God is in the Details of this Bali Exhibition
THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
By Michael J. Ybarra
CALIFORNIA - "Bali: Art, Ritual, Performance", which runs through Sept. 11, is the first in the U.S. to broadly examine the art and culture of Bali. Displayed in a show at Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, the exhibition includes more than 130 objects — including sculpture, musical instruments and textiles.
"What makes Bali really interesting is the intersection between indigenous beliefs and Hinduism," says curator Natasha Reichle, who worked on the show for five years. "These objects don't usually get put into museums. You go to a ceremony and see them in use."— nicely sums up the seductive allure that has made the island such a byword for exotica. Not to mention a land of contrasts. Bali is a Hindu enclave in the middle of the most populous Islamic country in the world. The island is verdant yet also densely populated, divided into hill-clinging rice fields that make for beautiful photos but backbreaking labor. Its people are celebrated for weaving artistic and spiritual practices into daily life, but the island's history is soaked in blood, from the Dutch conquest in the early 1900s to a dirty war against suspected communists in the 1960s.
Only 2,000 square miles in area, Bali boasts tens of thousands of temples. The Balinese language has no word for religion — so saturated is the culture with notions of the divine that none appears necessary. "Their lives were packed in intricate and formal delights," anthropologist Margaret Mead observed in the 1930s. "The richness and vibrancy of the cultural traditions of the island are as evident now as they were then," notes museum director Jay Xu in the exhibition catalog. "Bali continues to inspire artists, performers, scholars, and movie stars, all drawn to a unique culture where art is an integral part of daily life."[link]
By Michael J. Ybarra
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| The princess Rangkesari, approx. 1900–1930 (spikes). Wood and pigments. Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam, 809-113 |
"What makes Bali really interesting is the intersection between indigenous beliefs and Hinduism," says curator Natasha Reichle, who worked on the show for five years. "These objects don't usually get put into museums. You go to a ceremony and see them in use."— nicely sums up the seductive allure that has made the island such a byword for exotica. Not to mention a land of contrasts. Bali is a Hindu enclave in the middle of the most populous Islamic country in the world. The island is verdant yet also densely populated, divided into hill-clinging rice fields that make for beautiful photos but backbreaking labor. Its people are celebrated for weaving artistic and spiritual practices into daily life, but the island's history is soaked in blood, from the Dutch conquest in the early 1900s to a dirty war against suspected communists in the 1960s.
Only 2,000 square miles in area, Bali boasts tens of thousands of temples. The Balinese language has no word for religion — so saturated is the culture with notions of the divine that none appears necessary. "Their lives were packed in intricate and formal delights," anthropologist Margaret Mead observed in the 1930s. "The richness and vibrancy of the cultural traditions of the island are as evident now as they were then," notes museum director Jay Xu in the exhibition catalog. "Bali continues to inspire artists, performers, scholars, and movie stars, all drawn to a unique culture where art is an integral part of daily life."[link]
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