Indonesia’s first museum dedicated to modern and contemporary art has opened its doors for public, giving art enthusiasts the chance to view the works of Indonesian and international artists.
The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara (Museum MACAN) holds nearly 800 paintings and sculptures, and aims to provide a world-class gallery to a country starved of quality museum infrastructure. From Andy Warhol’s Portrait of Madame Smith to Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirror Room, the 4,000 square meter museum is set to be a paradise for art lovers.
Exit the 5th floor of Wisma AKR, Kebon Jeruk West Jakarta, you will be greeted by the museum’s modern-minimalist interior design: white walls, big glasses and wooden floor. All paintings and sculptures are displayed in good space, leaving ample room for visitors to stop, admire the works of arts, and get lost in the moment.
For more than 25 years, businessman Haryanto Adikoesoemo has collected more than 800 pieces of art by local artists and foreign artists from various eras. He built this museum as a way to give back to the community as well as a medium for art education.
For its inaugural exhibition, Museum MACAN invites two curators Agung Hujatnika and Charles Esche to collaborate on a project entitled “Art Turns. World Turns”, an exhibition organized on a time chronology.
The exhibition which will last until March 2018 is divided into four categories. The first category is entitled “ Land, Home, People”, focusing on the themes of landscape, hometown, and society from the middle of 19th to early 20th centuries.
“This section looks at the relationship between the colonizer and the colonized, a reflection on how artists shaped the idea of what a beautiful landscape or street scene should look like,” said Agung during the inaugural tour on November 4.
The second part is entitled “Independence and After”. This section showcases the works of Indonesian artists during the independence period. Many of them adapted the theme of revolution, with a strong influence by founding president Sukarno, who was himself fond of revolution-themed painting. In addition to the revolution, the artists also made self-portrait paintings.
The third section, “Struggles Around Form and Content”, exhibits the works of Indonesian artists juxtaposed with foreign artists. Artworks created after 1965 revolved around the narrative of social democracy. This section also shows how the artists were influenced by the mass media.
The last section “Global Soup” is the area that describes the state of art in this current time, featuring the works of world renowned artists such as I Nyoman Masriadi, Ai Wei Wei, Cai Guo-Ciang, James Rosenquist, and others.
With the works of the range of artists from Raden Saleh, Djoko Pekik, Heri Dono, Dullah, Sudjojono, Murakami, Rudi Mantofani, Robert Rauschenberg, Ay Tjoe Christine, to Damien Hirst, Museum MACAN is definitely a feast for the eyes and soul.
For more information about Museum MACAN, visit www.museummacan.org and follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
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