New Genre Butet Calligram

Butet Kartaredjasa, through Melik Ngendong Lali's solo exhibition, presents a new genre of calligram.

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"The Prayer Archives: Visual Devotion (2023-2024)" in the Art Exhibition of Melik Nggendong Lali's work by Butet Kartaredjasa at Building A, National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta, on Thursday (25/4/2024).

Apart from smelling of sarcastic satire, the work Butet Kartaredjasa in the exhibition Melik Nggendong Lali invites its own point of view. Butet is considered to have presented a new genre of calligram. There is a subversion of technology and a back and forth between the consciousness of the body controlling the mind and vice versa.

Entering the exhibition room, visitors are welcomed by a statue of a slim man with hands on his hips. His head is tilted upwards. There is nothing unusual about the anatomy of his body, except for his elongated nose. This reminds us of the story of Pinocchio. When he lied, his nose grew longer.

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On the background of the statue, there is a large calligram with three panels. Each calligram lists the words "Melik Nggendong Lali". These words serve as the title of the statue installation and the three calligrams each measure 306.5 centimeters (cm) x 141.5 cm.

Melik Ngdong Lali has meaning for Butet. When someone has wealth and power, they tend to forget. Especially forgetting the sang paraning dumadi, the origins of the self, to become rich and powerful.

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The installation of the statue "Melik Nggendong Lali" (2024) and the painting "Jelmaan Kesombongan" (2024) are showcased at the Melik Nggendong Lali Fine Arts Exhibition by Butet Kartaredjasa in Building A, National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta, on Thursday (4/25/2024).

The title of the installation work is also the title of Butet's solo exhibition, Melik Nggendong Lali, which was held at Building A National Gallery Indonesia, Jakarta. The exhibition was opened by Franz Magnis-Suseno with curator Asmudjo J Irianto, running from April 26 to May 25 2024.

"Perhaps the statue with a long nose is considered sarcastic. Let the public interpret who this statue belongs to. Through this exhibition, I want to show that I cannot be silent about the latest socio-political developments," said Butet on Tuesday (April 30, 2024).

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Not only the statue, there are still many similar works in the form of two-dimensional art. Not far from the statue, for example, a calligram with the word "Nusantara" is displayed. The word is written repeatedly, forming an image of a long-nosed man like the previous statue. The man's ears are depicted as plugged. Butet titled it "Permanent Deafness".

On the right side wall of the statue, there is an installation artwork titled "Archives of Prayer: Visual Wirid". It displays 100 A3-sized papers, each containing a calligram that Butet called visual wirid or written prayers. Visual wirid was created when she fell ill in 2013.

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Butet Kartaredjasa observed his works at the Melik Nggendong Lali Fine Arts Exhibition at Building A, Indonesian National Gallery, Jakarta, on Thursday (25/4/2024).

Prayer for healing

Initially, Butet often wrote her name, Bambang Ekoloyo Butet Kartaredjasa. She repeatedly wrote it on a lined A4 paper. Butet's visual wirid was influenced by the writings she often saw from personnel of the Sanggar Bambu art group in Yogyakarta. For Butet, the visual wirid became her prayer for healing and it succeeded. Butet recovered her health and continued to work in the world of theater and visual arts.

There is a national event that prompted him to create visual wirid again. He recalls that it happened on March 5, 2022 when the acronym IKN, originally standing for National Capital City, was changed to Nusantara Capital City. "The name change reminded me of Arkand Bodhana (1971-2020), who once proposed changing the name of Indonesia to Nusantara," said Butet.

Butet has resumed her visual wirid with a larger paper size, A3. The paper is also of better quality, imported paper specifically for professional sketches or art. The larger paper is intended to provide more space for a wider empty area. Every time she wants to make a visual wirid, Butet first makes a sketch. She also tries to discipline herself, not stopping for 90 nights to draw with her pen on the paper.

Since then, he has been diligently practicing one round of visual prayers for 90 days. By 2023, there have been 10 rounds, making at least 900 sheets of visual prayers. He once showcased his visual prayer works in Artjog.

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Melik Nggendong Lali Fine Art Exhibition by Butet Kartaredjasa at Building A, National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta, Thursday (25/4/2024).

"When I saw stacks of visual wirid papers several times, it felt like I received a big gift from myself. I remember in May 2023, my artistic instincts were moved to put my visual wirid onto a larger canvas," said Butet.

She utilizes digital printing technology to enlarge and transfer her visual wirid writings onto canvas. Butet also creates a narrative for each visual wirid that is transferred onto the large canvas. She even creates contemporary narratives. To strengthen the narrative, Butet adds colored paint like creating an abstract painting on the canvas that contains the digital printed visual wirid.

The theme of Nusantara is the dominant narrative. Still at the forefront of the exhibition room, Butet displays four copper and iron-printed caligrams. They are titled "Lingkaran Nusantara," "Lingkaran Nusantara 2," "Kesuburan Nusantara 1," and "Kesuburan 2."

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It seems that Butet wants to showcase the diversity of exhibition ideas. From personal items such as a visual prayer archive, resin sculptures, and paintings on canvas with contemporary social and political themes. There are also prints of copper and iron sheets and thin sculptures with Nusantara-themed calligrams. Butet also painted clowns using ceramic media, titled "Koalisi Indonesia Mundur".

Even though many works have a satirical tone, Butet is not spreading hatred. This can be seen from the calligram on the canvas measuring 106 cm x 206 cm that reads Uaassuwoookk, the title is "Expressions of Love". Through this work, Butet actually wants to express love in his own way.

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The artwork "Ungkapan Cinta" (2023) by Butet Kartaredjasa was featured in a solo exhibition titled "Melik Nggendong Lali" at the National Gallery of Indonesia in Jakarta. The exhibition took place from April 26 to May 25, 2024.

New genre

Curator Asmudjo mentioned that Butet's works in this exhibition have a new genre. He observed from the perspective of the creation process of visual wirid calligrams as a personal spiritual practice, not intended as a sketch towards the creation of a painting. "In the history and tradition of world art, world-class painters like Picasso or Salvador Dali, as well as almost all painters, make sketches for their paintings. Here, Butet shows a different process," said Asmudjo.

Butet starts from a prayer that is written down, then formed into a calligram. The prayer, which was originally intended for personal healing, spread to public affairs regarding the archipelago. "Let's call the calligram a found object, an object discovered from spiritual practice and ultimately made into a work of contemporary art," added Asmudjo.

In the history and tradition of world art, world-renowned painters such as Picasso or Salvador Dali, as well as almost all painters, create sketches for their paintings. Butet shows a different process.

Next, there are several things that happen, including the media transmutation from paper to canvas using digital printing technology to enlarge paper calligrams. Then, re-composition is done by adding color and building contextual narratives.

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The work "Maju Serempak, Bertengger di Puncak, Sebuah Peringatan" (from left to right) in the Melik Nggendong Lali Fine Arts Exhibition by Butet Kartaredjasa at Building A, National Gallery of Indonesia, Jakarta, on Thursday (25/4/2024).