Srihadi Soedarsono, A Note About Memory

Putu Fajar Arcana

· 7 minutes read

At the age of 88, Srihadi Soedarsono\'s face remains fresh. He seems to always get good news from various places. His small body can move with agility in front of large canvases in his beautiful studio in the city of Bandung. His enthusiasm in painting at his old age for him is a vitamin for his soul, which encourages him to pass on a strong personality to the next generation.

It\'s not easy to make an appointment with Srihadi. In recent days, he was not only busy preparing for his solo exhibition next year, but he was also involved in the preparation for the opening of the “Shrida Taste of Ubud”. At last, the restaurant with an art concept was opened on June 29, beginning with a discussion about culture. The name Shrida was taken from the nickname of Srihadi Soedarsono and Siti Faida, his wife, who is now 77 years old.

Srihadi really wanted to leave a trail of art at the location of his painting studio in the Monkey Forest area of Ubud, Bali. In the 1980s, he built a studio on 2,200 square meters of land. The wooden two-story building by a Balinese undagi (architect) in a short time attracted the attention of foreign artists. Many artists from the Netherlands and Singapore stayed and painted there. Some well-known artists, such as Peter Dittmar from Germany, often came and stayed overnight. In Ubud, Srihadi became acquainted with Rudolf Bonnet, a Dutch painter who founded the Museum of Puri Lukisan Ubud.

The decision to build a studio in Ubud came after a long journey. As a student of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), in the 1950s Srihadi became acquainted with a Dutch painter named Arie Smit. Before settling in Bali, Arie lived in Bandung. He advised Srihadi to meet James Pandy, the owner of Art Gallery Pandy on Sindhu Beach, Sanur. This was the first art gallery in the Sanur area.

Long story short, said Srihadi, Pandy wanted him to become an administrator of the art business in his virtual gallery. Therefore, Pandy often invited Srihadi to shop for art in the areas of Ubud and Karangasem. On that occasion, he recognized the works of Ida Bagus Nyana and I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, the maestros of Bali. Later, Pandy made a special studio for Srihadi in a gallery environment. From the studio Srihadi could freely enjoy the serene views of Sanur Beach.

"In addition to sketching, I recorded everything in memory, especially when Mount Agung was visible in the northeast," Srihadi said in a soft tone on Saturday (22/6/2019), in Bandung. His slow voice showed his thick Javanese accent.

Later, from his subtle comprehension of the Sanur landscape, he produced works (such as the Sanur horizon painting) that were sought after by collectors. The beach horizon and the thin line of horizon in the distance of the Sanur painting presents what appears to be everlasting peace. "If it [my painting] still shows Mount Agung, it is because I memorized it," he said, referring to how he combines pieces of his memory as, at present time, Sanur Beach is surrounded by many hotels, restaurants, shops and galleries with bright lights, making it difficult to see Mount Agung in the distance of the sea horizon.

Surprisingly, Srihadi did not decide to settle in Sanur. He refused Pandy\'s offer to be his successor in managing the gallery because of Ubud. "I see Ubud has charm. Its culture, society and its nature live as one," he said.

In the 1970s he rented a homestay belonging to a Balinese dance maestro Anak Agung Mandra. At Mandra\'s house, Srihadi observed a lot about how the maestro trained the dancers. "He knows which child is suitable for legong or oleg dances. "He even knows when the children are playing on the street," recalled Srihadi.

The inspiration that he drew from Mandra was processed by Srihadi into hundreds of paintings that gave birth to the period of dancer works. "This period even reached 10 years. As usual, I recorded it, both in the form of sketches and memory," he said.

Habits

The habit of memorizing things was carried out by Srihadi when he was a member of the Division IV Information Center for the Army’s BKR/TKR/TNI. During the Japanese occupation, his work involved memorizing by making sketches of all the events that took place in front of him. "At that time I really worked like a journalist. The difference is, I noted it in a sketch, not writing," he recalled.

The memorizing skill has given him discipline in work. If not by sketching, he recorded everything in his memory. Perhaps this is also why his memory is so brilliant even though he is approaching 90 years.

When he had to prepare for his solo exhibition, Srihadi only needed to release the memories of his past journeys. The landscape of the Borobudur temple on the eve of a lunar eclipse or at dusk is stored well in his memory. "Because I once slept awake in Borobudur," he said.

In his open studio, Srihadi was always free to hear the whispering drizzles or the roars of the heavy rain in the distance of the trees. "My husband is disciplined. At 7 a.m. he always comes to the studio every day. Then, later he will have a lunch break and will work again like an office worker," said Siti Farida Nawawi, laughing. Farida is also a painter who graduated from ITB and later taught at the Jakarta Institute of Arts (IKJ) until last year\'s retirement.

Ubud remains the most beautiful place for Srihadi\'s artistry. Now, his former studio is treated as a hotel and restaurant. In fact, the culinary touches that he presents were partly inspired by the harmony of Balinese life with the environment. The touch of Sri Lankan art can be seen in the colors chosen for the menus.

Painting for him is no longer about pursuing beauty or material. For him, painting is the result of self-reflection, which produces artwork that present teachings such as memayu hayuning bawana. Literally this philosophy means: “beautifying the beauty of the world”. In fact, it means to give meaning to the beauty of the universe. "It is the meaning of beauty that gives birth to a good and strong personality," said Srihadi.

When asked about how they stay healthy, Farida said: "Chatting with healthy people and watching quality films.”

"Don\'t think about age," Srihadi said. "Forget it. Just work and focus on maintaining physical [health].”

Regarding physical health, Srihadi takes it seriously. Twice a week he is visited by a fitness instructor. Not far from the studio in the peaceful part of his house, there is a fairly complete set of fitness equipment. This is the key to staying healthy for Srihadi, born in Solo on Dec. 4, 1931, as he has remained fit and productive.

His works that measure more than 4 meters are done with extraordinary diligence and amazing physical and psychological endurance. "Everything must be with roso," he said. Roso means nothing other than the inner feeling, which overcomes physical and psychological boundaries. It is a kind of energy possessed by pedanda (Hindu priests) in Bali. "Yes, that what roso is," Farida said.

I said goodbye after chatting on the terrace of the studio of the happy old couple. Dusk came, bringing peace.

Srihadi Soedarsono

Born: Solo, Dec. 4, 1931

Wife: Siti Farida Soedarsono

Children:

- Tara Farina

- Rati Farini

- Tri Krisnamurti Syailendra

Education:

- Fine Arts, Faculty of Engineering, Bandung Institute of Technology (1959)

- Master of Art, the Ohio State University, US (1962)

Awards:

- Indonesia Arts Award (1971)

- Cultural Award from Australian government (1973)

- Fulbright Grant from the United States (1980)

Editor:

kompascetak srihadi soedarsono