Lot Essay
In 1947, the painter Kartono Yudhokusumo painted a corner of a guerilla battlefield in Wonosari in the style of what later would be known as decoratism. This artistic tendency is characterized by the use of line, flat shapes and colours. To the proponents of the style, amongst others are Hendra Gunawan and Widayat; decorativeness shows the characteristic of Indonesian visual art, especially its ornamentation, craftmanship and lyricism.
It's a logical artistic tendency which developed in the fifties when the artists were keen to pronounce their uniqueness as a young nation in a post-colonial epoch; a time when the identification of Indonesianess was most urgent. Widayat was an important follower of this decorative school as he was instrumental in spreading it to many other artists like O.H. Supono and Nyoman Gunarsa.
It's a logical artistic tendency which developed in the fifties when the artists were keen to pronounce their uniqueness as a young nation in a post-colonial epoch; a time when the identification of Indonesianess was most urgent. Widayat was an important follower of this decorative school as he was instrumental in spreading it to many other artists like O.H. Supono and Nyoman Gunarsa.