Artists : AmmarinKuntawong (Arm) and Christopher Stern
Opening Ceremony : January, 18, 2014
Duration : January, 18 until January 31. 2014
Venue : Paros Gallery , Jalan Pantai Purnama Banjar Palak Sukawati Gianyar Bali
P. 0361-298120.
E. parosart@yahoo.com
What does it mean to be a foreigner? Who determines what is foreign, and how different is the foreign from the local? This exhibition features works by two foreigners – one, a Westerner, fluent in Indonesian, and knowledgeable about many aspects both Balinese arts and culture, and the other, an Asian, but with no experience of Indonesia aside from the friendship of two Balinese artists. Each artist works in a completely different style to the other, and utilizes different media and techniques. But whose work will appear more ‘foreign’, or rather, foreign-er, to Indonesians?
AmmarinKuntawong (Arm) is a printmaker and professionally trained artist. While Arm is expert in many different styles of printmaking, his technique of choice is hard ground etching. He produces dreamlike landscapes, entirely devoid of figures, yet somehow extremely alive. His work evokes feelings of the ancient Lanna kingdom, today the northwest region of Thailand, from which he comes.
Christopher Stern has no formal arts education, but has enjoyed sketching and designing for most of his life. With a background in Industrial Design, Chris came to Bali in 1998. In 1999 he opened galeri sembilan in Lodtunduh, Ubud, and through this experience became familiar with the work of a great many Balinese artists. He began painting full-time one year ago. Although still exploring style and subject matter, most of the work for this show consists of solitary figures of unusual attitude and demeanor.
Perhaps the only thread that ties the work of these two artists together, aside from their ‘foreign’-ness, is a degree of introspection and an uncanny access to unconscious thoughts and feelings. Both artists, Arm, through landscape, and Chris, through figures, present interior worlds which it is hoped will resonate at some deep level with the public.
