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Lot Essay
Widayat was born in Central Java and was among the pioneer batch of students at the Indonesian Academy of Fine Arts (ASRI), Yogyakarta. He excelled there, and later became a teacher at the academy upon graduation. He was an early advocate of a uniquely Indonesian decorative style of art, and his works often evoked a feeling of enchantment and magic. He was greatly influenced by his mother, a well-respected batik maker. Before joining the academy, Widayat was the apprentice of an amateur landscape painter in Bandung, exploring the mooi indie style. Although he later abandoned this particular style, it remained influential in some of his earlier works.
The local floral and fauna of the lush Sumatran jungles have been a constant source of inspiration for Widayat. His early career as a surveyor and mapmaker for a railway company provided him with a wealth of opportunities to explore the exotic verdure of local forests, which he later re-presented in his works. Although painted in his later years, Pohon Flamboyan (Lot 337) is an exquisite example of Widayat's vision of the richly diverse ecosystem within the Indonesian forests. Done in his uniquely ornamental style, Widayat depicts two flamboyant trees with widely spread crowns awash in a stunning vermillion. Interspersed within the highly stylised roots of the trees is a hive of activity with workers busily collecting rubber seeds and carrying them out of the jungle via a narrow and unruly path, capturing the strong relationship between the local people and nature. The emphasis in colour through the contrast of warm and cool tones brings to mind the Fauvist style of Henri Matisse, and expresses Widayat's deep-rooted relationship with the jungle.
In comparison with Pohon Flamboyan, Widayat's later work Adam and Eve (Lot 336) appears highly stylised and almost simplified to a rhythm of constantly repeating motifs in a traditional or primitive style. This is a prime example of Widayat's unique artistic vernacular, interspersing his subjects with exotic birds and wild animals, rendered in a largely monochromatic palette. His works of this style often display a flatness similar to that of the art of Indonesian batik, but unlike traditional patterns, this piece contains figurative elements instead. The composition in Adam and Eve is one that is richly textured and full of deep symbolism; the way in which the main figures are surrounded by a web of foliage and creatures emphasises the all encompassing notion of Mother Nature.
The local floral and fauna of the lush Sumatran jungles have been a constant source of inspiration for Widayat. His early career as a surveyor and mapmaker for a railway company provided him with a wealth of opportunities to explore the exotic verdure of local forests, which he later re-presented in his works. Although painted in his later years, Pohon Flamboyan (Lot 337) is an exquisite example of Widayat's vision of the richly diverse ecosystem within the Indonesian forests. Done in his uniquely ornamental style, Widayat depicts two flamboyant trees with widely spread crowns awash in a stunning vermillion. Interspersed within the highly stylised roots of the trees is a hive of activity with workers busily collecting rubber seeds and carrying them out of the jungle via a narrow and unruly path, capturing the strong relationship between the local people and nature. The emphasis in colour through the contrast of warm and cool tones brings to mind the Fauvist style of Henri Matisse, and expresses Widayat's deep-rooted relationship with the jungle.
In comparison with Pohon Flamboyan, Widayat's later work Adam and Eve (Lot 336) appears highly stylised and almost simplified to a rhythm of constantly repeating motifs in a traditional or primitive style. This is a prime example of Widayat's unique artistic vernacular, interspersing his subjects with exotic birds and wild animals, rendered in a largely monochromatic palette. His works of this style often display a flatness similar to that of the art of Indonesian batik, but unlike traditional patterns, this piece contains figurative elements instead. The composition in Adam and Eve is one that is richly textured and full of deep symbolism; the way in which the main figures are surrounded by a web of foliage and creatures emphasises the all encompassing notion of Mother Nature.