Artist : Freddy Sitorus
Genre : Paintings & Ceramics
Period : January 7 till March 3
Everyday, 9.00AM till 5.00PM
Location : Jenggala Keramik
Jl. Uluwatu ll, Jimbaran
Tel: 703311
Primitivism, a return to the original archaic and magical cults and art forms of so-called “primitive” people, is one of modern art’s main sources of inspiration. It was originally conceived as a countermovement to the cool intellectualism of academic art, for it was to fulfill a romantic yearning for something distant, for bygone eras and exotic cultures like the Orient and Africa with all their mysticism and mythical magic. Primitivism was to be the means by which the chains of academicism would be broken in order to set art free. This did not mean cultural regression, but rather that the arts would be released from the restraints of western patterns of thought and art. What resulted was a childlike art that was innocent and free-thinking. An art that was free of conditioning and aimed to be culturally original and pure.
Freddy Sitorus, who was born in South-East Sulawesi in 1965, and has studied painting at both the Udayana University in Denpasar and the Northern Territory University in Darwin, Australia, is an artist who draws on Primitivism’s ideas and concepts in his work. Freddy tries to capture an unlimited freedom of mind and soul in his canvases by expressing himself in a naïve manner. In a previous article I discussed the semiotic aspects of his work, noting that it derived from myths found in Australian Aborigine Art, and most prominently from the Art of the Mayans and Aztecs. I also observed how Freddy re-enforces the semiotic content of his paintings by stressing the childlike aspects of his images. Freddy uses childish gestures, which spring from the collective unconscious, to create works that appear spontaneous but are in-fact conditioned by the discipline of the trained artist.
In his current exhibition, “The Journey of Life”, Freddy utilizes his earlier established icons and myths, but while the previous exhibition was gloomy and somber, taking us on a trip through the darker side of Freddy’s psyche, this exhibition is much more satirical and sardonic. Within these works mythical gods and beasts play havoc with mortal men as they endeavor to bring order out of chaos and impart meaning to life’s bitter passage.
Freddy’s palette for these paintings is bright and bold. All the primary colors are in evidence, along with some new vibrant and iridescent pastel shades such as lemon, pink and pale turquoise. Once again some areas of the works are treated as flat surfaces while others are deeply textured, appearing almost as a ceramic glaze. Decorative ornamentation and pattern is dispersed throughout the canvases, while some works literally glitter and sparkle.
The mythical gods, beasts and men found in these works are all defined by a thick black line. Perhaps this line is the key to understanding this body of work. Outlined in black, the gods, beasts and men appear against their monochromatic backgrounds as pieces of an immense jigsaw puzzle. Some pieces fit snuggly together; others are forced, while some just don’t belong. Freddy has chosen an obvious but delightful metaphor for this exhibition, for who can honestly claim to understand the meaning of life? Life is indeed a puzzle. Freddy just puts the pieces together the best way he knows how.
