Subconscious Evolution: A Solo Exhibition by Erizal As
Subconscious Evolution, a solo exhibition by Indonesia-based artist Erizal As featured exclusively at Art Fair Philippines 2022, highlights the artist’s dynamic evolution over the past five years, from 2017 to 2022. In an interview with curator Tessa Maria Guazon in 2019, Erizal revealed that shifts in his artistic style happen in cycles of five years. Within this five-year timeframe, Erizal expanded from portraiture to landscape, and would oscillate between purely abstract and representational paintings—at times blurring boundaries between these neat artistic categories. This solo show reveals how these changes in his artistic practice mirror the characteristics of his movements on the canvas: “spontaneous, almost subconscious”.
Embarking on an unexpected yet natural stylistic shift, Erizal has recently begun experimenting with landscape painting. From 2021, recognisable forms—rolling hills, lush greens, lakes and cliffs—have once again emerged on his canvases. This new series of landscape works follows his recent return to his hometown in Padang, West Sumatra, after having lived and built his artistic career in Yogyakarta for several years. In depicting Padang’s raw, unspoiled beauty, Erizal brings us back to the colonial era, where Padang was prime for painters who focused on landscapes. Yet, as Erizal returns to his roots and embraces its heritage and history, he simultaneously grounds this new series in the contemporary—imbuing Padang’s landscapes with the signature expressionist style that he honed in Java. Filling his canvases with bold colours and urgent, vigorous strokes, Erizal employs the organic processes and emotional force of abstract-expressionism to capture the poignancy of gazing at one’s hometown with fresh eyes.
Navigating Truths, Traditions and Taboos: A Group Show of Contemporary Artists in Southeast Asia
Six artists from Indonesia, Singapore and the United States employ unconventional approaches in various practices and traditions, from abstract expressionism, hyperrealist painting to contemporary sculpture, to intimately navigate their ever-shifting interior, societal, or cultural landscapes. Whether they’re making visible otherwise invisible emotions, satirically critiquing stereotypes about their locales, or questioning dominant representations of larger beliefs and worldviews, the six artists immerse themselves in their contexts to go beyond the limits of traditional representations and offer instead rich, deeply nuanced perspectives on diverse contemporary realities in Southeast Asia.
Featured Artists
Ashley Bickerton
I Gusti Ayu Kadek Murniasih
Ibrahim
Rudi Mantofani
Suzann Victor
Yunizar
Grounded: A Group Show of Emerging Artists in Southeast Asia
Since its inception in the late 1990s, Gajah Gallery has made it a mission to support young, promising artists in Southeast Asia. The Gallery continues this mission through innovative exhibitions and programmes: the annual New Now show gathers carefully selected, freshly graduated artists working in Singapore, shining a light on works that possess both powerful concepts and remarkable mastery of skill and medium. Gajah Gallery’s second art space in Yogyakarta, Indonesia’s vibrant artistic and cultural capital, similarly dedicates shows every year to young Indonesian artists that are quickly becoming active, influential figures in their artistic communities. This show brings together selected artists who have participated in these programs over the past five years—exhibiting works that are not only fresh and new, but reveal deep curiosity and understanding of material, place and heritage.
Featured Artists
Adam De Boer
Dini Nur Aghnia
Herru Yoga
Kayleigh Goh
Mahalakshmi Kannappan
Rosit Mulyadi
Tan Shao Qi
