He works everything on more or less in the last 2 months. Professional background made ​​him discipline in doing his works, so no doubt that Roby can produce much deeper concept works. He is also very adaptable to response other forms of collaboration in the work. So, many Roby's illustrations works using digital techniques can be found in cyberspace; such as its relationship with fashion or music.

Concerning to the concept of canvas work, he is still struggling with his wild imagination. This time, Roby takes the theme of human life; start from birth, babies, grow up, until death. We can see and read his five canvas works that will be a series of the journey of human life . More or less, his drawing works will also describe the same theme. Roby wants to re-question what is the purpose of human is created? At this time, how is human function as the guardian to the universe? And what we should do as human to seek the straight path toward the eventual goal, which is heaven.

This time, new figures appear in Roby's works. Still with his peculiarities, Roby also includes a lot of messages and symbols in his work. If we observe, there are many symbols that Roby wants to convey to his audience. Such as, there is a picture of a pine forest, for him pine forest symbolizes immortality. Or small dinosaurs which implies the early of living in the world. Roby even deliberately refers to a symbol dictionary when he wants to inscibe the paint on the canvas. He learns it carefully, what the appropriate symbols that he wnts to combined in his works composition.  And he wants his work can be read universally, so that the selection of symbols will be major consideration for him.

Concerning to the selection of muted colors but still fresh, Roby do not deny that he refers to the works of Mark Ryden, especially a work entitled 'California Brown Bear'. The painting is very inspired him for color selection character. Landscape picture, such as a bed of pine forests, lakes and mountains of ice which are he likes much and then almost always look for the peculiarities of Roby's works. On the previous solo exhibitions, Roby introduces his alter-ego through the rabbit figures, which he named Kinci. Together with Kinci, which he regarded as a highly symbolic art, sensitivity to beauty, comfort and love to the confidential things; sometimes rabbit is also suggested as a sad, fool animal, but still funny. Rabbits hate the decision, violence, criticism and something untidy. In this theme, Roby was still 'invited' Kinci to greet his audience although it is not as intensive as the first. For approximately 9 months exploring Kinci, Roby wants to lose it  slowly. Roby wants to show his working process to the different, new things. though still with a pop surrealism style which is satire or creepy, but also sweet and adorable. As his audience are suggested, Dwi Antono Roby has a very Childish quality to his work, brining in a rugged sort of Alice in Wonderland, Storybook style. Most of his Illustrations are of bunny rabbits That resemble the old Peter Rabbit Drawings in their simplicity and sweetness. (Source: http://d2gapparel.com/2012/fashion-illustration-2/art-attack-illustrator-roby-dwi- Antono /).

Nunuk Ambarwati

TULISAN PENGANTAR
ROBY DWI ANTONO
Event Bazaar Art, Jakarta,  27-30 Juli 2012

Anda baru mengenal karya Roby Dwi Antono? Bagi saya, Roby adalah sosok muda yang memiliki talenta luar biasa. Asal Ambarawa, Jawa Tengah, usianya baru 22 tahun (kelahiran 1990) namun Roby mampu menampilkan kemampuan teknik drawingnya dengan maksimal.  Sehari-hari ia disibukkan dengan profesinya sebagai illustrator dan desainer grafis di kota Yogyakarta. Roby memang belum pernah mengenyam pendidikan selevel akademi bahkan perguruan tinggi seni. Keahlian melukisnya ia dapat secara alami sejak ia kecil. Kemudian ia perdalam semasa sekolah menengah di SMK (Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan) Negeri Grafika (JawaTengah), jurusan Desain Grafis. Ia juga banyak belajar dan mengamati karya-karya siapa pun yang kemudian menginspirasinya. Salah satunya adalah Mark Ryden (seniman asal Amerika yang dikenal dengan aliran pop surealisme) masih menjadi favoritnya hingga kini; juga drawing-drawing karya Rachel Goodyear yang menurut Roby sederhana namun sarat makna. Catatan jam terbang pameran Roby pun belum banyak di dalam curriculum vitaenya. Namun, jangan salah, karya-karyanya mampu menembus Elle Magazine dan situs media online Juxtapoz Magazine baru-baru ini.

Pada presentasinya kali ini, Roby membawa kita masuk ke dalam alam imajinasi yang lebih dalam. Pameran tunggal terakhirnya di Tirana Artspace, Yogyakarta (April 2012) bertajuk ‘Imajinasi’ membuatnya lebih matang dalam berkarya. Feedback yang singgah pada dirinya saat pameran tunggal pertamanya tersebut, membuatnya berpikir ulang dan menyemangatinya untuk belajar lebih intens. Roby sengaja memperdalam teknik mau pun konsep untuk presentasinya kali ini. Teknik yang ia perdalam bisa kita nikmati dari 5 karya acrylic di atas kanvasnya dan 7 karya drawing di atas kertas.  Ia garap semuanya kurang lebih dalam 2 bulan terakhir ini. Latar belakang profesinya membuatnya disiplin dalam mengerjakan karya, sehingga tak disangsikan dapat menghasilkan karya-karya dengan konsep yang jauh lebih matang. Ia juga sangat adaptif merespon bentuk-bentuk kolaborasi dalam berkarya, sehingga banyak karya-karya ilustrasi Roby dengan teknik digital yang bisa kita jumpai di dunia maya. Seperti persinggungannya dengan dunia fashion atau pun musik.

Perihal konsep karya kanvasnya, ia masih berkutat dengan keliaran imajinasinya. Kali ini, Roby mengambil tema proses kehidupan manusia, mulai dari kelahiran, bayi, menjadi dewasa, hingga kematian. Kita bisa melihat dan membaca 5 karya kanvasnya akan menjadi seri perjalanan kehidupan manusia tersebut. Sementara karya drawingnya, akan menggambarkan hal yang kurang lebih bertema sama. Roby ingin mempertanyakan kembali apa tujuan manusia diciptakan? Bagaimana fungsi manusia saat ini sebagai khalifah yang menjaga alam semesta? Dan bagaimana seharusnya kita sebagai manusia mencari jalan yang lurus dan menuju tujuan akhirnya, yakni surga.

Pada karya-karyanya saat ini, tampak sosok-sosok baru muncul. Masih dengan kekhasan dia, Roby juga banyak menyertakan pesan dan simbol-simbol dalam karyanya. Jika kita amati, ada banyak simbol yang ingin Roby sampaikan kepada penikmat karyanya. Misal terdapat gambaran hutan pinus, baginya hutan pinus menyimbolkan keabadian. Atau dinosaurus-dinosaurus kecil dalam karyanya tersebut menyiratkan awal kehidupan di dunia. Roby bahkan sengaja mengacu pada sebuah buku kamus tentang simbol ketika ia hendak menggoreskan catnya di atas kanvas. Ia mempelajari dengan seksama, gambaran simbol seperti apa yang cocok untuk dia letakkan dalam komposisi karyanya. Dan ia ingin karyanya bisa dibaca secara universal, sehingga pemilihan simbol yang ingin dia cantumkan dalam karyanya merupakan pertimbangan utama baginya.

Perihal pemilihan warna-warna yang kalem tapi tetap terkesan segar, Roby memang tidak menyangkal bahwa ia mengacu pada karya-karya Mark Ryden, khususnya karya yang berjudul ‘California Brown Bear’. Lukisan tersebut yang sangat menginspirasinya untuk karakter pemilihan warna. Gambaran landscape seperti hamparan hutan pinus, danau dan gunung es sangat ia sukai dan kemudian hampir selalu mencari ciri khas karya-karya Roby.

Pada pameran tunggal sebelumnya, Roby memperkenalkan alter-egonya melalui figur binatang kelinci, yang ia namai Kinci. Bersama Kinci, yang ia anggap sebagai sosok yang menyimbolkan kesenian, sensitif terhadap keindahan, kenyamanan dan menyukai hal-hal yang bersifat rahasia; kelinci juga kadang dikesankan sebagai binatang yang murung atau masa bodoh, namun tetap lucu. Kelinci membenci keputusan, kekerasan, kritik dan ketidak-rapian.Pada tema ini, Roby pun masih ‘mengajak’ Kinci untuk menyapa audiencenya meski tak seintens dulu. Selama kurang lebih 9 bulan mengeksplorasi Kinci, Roby ingin perlahan-lahan menyurutkannya. Roby ingin menampilkan proses berkaryanya dengan hal yang berbeda dan baru, meski masih dengan style pop surealis yang terkesan satir atau menyeramkan tapi juga manis dan menggemaskan. Seperti dikesankan seorang penikmat karyanya, Roby Dwi Antono has a very childish quality to his work, brining in a sort of rugged Alice in Wonderland, storybook style. Most of his illustrations are of bunny rabbits that resemble the old Peter Rabbit illustrations in their simplicity and sweetness.( http://d2gapparel.com/2012/fashion-illustration-2/art-attack-illustrator-roby-dwi-antono/).

Nunuk Ambarwati

Art as Child’s Play, Dolls Included

by Jenny March, July 12, 2012

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/arts/art-as-childs-play-dolls-included/529768

Invincible. Powerful. Fast. There’s about a million different ways to describe Superman. 

But cute? 

“It’s so humorous,” exclaimed Jeong-ok Jeon as she admired the blue-suited figure. “Too small, too cute.” 

Well perhaps those adjectives were, in fact, correct, seeing as she wasn’t describing Superman, but rather “Super-MON” — a six-inch-tall female version of the famous superhero. 

“Super-MON” is one of dozens of pieces included in “Imaginary World: Childishly Inspired,” a contemporary art exhibition on display this month at Plaza Senayan in South Jakarta. The show, which is sponsored by Art Sidharta, features installation and sculptural work from three Yogyakarta-based artists. 

Jeong-ok, the exhibit’s curator, said “Imaginary World” aimed to blur the lines of childhood, explaining that there’s no definitive boundary between youth and adulthood. 

“As I get older, if I do something naughty or childish, people think that’s not really proper. Adults have to behave in a certain way, but nobody really says why,” Jeong-ok said. “As I was putting together this exhibition, I realized that it could make us question that.” 

But while the official mission may be to blur the lines between two of life’s biggest chapters, a closer look at the work reveals each artist’s relationship with the idea of childhood itself. 

For thedeoMIXBLOOD, a man and woman who together create assemblages, youth can only be conceptualized in terms of their personal memories, which are apparently painful. According to Jeong-ok, the duo experienced some traumatic events that are reflected in their grotesque creations. 

Made out of recycled doll limbs and figurine heads, pieces like “Dasamuka” resemble toys in terms of shape and stature. But the discordant combinations create a sinister quality, as if they were designed in a toy shop gone wrong. As if to heighten the confusion, “Dasamuka’s” main head — which protrudes from five others — is a smiling clown, a seemingly happy character that is the source of so many children’s nightmares. 

“Our childhood memories are not always happy,” Jeong-ok reiterated while examining the piece. “Sometimes we feel very scared about things, and those things are stuck in our minds.” 

Whereas thedeoMIXBLOOD can’t seem to escape their own demons, Tina Wahyuningsih explores youth with the help of her 2-year-old daughter. Using mostly fabric, she stitches together whimsical dolls that would be at home in any infant’s nursery. 

In work such as “Flying Elephants,” Tina re-creates the world through her daughter’s eyes — an imaginative place where animals fly, rabbits speak and anything is still possible. Whether these pieces are influenced by her daughter’s own musings or the fairy tales that they read together, it’s clear that Tina looks at childhood with a sense of wonderment. 

While these first two artists seem to interpret youth through their own experiences, Rennie “Emonk” Augustine may be the only one to consider a childhood beyond her own. Inspired by well-known superheroes and comics, Emonk produces both sculptures and felt patchwork that combines her own persona with that of the character. As with “Super-MON,” Emonk creates a new alter-ego in all of her pieces. “She’s not just the creator creating art,” Jeong-ok said. “I think she’s a part of her art work by putting in her own personal story lines.” 

Perhaps these pieces reflect Emonk’s inability to leave her own childhood behind. Or maybe they’re asking us to not loose touch with our inner child. Whatever the case may be, they certainly come the closest to begging Jeong-ok’s original question — what exactly is the difference between childhood and adulthood? A particular age? A certain moment? 

According to these three artists, there is no definite answer. But if you’d like to try and determine that for yourself, the work will be on display in South Jakarta until Sunday.

Imaginary World 
Until Sunday, July 15
Plaza Senayan, Jl. Asia Afrika 
South Jakarta

NAFA’S Residensi Showcase Cycle One 2012 | Thursday July 12th, 7.30 PM

A Group Exhibition by
Anisa Abdullah
Anissa Aziz feat. Tina Wahyuningsih
Hirzaq Harris
Imam Santoso
Mulyo Gunarso
Shahrul Hisham Ahmad Tarmizi

At Independent Art-Space & Management | I AM
Jalan Nagan Lor 25 Yogyakarta

Officiated by Farah Wardani
Music Performance by Rattlesnake
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A Breathing Voice of South East Asia
By Anis Azlinda Abdul Ghani

NAFA’S Residency was established in January 2012; born with a grand intent to discover a Southeast Asian voice of art. There is much richness in the diverse culture of Southeast Asia, and it is not surprising that its layers of depth could leave one marveled and overwhelmed at the same time.

Since January, NAFA’S has housed four Malaysian and two Indonesian emerging artists, whom had spent varying period at the residency – each between one, three and six months. Although their presence there may be concurrent, they each work independently.

Interestingly though, all works featured at this First Cycle Exhibition centers around themes of personal reflections.

In Shahrul Hisham's works, artist is portrayed a traveler in continuous search of new knowledge. Yet he can never deny his origin and identity thus will still be a Malay and a Muslim wherever in the world he may be.

Hirzaq Harris showed another side of Muslims he finds to be common these days: disgusted by the haram pigs yet gladly opt to ignore other haram aspects in life. Oblivion is unacceptable in lives of Muslims. Rather, a life in search of truth should prevail, one that strives to put halal over haram with no excuses. The noblest of intentions could still pave the route to hell.

Anisa Abdullah chose to take her viewers along through her life adventures. She painted snapshots from her stint in the city from her point of view. Yet her quest is one that we can all relate to; of dreams and ambitions and decisions. She warns us though, to never be too rushed and uptight in our own. And to remember to have a breather to enjoy our life surroundings at the same time.

Along similar lines, Anissa Abdul Aziz's installation that is currently in Galeri Chandan @ Publika, Kuala Lumpur, was derived from the idea of tracing her artistic journey. Anissa created and manipulated the overlapping baby cloth as a metaphor to represent her newness, freshness and immaturity in the industry. The artwork is an imagination with stuffed fabric suspended from nowhere. To her, the gaps between the pieces is as important as the connection, as when viewed in totality, is a mixture of logic and intuition. Her installation for this exhibition will be a continuation from the one that is currently being exhibited in Kuala Lumpur.

Mulyo Gunarso reflected on the negative effects of rapid industrialisation and the lack of control in logging and forestry industry. The impacts not only affect humans but also flora and fauna around us. Should we continue at this pace with little intent to preserve, balance and regenerate, certainly future generations would not carry the same memory of the world as we do.

Imam Santoso's paintings are a consistent reflection of himself; he communicates through them. He includes symbols from his daily life and repeats them in various paintings. He is a symbol of contradiction and is expressive about it. He painted sekaten (fun fair) yet without the usual crowd and noise. He painted the traditional keraton and wonders if teenagers these days would be interested to preserve this iconic culture of the city, or be more consumed by urbanisation and pop culture. His works are vivid yet adaptive, real yet imaginative.

The outcome of the residency hopefully extends beyond better-developed artists, but will also elevate awareness and appreciation of art in the region. Better understanding of our differences and similarities would certainly increase tolerance, empathy and interest for one another, which in turn could only impact all of us positively. May the efforts at NAFA’S encourage others to do the same thus opening more doors of other potential collaborations in the future for continuous evolution of the art industry.

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NAFA’S Residensi
Jalan Ngadisuryan No 7 Patehan
Yogyakarta 55133
T/F +62 274 379 054
E nafasresidency@gmail.com
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CP Nunuk Ambarwati 0818 2770 73 | Icha 0815 7871 3748

Royal Ambarrukmo Pendopo Activities

IMAGINARY WORLD: CHILDISHLY INSPIRED

Artists: Tina Wahyuningsih, thedeoMIXBLOOD, Rennie ‘Emonk’ Agustine

Curated by Jeong-ok Jeon

Artist management by Nunuk Ambarwati

June 30 ~ July 15, 2012

ART Temporary Space

Plaza Senayan, ground level (by main entrance)

Jalan Asia Afrika No 8, Jakarta Selatan

Sensibility of kids, fantasy of adults

An American movie, Tooth Fairy, tells a story about an adult, Derek Thompson, who is unyielding to childish fantasy. He particularly tries to squash the tooth fairy myth: that when a child puts their fallen tooth under a pillow, the tooth fairy visits and exchanges the lost tooth for a dollar. For children, tooth fairies are heroes, providing comfort from fear of losing a tooth, and the promise of growing a new healthy one. But for Derek, this fantasy figure that lives in an imaginary world promotes a silly custom and encourages a false belief to those should be ‘growing up’.

In typical Disney fashion and morality, Derek’s lack of wonder is novelly punished when he is sentence to be an actual tooth fairy for a fortnight. His subsequent change of heart brings to light the impasse between what is ‘childish’ and what is ‘grown-up’, and raises some interesting questions relating to the current exhibition Imaginary World: Childishly Inspired.

Imaginary World: Childishly Inspired features the work of three artists based in Jogjakarta who share an interest in exploring their vision of a fairy-tale-like world full of magic and fantasy. Using childhood memories and dreams as their pivotal concept, the artists, Tina Wahyuningsih, thedeoMIXBLOOD, and Rennie ‘Emonk’ Agustine suggest that we contemplate what it means to be an adult and what draws a boundary between children and adults. Unlike Derek, the artists affirm that childhood fantasy is still alive in the hearts of adults, and more importantly it is critical in the process of creation.

Tina creates her imaginary world where surrealistic creatures and personified animals come to play together. In her world, we find elephants are flying in the sky and a bunny rabbit becomes the next supermodel. Looking at her imaginary creatures, we become a part of a whimsical story where anything is possible. As a mother of a two year old girl, Tina also often creates characters that are family members in her works. Mother House for instance shows that her creativity cannot be separated from her motherhood and symbolizes her domestic responsibility as a wife and care-giver.

While Tina’s imaginary world is illustrated in fictional narratives, the works of thedeoMIXBLOOD -- a project duo consisting Dila and Otong -- stand as individual sculptures. Inspired by Graffiti and Pop Art and influenced by childhood traumatic events, thedeoMIXBLOOD creates collages using toys, Barbie dolls, Wayang puppets, fabrics, batiks, magazines, and beads. By taking parts from one context or medium and piecing them together into another, their sculptures become akin to the hybrid, grotesque, yet fantastic mythical characters found in fantasy movies. thedeoMIXBLOOD is certainly gifted in embodying the indescribable into a work of art. 

Emonk extends her creation of an imaginary world further by being both creator and creation in her series ‘MON’s world. Borrowing from many superhero characters in various famous comics, Emonk creates a new set of superheroes. What is interesting in her superhero series is that Emonk re-titles them by combining their original name and her own. Thus, her alter ego comes to a life as Super-mon (Superman), Bat-mon (Batman), Wonder Wo-Mon (Wonder Woman) and Ultra-Mon (Ultraman). Through her works Emonk tries to send an important message: we can be anything in our life and whatever we choose to be, we become the main performer.

In our constantly busy contemporary lives filled with “adult” responsibilities, it is ever-more important for us to search beyond the surface. The super-power of this exhibition is its ability to recall our inner child’s sensibilities, providing a momentary escape from the mundane as we enjoy the experience of playing and playfulness within the art. After all, the fantastical can bring joy and stretch our imaginations, and could even bring us closer to our deeper selves if we just allow it.

Jeong-ok Jeon (Curator)