Award Announcement: Jogja Miniprint Biennale 2014
The first Jogja Miniprint Biennale (JMB 2014) is being held in Yogyakarta, a city which has a long tradition of printmaking practice, printmaking education, and is home to a number of communities of printmakers. The response to this first Miniprint Biennale by the local arts community and the public has been encouraging. A total of 142 artists submitted 465 works for consideration by the JMB 2014 jury. Of the total, 89 artists are Indonesian and 53 come from abroad. In the first stage of the selection process the jury chose 72 finalists and 140 works. The jury’s selection was nearly evenly balanced between Indonesian artists and artists from abroad: 34 Indonesian artists and 38 international artists who come from the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Brazil, Estonia, Finlandia, Hungary, India, Italy, Great Britain, Ireland, Japan, Canada, Montenegro, Malaysia, Norway, France, Poland, Serbia, Turkey, and Ukraine. Most of the Indonesian printmakers come from Jogjakarta followed by Bandung, Jakarta and around the city. There were no age restrictions and it is interesting to note the age range of artists submitting work to JMB 2014; the oldest artist, who comes from abroad was born in 1937. The work and thorough application of graphic techniques were carefully noted by the jury. Because JMB 2014 was not organized around a specific theme, artists were free to submit work on themes of their own choice. The use of manual –non-digital – printmaking techniques was a challenge in itself because of the restricted size of the work which nonetheless had to display the specific characteristics of printmaking techniques. There was also the question of the treatment of the theme, although the works submitted generally did not contain many surprises, the jury could not avoid regarding the intensity and the depth expressed in the prints as important assessment criteria. Technical mastery and precision were the lights which illuminated the artists’ theme. Based on these two criteria: accurate treatment or demonstration of printmaking techniques in the mini format and the depth of treatment of the theme of the work led the jury to choose and discard works which did not satisfy these two conditions. An artist’s theme - in whatever medium – is not something full of strategies and tactics, something contrived and artificial. The real depth of the theme appears through the artist’s mastery of idiom and interpretation and the ability to demonstrate this in a medium which the artist understands. Thus, based on the above considerations and criteria the jury has chosen the following as the three best works submitted to the Jogja Miniprint Biennale 2014 The three best works (in alphabetical order according the artist’s name) 1. Agung Prabowo/Indonesia. Title: “STOPLES I”, reduction linocut print on hand beaten recycled bark paper, image size 20x12 cm; edition 2/3, 2014. 2. Deni Rahman/Indonesia. Title: “LEARN TO SQUEEZER”, intaglio, image size 13x8,5 cm, edition 3/20, 2014 3. Lidija Antanasijevic/Serbia-United Kingdom. Title: “BLISS”, etching-photogravure, image size 15x19.5 cm, edition 10/10, 2014 The jury offers its congratulations to the winners of the Jogjakarta Miniprints Biennale 2014 Yogyakarta, 26 April 2014. Members of the Jury: 1. Hendro Wiyanto (Chairman) 2. Devy Ferdianto 3. Agung Kurniawan Keputusan Juri Jogja Miniprint Biennale 2014 The Ist Jogja Miniprint Biennale (JMB) 2014 akhirnya bisa diselenggarakan di Yogyakarta, kota yang memiliki tradisi seni grafis cukup panjang, pendidikan seni grafis dan komunitas para pegrafis. Sambutan terhadap JMB yang pertama ini cukup menggembirakan. Tercatat 142 seniman dengan 465 karya mengikuti seleksi JMB. Jumlah itu terdiri dari 89 seniman Indonesia dan 53 seniman dari luar Indonesia. Setelah melalui seleksi tahap pertama, para juri memilih 72 seniman sebagai finalis dan karya sebanyak 140 buah. Ternyata dari seleksi para juri, jumlah pegrafis dari Indonesia dan luar Indonesia berimbang, yakni: 34 pegrafis dari Indonesia dan 38 dari luar Indonesia (Argentina, Australia, Belgia, Bulgaria, Brazilia, Estonia, Finlandia, Hungaria, India, Italia, Inggris, Irlandia, Jepang, Kanada, Montenegro, Malaysia, Norwegia, Perancis, Polandia, Serbia, Turki dan Ukraina). Dari Indonesia sendiri seperti biasa, pegrafis terbanyak diwakili oleh Yogyakarta, kemudian berturut-turut Bandung, Jakarta dan Bali. Yang tak kalah menarik adalah menilik usia pegrafis yang mengirimkan karya ke JMB. Karena tak ada batasan usia, tercatat peserta paling senior lahir pada 1937 (dari luar Indonesia). Kerja dan kesempurnaan penerapan teknik grafis menjadi perhatian juri. Karena JMB tidak menggunakan patokan tema, maka tema apa saja bebas diolah oleh peserta. Yang menarik tentunya adalah teknis manual (non-digital) seni grafis kali ini menjadikan tantangan sendiri, karena mesti diterapkan pada bidang kecil yang mampu menampilkan kekhasan teknis grafis itu sendiri. Adapun soal penggarapan tema, kendati rata-rata karya yang masuk tidak menunjukkan kejutan, tidak bisa dihindarkan bahwa intensitas dan kedalaman penggarapannya dalam miniprint menjadi syarat penilaian para juri. Penguasaan dan kerapian teknis para pegrafis dalam hal ini sekali lagi menjadi suluh untuk menerangi tema. Berdasarkan dua kriteria itulah, yakni kecermatan penggarapan atau penyelesaian teknis grafis di atas bidang mini dan kedalaman menggarap tema membuat juri dapat memilih dan menyisihkan karya-karya yang tidak cukup memenuhi kedua syarat itu. Tema —pada medium apa pun—bukanlah sesuatu yang penuh siasat, yang dibikin-bikin. Kedalaman tema akan muncul melalui penguasaan idiom dan tafsir, serta kemampuan menuangkannya ke dalam medium yang dikuasai. Akhirnya, dengan pertimbangan itu para juri sepakat memutuskan tiga karya terbaik pada JMB kali ini. Ketiga karya terbaik itu adalah (urutan sesuai abjad): 1. Agung Prabowo/Indonesia. Judul karya: “STOPLES I”, reduction linocut print on hand beaten bark daluang paper, image size 20x12 cm, edisi 2/3, 2014. 2. Deni Rahman/Indonesia. Judul karya: “LEARN TO SQUEEZER”, intaglio, image size 13x8,5 cm, edisi 3/20, 2014 3. Lidija Antanasijevic/Serbia-UK. Judul karya: “BLISS”, etching-photogravure, image size 15x19,5 cm, edisi 10/10, 2014 Kepada para pegrafis-pemenang pada JMB kali ini, juri mengucapkan selamat! Yogyakarta, 26 April 2014. Para juri: 1. Hendro Wiyanto (ketua) 2. Devy Ferdianto (anggota) 3. Agung Kurniawan (anggota) |
Jogja Miniprint Biennale: Mini Format, Maximum Potential
By Suwarno Wisetrotomo The idea of holding an art event like the Miniprint Biennale (MB) can be welcomed in many different ways, according to the capacity of the various audiences. For those who are active in the world of art practice this is an interesting challenge: to produce work based on the principles of printing and employing various graphic art techniques in a mini format but with a persuasive ability to entice and stimulate the viewers. The challenges and opportunities to create unique, artistic, and interesting works are wide open. In principle, although the format may be small, the ideas behind the works and the meaning the artist wishes to convey are big. For those who are interested in this area of activity, MB is a stimulating challenge. Through the Biennale one can look for there are unexpected and unexplored possibilities behind the term ‘miniprint’ because in fact printing techniques ‘hide’ a number of artistic possibilities: from conventional relief print techniques (wood cut, hardboard cut, lino cut) to intaglio (etching, aquatint, drypoint, sugartint), planograph (lithography, monotype) and screen printing ( silkscreen or serigraphy). All are variations which can be still further developed and combined in a number of techniques. New techniques could also be developed or even a number of these techniques could very possibly be combined and applied to different media. Creating works in a particular medium with specific printmaking techniques can create a unique new mixture combining ‘surprises’ and the unexpected. Thus the ‘surprise’ factor is important. The artist can only measure and approximate (e.g., depth of the carving, the incision on the surface of the plate, acidity and moisture content of the paper, viscosity of the ink, and strength of the adhesive material by reflecting empirically on his/her own experience – all are equally valid. More than that, the artist can only guess and hope that the results are like what he/she imagined. Such is the world of printmaking; a combination of technical skills, cleverness, ideas, imagination, constructions, compositions of form, as well as tension and feelings - all encompassing the unexpected. Precision founded on guesswork and once again, empirical experience; the factor which determines the results that the artist is hoping for in the printed work. Miniprints as a concept must open a number of possibilities from the aspect of exploring ideas, materials, techniques, and presentation. Wild ideas and intentions must be accommodated within the limitations of the given format. I can imagine that through MB new artists with new passions, who delve deeply into as well create new developments in the world of printmaking, will emerge. From miniprints to ‘maxiprints’: maximal ideas, maximal media, maximal formats, and maximal presentations. From a practical, logistical point of view, MB has the potential to reach a wide area and a great many artists. In fact, the event could be presented simultaneously in several different venues. It is an egalitarian celebration; affordable, succinct and all without losing sight of important values or the world of ideas in the frame of education and art appreciation in the broader society Thus I have great expectations for the Miniprint Biennale. (Suwarno Wisetrotomo Art Critic and Lecturer in the Department of Fine Art and Post-Graduate Program, Indonesian Institute of Art, Jogjakarta Miniprint Biennale: Potensi Maksi Di Balik Format Mini Oleh Suwarno Wisetrotomo Ide penyelenggaraan peristiwa seni rupa Miniprint Biennale (MB), pantas disambut dengan banyak cara, sesuai kapasitas masing-masing penerima. Yang bergerak di dunia praktek seni, peristiwa MB adalah tantangan yang seksi; berkarya dengan prinsip cetak (print; seni grafis, lipat ganda, dengan varian teknik yang beragam) berukuran mini, namun tetap kuat daya pikat dan daya ganggunya. Tantangan dan peluang untuk mengkreasi karya yang unik, terbatas, artistik, dan menarik, terbuka lebar. Prinsipnya, ukuran/format boleh mini, tetapi gagasan-gagasan di baliknya, pesan-pesan yang ingin disuarakannya, tetap harus (dan boleh) maksi. Bagi mereka yang tertarik di wilayah pemikiran (pembacaan, pemaknaan) karya seni rupa, peristiwa MB juga sebuah tantangan yang menggairahkan. Melalui peristiwa MB ini dapat memburu, menyelidik, juga menagih, adanya kemungkinan-kemungkinan yang tak terduga di balik penggunaan istilah ‘miniprint’. Karena pada dasarnya teknik cetak (print; atau printmaking; seni grafis) ‘menyembunyikan’ sejumlah kemungkinan potensi artistik. Dari teknik konvensional; cetak tinggi (wood cut, hardboard cut, lino cut); cetak dalam (etsa, aquatint, drypoint, sugartint); cetak datar (lithography dan monotype); dan cetak saring (silkscreen, atau serigraphy) dengan segenap variannya, masih dapat dikembangkan menjadi beragam teknik, dan bahkan sebutan. Sejumlah teknik itu sangat mungkin dipadukan (mix), bahkan bisa dicobakan pada berbagai medium. Berkarya dengan medium dan teknik print, adalah berkarya sembari berkawan dengan ketegangan dan ketakterdugaan. Karena itu unsur kejutannya (surprise) demikian tinggi. Sang perupa hanya bisa mengukur dan mengira (kedalaman cukilan, torehan, pengasaman, kelembaban kertas, ketebalan tinta, kekuatan rekatan, dan lain-lainnya) dengan menganggap – atas dasar pengalaman empiris – semuanya seolah tepat. Selebihnya, ia sang seniman hanya bisa menduga dan mengharap; semoga hasil cetaknya seperti yang dibayangkan. Itulah dunia seni cetak; perpaduan antara ketrampilan teknik, kecerdasan gagasan, imajinasi konstruksi bentuk dan komposisi, serta tegangan/ketegangan emosi yang diliputi ketakterdugaan. “Ketepatan” atas dasar dugaan dan (sekali lagi) pengalaman empiris, menjadi faktor penentu keberhasilan karya cetak yang diharapkan. Miniprint sebagai konsep, justru harus bisa membuka sejumlah kemungkinan dalam aspek eksplorasi gagasan, eksplorasi material, teknik, dan presentasi. Keliaran gagasan dan hasrat, harus terakomodasi dalam keterbatasan format. Saya membayangkan, melalui peristiwa Miniprint Biennale ini, muncul perupa-perupa ‘baru’ dengan gairah baru, yang mendalami sekaligus mengembangkan dunia print, dunia seni cetak; dari yang miniprint hingga yang maxiprint. Maksimal gagasannya, maksimal mediumnya, maksimal formatnya, dan maksimal presentasinya. Dari aspek teknis, peristiwa Miniprint Biennale ini berpotensi menjangkau seluas-luasnya wilayah dan sebanyak-banyaknya seniman. Bahkan bisa diselenggarakan serentak di mana-mana. Merayakan seni rupa secara egaliter, terjangkau, ringkas, tanpa kehilangan nilai penting atau kewibawaan dunia gagasan. Memiliki watak edukasi dan apresiasi seni rupa yang tinggi bagi masyarakat luas. Saya menyambut dengan sukacita dan penuh harap pada peristiwa Miniprint Biennale ini. (Suwarno Wisetrotomo / Kritikus Seni Rupa / Dosen di Fakultas Seni Rupa dan Pascasarjana ISI Yogyakarta). |