Indonesian Artists in the Limelight at Hong Kong Show

Works by Indonesian artists F.X. Harsono and Tintin Wulia, currently on display in the exhibition 'Erasure' in Hong Kong. (Photos courtesy of Osage Art Foundation)

Two major names in the Indonesian art scene, F.X. Harsono and Tintin Wulia, are featured in “Erasure: From Conceptualism to Abstraction,” an exhibition under way at Hong Kong’s presitigous Osage Art Foundation and the City University of Hong Kong until July 15.

The exhibition is being held as part of Osage’s annual, non-profit initiative Market Forces, an event that uses art to question “value.” Pasts themes have included “Market Forces, Whither Contemporary Art?” and “Market Forces: The Friction of Opposites.” Aside from respected artists, the events also often feature highly regarded guest speakers.

For “Erasure,” Osage has invited speakers including Leeza Ahmady, Kurt Chan, Biljana Ciric, and Indonesian independent curator and writer Enin Supriyanto, as well as respondent Lewis Biggs.

Through “Erasure,” the artists “sets out to question the increasingly over-determined economic interpretation of the value of art and its consequences,” states the event’s press release.

Event curator, respected art historian, writer and curator Charles Merewether says such conditions force “the subject matter of art (to become) more important than its concept or materiality and it becomes reduced to a vehicle for representation rather than a basis for exploring ideas and issues or a way of engaging with the world through the senses.”

The exhibition is also part of the City University of Hong Kong’s 30th anniversary celebratory events.

Bali-born and Brisbane-based artist Tintin Wulia studied at the Berklee College of Music in the US before getting her PHD in art at RMIT, Australia. Known for the visual intrigue of her work, the artist is primarily embraced due to the interactive nature of her installations.

She has exhibited her works in numerous international exhibitions such as the Istanbul Biennale in 2005, Yokohama Triennale in 2005, Jakarta Biennale in 2009, Moscow Biennale in 2011, Gwangju Biennale 2012, and Jogja Biennale in 2013, just to name a few. Her work is part of public and private collections including in the Van Abbemuseum, Singapore Art Museum, Queensland Art Gallery/Gallery of Modern Art, and He Xiangning Art Museum.

Born in 1949 in Blitar, East Java, F.X. Harsono is known as one of the seminal figures within the Indonesian art scene. His politically and socially active pieces, which range from paintings to video art, are known for their powerfully allegorical nature. Since 2005, Harsono has also lectured at the School of Art and Design at Pelita Harapan University.

Aside from F.X. Harson and Tintin Wulia, the event also features works by other Asian artists from Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines and South Korea.