Poised for Degradation

14 Jan - 14 Feb 2014

Artist stAtement

earlier this year i asked to do a commission of a medusa, a recurring visual in some of my previous work. Having spent some time lurking around the Kraton Yogyakarta1 collecting images of snakes and serpents, i started plotting my ideas, hanging the results on my studio wall. When my photographer visited my studio he said quite loudly, “that’s Nyi Blorong”. the rest of the staff in my house, who had been quiet up to this point, chimed in in agreement. there was clearly some discomfort amongst the staff that i had managed to morph myself into a feared female creature of Javanese myth. Having been interested in the way women were negatively portrayed in myth using animal morphology, such as the vilified medusa, i set about getting to know nyi Blorong.

the results were astonishing. the world of Javanese mythology was a vast and complex place, full of character upon character, based on old Javanese poetry, partially inspired by reinterpretations of the indian mahabharata and ramayana classics. the stories of these characters have been told and retold and retold in many forms, from wayang kulit performances, to batik imagery and motif, to temple relief and architecture. Animals feature as peripheral characters in these stories, to set an emotional tone or act as omens and metaphors. searching for the origin of Blorong proved a challenge. mary-Louise Totton wrote that the interpretation of animal symbols in the Central Javanese Prambanan temples were dependent on not only the royal patronage of these spaces but the political and local sensibilities of sculptors of that particular time.2 Benedict r. O'G Anderson goes further to say that the complexity of wayang characters (a primary vehicle for Javanese mythology) have been simplified to communicate the agendas of contemporary regimes, leaving a character either good or bad, rather than an ability to embody his or her complexities as was initially depicted.3

nyi Blorong had clearly suffered the same fate. Any efforts to trace her history were muffled by her reduction to a derogatory femme-fatale character of indonesian B-grade movies; a seductress who provides wealth and status in exchange for the sacrifice of a family member; setting the stage for a simple moral choice between wealth and love. i quite liked the irony. my participation the art world had, despite external appearances, introduced more pressure and less security. With the added anxiety of motherhood i had none of the power of a stereotypical seductress. Borrowing another mythological reference to the gendered dichotomous relationship between the upper and under worlds, i asked my husband, if he would be the garuda to my naga 4, or more specifically, the tumbal to my blorong.5 He said, “sure”.

As with most of my work since 2005, i have not yet exhausted my search for meaning in architecture. i decided to explore enclosures as a theme to accompany the animal forms in this series, and at the same time focus on the current development of my fascination with architecture and power. As a malaysian tourist 10 years ago, Yogyakarta was a sweet provincial city working at a scale and pace that i wanted to get used to. it took many years to understand the very spatial structure of the city, from its center to periphery, articulated a hierarchy within which its inhabitants operate on a daily basis.

1 Kraton Yogyakarta is the royal palace at the center of Yogyakarta city that houses Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.2 Mary-Louise Totton, Narrating Animals on the Screen of the World, Art Bulletin, vol. LXXXV, 2003 (pg. 8).3 Benedict R. O'G Anderson, Mythology and the Tolerance of the Javanese (1965), Equinox Publishing, republished 2009 (pg. 42).4 Robert Wessing, Symbolic Animals in the Land between the Waters - Markers of Place and Transition, Asian Folklore Studies, Volume 65, 2006 (pg. 208).5 Based on Indonesian movies made in the 1980s, Nyi Blorong provides wealth and status in exchange for a tumbal (a human sacrifice) of a family member.

Despite Yogyakarta’s economic activities, the Kraton is recognized as the center of the city. Built in 1755 by the first of the now ten sultan Hamengkubuwono of Yogyakarta, the Kraton is placed perfectly between the merapi volcano to the north, and the Parangtritis beach to the south, both formidable sources of natural and presumably spiritual energy. the Kraton is a series of built environments distributing itself in four directions outwards from the palace at the center. the surrounding architectural complexes, squares, arches, gateways, and the outer walls, all carry both symbolic meaning of the relationship between the ruler and the cosmos, and functioned around the the traditional activities of the sovereign.

most notable to me is the maze of streets that exist outside the inner palace, but still within the Kraton walls. Apart from royal descendants and court nobility, many of these streets are historically documented and named for their function in relation to the palace. Jalan Patehan for example was an area for the preparation of tea, and Jalan Gamelan housed the abdi dalem 6 that tended the royal stables, and so on. With a large proportion of Kraton inhabitants traditionally in service to the palace, it is not surprising that many of its current residents have now inherited the economic inevitability of the servitude of its previous generations.

the view of the Kraton walls itself are completely obscured with dwellings, residential and more impoverished on the inside, and dilapidated but commercially developing on the outside. Having lived in a country whose architectural power is displayed by its unapproachability, i had naively wondered, when i first came to Jogja, why the Kraton had not been ‘cleaned up’ of the debris of dwellings and displayed in its exposed and restored magnificence. Also coming from a place where residential dwellings were clearly delineated by class, i also found the close proximity of financially divergent groups to each other not only unusual but also morally ambiguous. Within the Kraton, and in most parts of Yogyakarta’s inner city, it is entirely normal to find a 500 square meter one-family bungalow rubbing up against 20 very small family dwellings in the equivalent amount of space.

in Benedict r. O'G Anderson mind-bending paper, The Idea of Power in Javanese Culture (1972), the spatial particularities of the Kraton can be best explained by two of his observations. Firstly, that “…the concentration of large populations around a ruler was also the best sign of his having the Power, the magnetic attraction of which revealed the continuing possession of the wahyu.”7 this explained a lot. Apart from it being in the sovereign’s interest to have so many people converging at the center, Anderson also notes that for the population, “…the proximity to the ruler, rather than formal rank, is the key to power in such a state.”8

the relations of power between the Kraton and its surrounding inhabitants are reciprocal. the proximity of regal poise to a degree of visible infrastructural and financial degradation is inevitable. the poise possessed by sri sultan Hamengkubuwono X, i believe, lies in his refusal to exercise his power. As elected provincial governor of the special District of Yogyakarta, he does not relocate the poor structures encrusted against the Kraton’s inner and outer walls; he does not removed the slum that has sprung up in the gerobak 9 park, located exactly across from the Masjid Agung on the palace’s north square. On the contrary, Kraton spaces are open to countless decibel-challenging events, competitions, and concerts, and on most saturday nights the Kraton’s south square is filled to the brim with people. the approachability of the center is a testament to its popularity.

nadiah BamadhajDecember 2013

6 Abdi Dalem are those who live in service to the Kraton. Abdi means servant, and dalem means home. 7 Benedict R. O’G Anderson, Language and Power: Exploring Political Cultures in Indonesia, Equinox Publishing, republished 2006, (pg. 43).

Wahyu in this context can be described as power through divine revelation or vision.8 Ibid, (pg. 48).9 Gerobak is a hand-drawn cart used for the collection and disposal of rubbish.

FrAGiLitY in GLOss OF eLeGAnCeBy Aisyah Hilal

i have known nadiah Bamadhaj for some time now. it could be said the duration of our acquaintance is the same as nadiah’s intense aquiantance with her current domicile: Yogyakarta, Java.

Our relationship is one between two women who enthusiastically swap stories about our experiences raising children, vacation destinations, the interactional dynamics between the artists and the art world, about our skills of living within neighbourhoods, and the like.

For the exhibition Poised for Degradation, this time in singapore, she asked me to write about eight of her works. this time our serious conversations turned to my curiosity and need to understand more about nadiah’s working processes.

Black Humour, Caricature, and Contradictionsin this exhibition, nadiah wanted to convey her ideas about a degradation wrapped in the gloss of elegance or poise. the degradation she has felt centers mainly around personal and social issues via architectural objects. Lately, these two things have made her anxious. nadiah makes these two issues the anchor for the selection of objects that represent her ideas and thoughts.

nadiah has drawn four portraits and four architectural objects. All the works are created with the same medium and technique: charcoal on paper collage.

nadiah’s contemplations about the fragility and deterioration of both personal and social issues depart from her observations and experiences of hanging out in Yogyakarta. she sees a considerable economic gap between the rich and poor. Her impression is that people tend to neglect this gap. But instead of being distracted by the social structures of her experience, nadiah sees that the less-fortunate often find different ways to anticipate this.

A retail gasoline kiosk on Yogyakarta’s roadside, for example, finds it necessary to make a miniature structure of a joglo to cover its stall. For those who are not familiar with traditional Javanese architecture, a joglo is a traditional roof form that is typically owned by the upper class. A petrol kiosk owner feels the need to add something ‘high class’ to his or her simple stall. nadiah sees this as a humourous caricature.

these contradictions and contrasts are what nadiah tries to show through the her works Kandang Ningrat, A Homeless Enclosure, Tertindas yang Ditandu, and Gerobak Agung.

in Kandang Ningrat, a cowshed is met with a palace roof structure. to nadiah, the cowshed she imagines is multifunctional. in the day time it is used to tend cows, but at night it could as well be someone’s bedroom. the dignity of this cowshed is ‘lifted’ when crowned with a palace roof.

On one occasion, nadiah was in a motorcycle workshop. there, she saw a wooden box used for storing various tools. imagination and artistic instincts pushed nadiah to create Tertindas yang Ditandu from the image of this wooden box. nadiah transform this box into a living space for something (or someone) by adding ventilation holes. in this work, nadiah adds carrying poles to this ‘cage box’ that she photographed from a sedan-chair in the Keraton surakarta, Central Java. in royal tradition, sedan chairs are usually used to carry something very important, something sacred, something worshiped. Here the box represents an oppression, a degradation of someone or something that lives within it. However, at the same time, it is worshipped, carried with poles, like a sultan or a Queen.

A Homeless Enclosure is a collage of various elements. nadiah took the main form from a stall that she often found circling the south square of the Kraton Yogyakarta. in this work nadiah replaced elements of this stall: wooden walls or gebyok from a wooden knock-down house, wire mesh from a royal sedan-chair, and a tin roof structure she found in a graveyard. Like a rickshaw for the richshaw driver, a moving stall also serves as a dwelling for its owner. this property becomes not only their means of making a living, but a place to live. there is a very strong contradiction stated in the title of this work. the volume of no more than one meter square demarcates the boundary of one’s life (or even for a small family), and functions ‘as a house’. But in principle they are homeless and constantly moving from one place to another.

Gerobak Agung is a combination of two elements: a hand-drawn cart and a three-teired umbrella. in many cities in indonesia these carts are used to transport rubbish from houses to dumpsters. nevertheless in Jakarta, there is a group known as ‘gerobak people’ (or scavengers) that use these carts as dwellings, (not only for one person, but also for entire families!). in this work, nadiah includes a sign which marks the authority of a particular social class, the three-teired umbrella. nadiah found this triple umbrella in the Kraton surakarta. nadiah wanted to show the absurdity in this work. Gerobak Agung becomes an awkward moving object. Physically, it does not have any association with a palace umbrella, neither does it have a function, apart from the sheer desire to look noble.

through the architectural forms in this exhibition, nadiah wants to show the tension between grandeur and pride that is felt, the grandeur and poise that is lived, specifically cultural grandeur, but where economic reality is in fact the opposite to that.

Honestly, in some cases nadiah is able to observe social phenomena that escapes me. this could be because after nadiah is a ‘stranger’ who comes with her own ‘baggage’. Apart from the ‘baggage difference’ between the nadiah and myself, in my opinion every person creates their own level of pride. there is never a fixed standard for it, (and it is always fun to see the creativity and responses in these individual standards!).

But, of course, this exhibition is a presentation of nadiah’s process of learning and understanding social phenomena in Yogyakarta. this is similar to how nadiah tries to understand funeral traditions here. For nadiah, structural and social norms in Yogyakarta make for interesting observations of funeral traditions.

in the tradition of her area of origin - Kuala Lumpur – a funeral is attended only by those invited by the bereaved. But in Yogyakarta, when there is an announcement of sripahan (death of a person), then anyone can come to mourn, irrespective of their relationship to the deceased.

in their position as host to the many people that pay their respects (some who are familiar, and others who are completely unfamiliar), the bereaved is ‘forced’ to conceal his or her feelings and emotions. they present an exterior of calm and poise in the face of loss. nadiah sees this poise presented despite a deep and challenging distress. “this is a very Javanese experience for me. You are expected to remain strong and stable, whatever hardships you are facing,”said nadiah.

the ‘connection’ between nadiah and an elderly woman or ibu who routinely scavenges for recyclables in her neighbourhood brought nadiah to make Null and Void. For nadiah, this portrait comes close to the social issues represented in her architectural works.

the frail ibu does not communicate normally, possibly because of her senility. Usually, conversations with this ibu are minimal or expressed in bodily gestures by nadiah or her family.

nadiah photographed the profile of this ibu, then attached the image of her torso to the side of an object called a congklak*. in this frail mother figure, nadiah sees an extremely hard life, and the absurdity of the word ‘future’. Life is like a game: one moment life goes along as usual, but if she falls ill it can shatter in an instant, without any money in her pocket, without anyone to take responsibility for her safety. Only a thin line separates these two situations, like stakes in a game.

Maintaining Poise and Self-Imagenadiah attempts to show similar contradictions and contrasts in her four portrait works. the four figures that she presents are of people closest to her in daily life: herself (Nyi Blorong Bertanggung Jawab); Arie, her husband (Tumbal); Helen, her mother (Poised), and the old woman who scavenges around her home, (Null and Void).

in Nyi Blorong Bertanggung Jawab, nadiah portrays herself. Her ‘encounter’ with Nyi Blorong was accidental. When nadiah stuck her portrait as the head on an animal in the form of a snake, her assistants voiced that this was a portrait of nyi Blorong. nadiah was then compelled to find out more about this figure of Javanese mythology. she dug up as many referencesas she could on the internet, and watched a lot of movies B-grade movies about the character of nyi Blorong.

nyi Blorong is supposedly capable of providing abundant wealth for people who worship and serve her. For the wealth that they obtain, those devoted to her must provide a tumbal (human sacrifice) to nyi Blorong.

nadiah’s portrait ‘as nyi Blorong’ is paired with Tumbal, where the portrait of Arie is placed on a creature resembling a chicken, originally manifestated from a garuda or eagle. the garuda’s manliness is deformed and his verility transformed into a figure of a chicken. its claws display a character that is both strong and at the same time closed.

nadiah intends to dichotomise a gender relationship by pairing ‘nyi Blorong’ with its ‘tumbal’. she also makes a play on the mythology of nyi Blorong, and the issues of prosperity and sacrifice.

Basically, there are a double-meanings in nadiah’s drawings, with philosophical ideas and academic research on the one hand, but on the other these drawings represent upheavals in her personal life. “When we receive many things, there are other things taken from us,” says nadiah.

in reality there are always personal dynamics within families. Along with our development as human beings – there are transformation from our early roles as children, to becaming parents to our own children – giving us the opportunity to reflect on our relationship with our parents. Apart from the love we have for our parents, we then become more detached in making assesments and perception of them: our fathers as this person, or our mother as this person. Parents eventually become independant individuals in the eyes of their children.

the idea of maintaining poise brought nadiah to use her mother’s portrait in the work Poised. nadiah sees her mother as being very poised, without excessive displays of emotion. in nadiah’s understanding, her mother maintains an elegance and reserve from facing a lifetime of challanges. nadiah selects the figure and posture of a bird to represent her understanding of her mother.

KerAPUHAn DALAm POLesAn KeAnGGUnAnoleh Aisyah Hilal

saya mengenal nadiah Bamadhaj sudah cukup lama. Bisa dikata, usia perkenalan kami sama dengan usia perkenalan yang intens antara nadiah dengan ruang hidupnya saat ini: Yogyakarta, Jawa.

Hubungan kami adalah hubungan dua perempuan, yang antusias bertukar cerita tentang pengalaman membesarkan anak, tentang tujuan-tujuan liburan keluarga, tentang dinamika pergaulan di antara para seniman dan ranah senirupa, tentang pengalaman mengasah keterampilan hidup bertetangga, dan semacamnya.

Untuk pamerannya Poised for Degradation di singapura kali ini, ia meminta saya untuk menulis tentang delapan karyanya. Kali ini, perbincangan serius kami lalu beranjak pada keingintahuan dan keperluan saya untuk memahami lebih mendalam tentang proses nadiah berkarya. Humor hitam, karikatur, dan kontradiksi-kontradiksiDalam pameran ini, nadiah ingin menyampaikan gagasannya tentang kemunduran yang berbalut polesan keanggunan. Kemunduran yang ia rasakan ini terutama berpusar dalam hal-hal personal dan persoalan sosial via objek-objek arsitektural. Akhir-akhir ini, dua hal tersebut yang intens menggelisahkan dirinya. nadiah menjadikan dua persoalan ini sebagai jangkar dalam pemilihan objek-objek yang mewakili gagasan dan pemikirannya.

nadiah menggambar empat potret dan empat objek arsitektural. seluruh karya ia buat dengan medium serta teknik yang sama: arang di atas kertas yang dikolase.

Perenungan nadiah tentang kerapuhan dan kemunduran terkait isu personal dan isu sosial di luar dirinya berangkat dari pengamatan dan pengalaman bergaul di Yogyakarta. ia melihat kesenjangan ekonomi yang cukup besar antara yang kaya dan yang miskin. ia menangkap kesan bahwa orang-orang cenderung abai dengan kesenjangan itu. Di lain sisi, alih-alih merasa terganggu dengan situasi dalam struktur sosial yang dialaminya, nadiah melihat bahwa si-lebih-rendah seringkali menemukan berbagai cara untuk mensiasatinya.

sebuah pangkalan bensin eceran di pinggir jalan Yogyakarta, misalnya, merasa perlu untuk membuat struktur miniatur joglo sebagai penutup rak kiosnya. Bagi yang tidak mengakrabi tradisi arsitektur Jawa, joglo adalah salah satu bentuk bangunan tradisional yang lazimnya dimiliki golongan kelas atas. si pemilik kios bensin seperti merasa perlu untuk menghadirkan sesuatu yang ‘berkelas tinggi’ di lapak sederhana-nya. nadiah menangkap hal ini sebagai aksi karikatural yang cukup menggelikan.

Kontradiksi dan kontras ini yang kemudian nadiah coba tampilkan melalui karya-karya Kandang Ningrat, A Homeless Enclosure, Tertindas yang Ditandu, dan Gerobak Agung.

Dalam Kandang Ningrat, bangunan kandang sapi diperjumpakan dengan struktur atap kraton. Dalam benak nadiah, ia membayangkan bahwa kandang sapi yang dilihatnya itu mungkin saja memiliki multifungsi. Di siang hari ia menjadi tempat mengandangkan sapi peliharaan, tetapi di malam hari bisa saja digunakan juga untuk ruang tidur seseorang. martabat kandang ini kemudian ‘ditinggikan’ ketika ia dimahkotai struktur atap kraton.

Pada sebuah kesempatan, nadiah berada di sebuah bengkel. Di sana, ia melihat sebuah kotak kayu tempat penyimpanan aneka perkakas bengkel. imajinasi dan insting artistik mendorong nadiah untuk membuat Tertindas yang Ditandu dari imaji kotak kayu ini. nadiah mentransformasi kotak kayu ini menjadi sebuah tempat hidup sesuatu (atau seseorang) dengan menambahkan beberapa lubang ventilasi. Dalam karya ini, nadiah mempertemukan pikulan tandu yang ia potret di Kraton surakarta, Jawa tengah dengan ‘kotak kandang’ ini. Dalam tradisi kerajaan, tandu biasanya digunakan untuk mengangkat sesuatu yang sangat penting, sesuatu yang sakral, sesuatu yang dipuja. Di sini, kotak merupakan representasi penindasan, kemunduran dari siapapun atau apapun yang

nadiah is making choices about her personal context, in the present, when choosing the types of animals that she shapes and explores in this exhibition. ‘Contexts of self and contexts of the present’ are the decisive factors in the process of selecting animals that represent her ideas and contemplations.

It’s about Having Options, Making Choices, and Taking the Consequencesthe idea of game in the work Null and Void is a form of self reflection, about herself and her profession as an artist. this is truly like playing a game. As she has to be deft in planning and preparing work schedules, enriching her references with research, working in the field, maintaining professional relationships, as well as maintaining her primary responsibilities to her family.

As with most working mothers, nadiah faces a variety of demands, expectations, and ideals. everything can come from outside herself, but more often comes from within herself. Pressure and tension can be productive when nadiah faces this with strength and tact. she is conditioned to analyse issues effectively, efficiently, whilst trying much as possible to make herself and those closest to her happy. together with her husband – Arie -- and their only son -- Lanang Pijar, she can spend quality time, whilst visiting places that become a source of experience and inspiration to her, for example Kraton surakarta, the zoo, or simply the south square of the Kraton Yogyakarta.

Having a good working relationship with her gallery in the last three years suits her situation as an artist with a small family. nadiah can fulfill her responsibilities to all parties. she can work to schedule.

However, life is basically a matter of choices. And there are consequences to any choices we make. Her work patterns as an artist have changed compared to ten years ago.

in the past, nadiah had the ‘luxury’ of time to read, research, and formulate theories in her mind. this could take months. now nadiah works on a tight schedule. Because of this she has to trust her instincts. Although her working process is no longer backed up by the ideal amount of academic research, accourding to her own standards, the work produced is valid. “Life is crazier, sometimes i run out of ideas, run out of steam, but i don’t run out of inspiration. i’m intellectually exhausted, but my insticts are not. instinctively i am feeling stronger, more excited”, said nadiah.

Aisyah Hilal is a home maker and freelance writer.

Glossary* Congklak : Congkak or Congklak is a game of malay origin played in malaysia, singapore, indonesia, Brunei and southern thailand. Congklak, which is often considered a game for girls, has simple rules that allow the boards to have different numbers of holes. Congklak boards are often made of teak or mahogany wood, are often elaborately carved into various shapes such as naga or birds. the word congklak is believed to originate from old malay “congak”, meaning “mental calculation”, which is mainly practiced in this game. it is regarded that an efficient player who mentally calculates a few steps in advance will have an advantage in collecting points to win the game. [source: Wikipedia]

‘relasi’ nadiah dan seorang ibu tua yang rutin memulung sampah di area sekitar rumahnya membawa nadiah pada ide membuat Null and Void. Bagi nadiah, karya potret ini dekat dengan persoalan sosial via representasi objek arsitektural.

ibu renta ini sulit berkomunikasi secara normal, kemungkinan juga karena ia sudah pikun. Biasanya, percakapan sekadarnya atau hanya ekspresi tubuh dilakukan oleh nadiah sekeluarga kepada ibu ini.

nadiah memotret profile si ibu, lalu menempelkan potret torso si ibu dari sisi samping pada sebuah objek berupa congklak*. Pada sosok ibu renta ini, nadiah melihat kerasnya hidup, absurdnya kata ‘masa depan’. Hidup ibarat sebuah permainan: di satu sisi adalah menjalaninya dengan baik lancar saja, dan di sisi lainnya adalah hidup hancur berantakan ketika ia jatuh sakit, sama sekali tak ada uang di kantong, dan tak ada sesiapa pun yang menjamin keselamatan hidupnya. Hanya ada garis tipis yang memisahkan kedua situasi ini, layaknya pertaruhan dalam sebuah permainan.

Menjaga Sikap dan Citra Diri nadiah coba menampilkan kadar kontradiksi dan kontras serupa dalam empat karya potretnya. empat figur yang telah ia olah sedemikian rupa penampilannya adalah potret orang-orang terdekat dalam hidupnya sehari-hari: dirinya sendiri (Nyi Blorong Bertanggungjawab); Arie, suaminya (Tumbal); Helen, ibunya (Poised); dan seorang perempuan tua yang setiap hari memulung sampah di rumah nadiah (Null and Void).

Dalam Nyi Blorong Bertanggungjawab, nadiah meletakkan potretnya sendiri di sana. ‘Perjumpaan’ nadiah dengan nyi Blorong adalah perjumpaan yang tidak disengaja. Ketika nadiah menempelkan potret wajahnya sebagai kepala binatang berwujud ular, dua orang asistennya satu suara menyebut potret ini sebagai nyi Blorong. nadiah pun terdorong untuk mengenal lebih jauh tentang salah satu tokoh mitologi Jawa ini. ia mencari sebanyaknya referensi di internet dan menonton banyak film kelas B tentang karakter nyi Blorong.

nyi Blorong konon mampu memberikan kekayaan berlimpah bagi orang yang datang untuk memuja dan mengabdi kepadanya. Atas kekayaan yang diperolehnya, si Pengabdi ini harus menyediakan tumbal (kurban manusia) kepada nyi Blorong.

Potret nadiah ‘sebagai nyi Blorong’ ini berhadap-hadapan dengan Tumbal, di mana potret Arie sebagai kepala sesosok makhluk yang menyerupai ayam. Wujud ayam ini sejatinya adalah seekor burung garuda. Oleh nadiah, wujud burung garuda nan gagah ini dideformasi, hingga pada titik tertentu nilai-nilai kegagahannya dicerabut hingga bertransformasi menjadi sesosok ayam. seekor ayam yang tampilan cakarnya menunjukkan karakter yang tangguh dan sekaligus tertutup.

nadiah bermaksud mendikotomikan hubungan gender dengan menghadap-hadapkan ‘nyi Blorong’ dan ‘tumbal’-nya. ia juga hendak bermain-main sedikit dengan mitologi nyi Blorong, isu tentang kesejahteraan, dan pengorbanan.

Pada dasarnya, ada makna ganda dalam karya-karya drawing nadiah, yakni gagasan filosofis dan riset akademis di satu sisi, dan di sisi lain drawing ini juga mempresentasikan gejolak-gejolak yang terjadi dalam kehidupan pribadinya. “Ketika kita menerima banyak hal, di sisi lain ada hal yang hilang dari kita,” ujar nadiah.

sesungguhnya, selalu ada dinamika hubungan personal dalam sebuah keluarga. seiring dengan pertumbuhan kita sebagai manusia—semisal transformasi peran dari awalnya menjadi seorang anak, lalu menjadi orangtua dari anak kita sendiri—memberi kita peluang untuk merefleksikan relasi kita dengan ayah-ibu kita. Di luar dari kasih sayang yang tetap kita pelihara kepada ayah-ibu kita, kita kemudian bisa menjadi lebih dingin melakukan penilaian dan memiliki persepsi terhadap ayah-ibu kita: ayah kita sebagai si A, ibu kita sebagai si B. Orangtua pada akhirnya menjadi individu utuh dan merdeka di mata anaknya.

berada dan hidup di dalamnya. namun, pada saat yang sama ada pemujaan yang dilakukan, sehingga ia harus diangkat dengan tandu. ia diangkat seperti layaknya Kanjeng sultan atau Kanjeng ratu.

A Homeless Enclosure merupakan kolase dari berbagai elemen. nadiah mengambil kerangka utama bangunan ini dari warung keliling yang seringkali ia jumpai di Alun-alun selatan Kraton Yogyakarta. Dalam karya ini, nadiah mengganti seluruh bagian elemen warung keliling ini: dinding kayu/gebyok ia ambil dari rumah limasan miliknya, dinding kawat dari salah satu tandu kerajaan yang ia lihat di Kraton surakarta-Jawa tengah, serta struktur atap seng yang ia potret di kompleks pemakaman sebuah kampung. seperti layaknya becak bagi pengendaranya, warung keliling juga berfungsi sebagai tempat tinggal bagi pemiliknya. Properti ini menjadi sarana mereka mencari nafkah, tetapi juga tempat mereka bermukim. Ada kontradiksi yang sangat kuat sebagaimana tertera dalam judul karya ini. ruang bervolume tak lebih dari satu meter persegi ini tegas-tegas menjadi batas demarkasi kehidupan seseorang (atau malah sebuah keluarga kecil) yang berfungsi sebagaimana ‘layaknya sebuah rumah’, tapi pada prinsipnya mereka adalah tunawisma yang terus bergerak dari satu wilayah ke wilayah lainnya.

Gerobak Agung merupakan gabungan dua elemen: gerobak dan payung bertingkat tiga. Di banyak kota di indonesia, gerobak semacam ini lazim digunakan untuk mengangkut sampah dari rumah-rumah menuju tempat pembuangan sementara. Bahkan di Jakarta ada sekelompok orang yang dikenal sebagai ‘manusia gerobak’ yang menggunakan sarana kerja tersebut juga sebagai tempat tinggal (tidak hanya seorang, tapi juga bahkan sebuah keluarga!). Dalam karya ini, nadiah mencantumkan elemen penanda yang mengacu pada kewibawaan kelas sosial tertentu, yakni payung tingkat tiga. Payung tingkat tiga ini nadiah temukan di Kraton surakarta. nadiah hendak menunjukkan makna kekonyolan dalam karya ini. Gerobak Agung ini menjadi sebuah objek bergerak yang tampak janggal. secara fisik, ia sama sekali tidak memiliki keterkaitan dengan payung istana, bahkan ia sama sekali tidak memiliki fungsi, selain semata-mata keinginan untuk menjadi tampak keningratan. melalui karya-karya berupa bangun arsitektural dalam pameran ini, nadiah ingin menunjukkan tegangan antara keagungan dan gengsi yang dirasakan orang-orang, keagungan dan keanggunan yang mereka jalani, dikaitkan dengan keagungan kultural, namun dari sisi ekonomi pada kenyataannya situasi mereka sungguh-sungguh bertolak belakang.

Jujur saja, bagi saya dalam beberapa hal nadiah mampu mengamati fenomena-fenomena sosial yang terkadang luput dari amatan saya. ini bisa jadi karena bagaimanapun nadiah adalah ‘orang asing’ yang membawa ‘bagasi’-nya sendiri. Di luar ‘perbedaan bagasi’ antara yang nadiah dan yang saya miliki, menurut hemat saya, setiap orang menciptakan sendiri level serta bentuk gengsi dan kebanggaannya. tidak pernah ada standar baku untuk itu (dan selalu menyenangkan melihat kreativitas serta bentuk-bentuk penyikapan dalam menciptakan standarnya sendiri-sendiri ini!).

tetapi, tentu saja pameran ini merupakan presentasi atas proses pembelajaran dan pemahaman nadiah atas fenomena sosial Yogyakarta. sama halnya ketika nadiah mencoba memahami perbedaan tradisi melayat di daerah ini. Bagi nadiah, struktur dan norma sosial di Yogyakarta membuat tradisi melayat menjadi menarik.

Berbeda dengan tradisi di daerah asalnya—Kuala Lumpur—prosesi perkabungan dihadiri hanya oleh orang-orang yang diundang oleh pihak yang berduka. namun di Yogyakarta, ketika ada pengumuman sripahan (meninggalnya seseorang), maka siapa pun bisa datang melayat, tak peduli kualitas relasi antara pelayat dengan almarhum/almarhumah.

Ada dalam posisi menjadi tuan rumah dari begitu banyak orang yang datang melayat (sebagian dikenal akrab, sebagian lainnya bahkan kemungkinan tidak kenal sama sekali), pihak berduka ‘dipaksa’ menyimpan perasaan dan emosinya. mereka harus menjaga sebaik-baiknya sikap tenang dan anggun dalam menghadapi kehilangan. nadiah melihat bahwa pada dasarnya keanggunan ini melalui proses berhadap-hadapan dengan kesusahan mendalam dan penuh tantangan. “ini adalah pengalaman yang sangat Jawa bagiku. Kamu dituntut untuk tetap kuat dan stabil, seberat apapun cobaan yang dihadapi,” ujar nadiah.

Gagasan utama tentang menjaga sikap dan citra diri kemudian membawa nadiah untuk menggunakan potret ibunya dalam karya Poised. nadiah memandang ibunya sebagai sesosok perempuan yang sangat rapi menjaga sikapnya, yang tidak pernah menunjukkan emosi secara berlebihan. Dalam pemahaman nadiah, perjalanan hidup yang keraslah yang membuat sang ibu memiliki keanggunan dalam bersikap. ia juga menunjukkan kecenderung karakter yang tertutup. nadiah memilih sosok dan sikap tubuh seekor burung untuk merepresentasikan pemahamannya terhadap sang ibu.

nadiah sedang melakukan pemilihan tentang konteks kediriannya, dalam konteks masa sekarang, ketika ia menjatuhkan pilihan kepada jenis-jenis binatang yang ia bentuk dan eksplorasi di pameran ini. ‘Konteks kedirian dan konteks masa kini’ menjadi penentu dalam proses pemilihan binatang-binatang yang merepresentasikan gagasan dan proses kontemplasinya.

It’s about Having Options, Making Choices, and Taking the ConsequencesGagasan tentang permainan dalam karya Null and Void adalah juga sebuah refleksi diri, tentang diri dan profesi nadiah sebagai perupa. ia pun sejatinya seperti sedang menjalani sebuah permainan. Bahwa ia harus cerdas-cerdas membuat perencanaan, menyusun jadwal kerja, memperkaya referensi diri dengan melakukan penelitian, pengalaman langsung di lapangan, serta memelihara pergaulan profesional, di samping tanggungjawabnya yang utama kepada keluarga.

sebagaimana ibu bekerja pada umumnya, nadiah mencoba menghadapi bermacam-macam tuntutan, ekspektasi, dan idealisme. semuanya bisa datang dari luar dirinya, tetapi lebih sering pula datang dari dalam dirinya sendiri. tekanan dan tegangan ini bisa menjadi produktif ketika nadiah mensikapinya dengan liat dan taktis. ia dikondisikan mengurai persoalan secara efektif, efisien, serta sebisa mungkin membuat dirinya dan orang-orang terdekatnya bahagia.

Bersama suaminya — Arie — dan putera semata wayang mereka — Lanang Pijar — mereka bisa menghabiskan waktu berkualitas dengan rekreasi keluarga. tempat-tempat yang dikunjungi bisa jadi tempat yang menjadi sumber pengalaman dan sumber inspirasi bagi mereka, misalnya Kraton surakarta, kebun binatang, atau sekadar Alun-alun selatan Kraton Yogyakarta.

Bekerja dengan kualitas relasi yang baik bersama seorang gallerist tiga tahun belakangan ini dirasa cocok dengan situasinya sebagai perupa yang berkeluarga kecil. nadiah bisa memenuhi tanggungjawabnya kepada semua pihak. ia bisa bekerja dalam jadwal yang temata.

namun, hidup itu pada dasarnya adalah soal menghadapi pilihan-pilihan. Ada konsekuensi bawaan yang menyertai pilihan apa pun yang kita ambil. Pola kerjanya sebagai perupa saat ini dibandingkan sepuluh tahun lalu mengalami perubahan.

Dahulu, nadiah memiliki ‘kemewahan’ banyak waktu untuk membaca, melakukan riset, dan memformulasi teori-teori dalam pikirannya. ini bisa memakan waktu hingga berbulan-bulan. Kali ini, ia memiliki jadwal ketat. Oleh karenanya, ia harus mempercayai instingnya. Walaupun proses berkaryanya tidak lagi melalui proses riset akademis yang ideal menurut standarnya sendiri, karya yang dihasilkan adalah valid. “Hidup sedemikian sibuk, hingga aku terkadang kehabisan ide, kehabisan tenaga, tetapi aku tidak kehabisan inspirasi. Aku kehabisan tenaga secara intelektual, tetapi aku tidak kehabisan tenaga secara instingtif. secara instingtif, aku merasa lebih tangguh. Aku lebih dipenuhi semangat dan rasa senang”, ujar nadiah.

Aisyah Hialal adalah seorang ibu rumah tangga dan penulis lepas.

Dartar istilah*Congklak : Congkak atau Congklak adalah sebuah permainan yang bermuasal dari melayu, dimainkan di beberapa negara, seperti malaysia, singapura, indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, dan thailand wilayah selatan. Congklak—yang seringkali dianggap sebagai permainan anak perempuan—memiliki peraturan sederhana yang memungkinkan papan-papan permainannya memiliki jumlah lubang yang berbeda-beda. Papan congklak—umumnya terbuat dari kayu jati atau kayu mahoni—seringkali dibentuk menjadi lebih rumit dalam bentuk yang beragam, seperti seekor naga atau seekor burung. Kata congklak diyakini berasal dari kata melayu kuno “congak”, bermakna “perhitungan mental”, yang pada prinsipnya dipraktikkan dalam permainan ini. Ketika memainkannya, pemain efisien yang mentalnya menghitung beberapa langkah lebih maju dibanding lawannya, akan menangguk keuntungan dalam mengumpulkan nilai untuk memenangkan permainan ini. [sumber: Wikipedia]

Works

Nyi Blorong Bertanggung JawabCharcoal on Paper Collage, 239cm x 84cm, 2013

Tertindas yang DitanduCharcoal on Paper Collage, 294cm x 75cm, 2013

PoisedCharcoal on Paper Collage, 285.5cm x 77cm, 2013

A Homeless EnclosureCharcoal on Paper Collage, 167cm x 167.5cm, 2013

Null and VoidCharcoal on Paper Collage, 258cm x 126.5cm, 2013

Null and Voiddetails

Gerobak AgungCharcoal on Paper Collage, 288cm x 135.5cm, 2013

TumbalCharcoal on Paper Collage, 164.5cm x 114.5cm, 2013

Kandang NingratCharcoal on Paper Collage, 242cm x 177cm, 2013

nADiAH BAmADHAJ

Education1989 - 1992Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), University of Canterbury, Christchurch, new Zealand.

Awards2004 - Asian Public intellectual Follow-Up Grant, funded by

the nippon Foundation.2003 - Asian Public intellectual Fellowship, funded by the- 2002 nippon Foundation, administered by iKmAs,

Universiti Kebangsaan malaysia.2001 - Juror’s Choice, Philip morris malaysia Art Awards

2001.2001 - Artist-in-residence, rimbun Dahan Artist residency- 2000 Program, Kuang, selangor, malaysia.

Solo Exhibitions2014 - Poised for Degradation, richard Koh Fine Art,

singapore.2012 - Keseragaman, richard Koh Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur,

malaysia.2008 - surveillance, Valentine Willie Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur,

malaysia.2004 - enamlima sekarang (sixtyfive now), Galeri Lontar,

Komunitas Utan Kayu, Jakarta, indonesia.2003 - enamlima sekarang (sixtyfive now), Benteng

Vredeburg museum, Yogyakarta, indonesia.2001 - 1965 - rebuilding its monuments, Galeri Petronas,

Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

nadiah Bamadhaj was born in Petaling Jaya, West

malaysia in 1968. trained as a sculptor at the University

of Canterbury in new Zealand, she now produces

drawing and digital images. she has worked in non-

government organizations, lectured in art, and has

written on both malaysia and indonesia. in 2000 she

began full-time art-practice and was awarded the nippon

Foundation’s Asian Public intellectual Fellowship in 2002,

electing to spend her fellowship period in Yogyakarta,

indonesia, where she currently lives with her husband

and two-year-old son. Her artwork continues to focus on

the social intricacies of Yogyakarta society, using myth,

architecture, and dwelling to articulate her observations.

Group Exhibitions2013 - Parallax: AseAn, Changing Landscapes and Wandering

stars, Hanam Art Center in Gyeonggi-do, Korea. - Welcome to the Jungle, Contemporary Art in southeast

Asia from the Collection of singapore Art museum, singapore.

- Welcome to the Jungle, Contemporary Art museum, Kumamoto, Japan.

- Bersama, muzium dan Galeri seni Bank negara malaysia - COnVerGenCe “Cultural Legacies”, Galeri PetrOnAs,

Kuala Lumpur, malaysia. - Art stage singapore 2013, marina Bay sands, singapore.2012 - Art stage singapore 2012, marina Bay sands, singapore. 2011 - its now or never Part ii, singapore Art museum,

singapore. - Art stage singapore 2011, marina Bay sands, singapore. - Beyond the self, Contemporary Portraiture from Asia,

national Potrait Gallery, Canberra, Australia. - Works from southeast Asia, richard Koh Fine Art.2010 - Creative index, the nippon Foundation’s Asian Public

intellectual Fellowship’s 10th Anniversary, silverlens Gallery, manila, Philippines.

- Beirut Art Fair 2010 (menasaart), Lebanon. - Agenda Kebudayaan Gusdurisme, 100-day memorial

for Abdurrahman Wahid @ Gus Dur, Langgeng Gallery, magelang, indonesia.

- Beacons of Archipelago Contemporary Art from southeast Asia, seoul, Korea.

2009 - Jogja Jamming: Jogja Biennale X, taman Budaya Yogyayakarta, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

- earth and Water: mapping Art in southeast Asia, singapore Art museum, singapore.

- Photoquai 09: 2nd Biennale Photographic Festival, musée du quai Branly, Paris, France.

- Cartographical Lure, Valentine Willie Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- Jakarta Biennale Xiii: Fluid Zone, Galeri nasional, Jakarta, indonesia.

- Littoral Drift, Uts Gallery, University of technology, sydney, Australia.

- Code share: 5 continents, 10 biennales, 20 artists, Contemporary Art Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania.

2008 - Wonder, singapore Biennale, singapore City Hall, singapore.

- east-south, Out of sight, south and southeast Asia still and moving images, tea Pavilion, Gouangzhou triennale, China.

- the scale of Black, Contemporary Drawings from southeast Asia, Ht Contemporary space, singapore.

2007 - Out of the mould: the Age of reason, 10 malaysian Women Artists, Galeri Petronas, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- Photofolio, Jogja Gallery, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

2006 - Fast Futures: Asian Video Art, the Asia society india Centre, Little theatre Auditorium, nCPA, mumbai, india.

- the War must Go On, Clockshop Billboard series, corner of Fairfax and Wilshire, Los Angeles, UsA.

- tV-tV, Week 34, Video Art Festival, Copenhagen, Denmark. - Building Conversations: nadiah Bamadhaj and michael Lee,

singapore Art museum, singapore. - signed and Dated, Valentine Willie Fine Art Gallery, Kuala

Lumpur, malaysia. - Holding Up Half the sky by Women Artists, national Art

Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia. - rethinking nordic Colonialism: A Postcolonial exhibition

Project in Five Acts, Act 3: Faroe Art museum, tórshavn, the Faroe islands.

- Biennale Jakarta 2006, Beyond the Limits and its Challenges, Galeri Lontar, Komunitas Utan Kayu, indonesia.

- Fast Futures: Asian Video Art, Asian Contemporary Art Week, rubin museum of Art, new York, UsA.

- Home Productions, Video Art exhibition, singapore Art museum, singapore.

2005 - Consciousness of the Here and now, Biennial Yogya Viii 05, Kandhang menjangan Heritage site, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

- Home Works iii: A Forum on Cultural Practices, Lebanese Association for Plastic Arts, Ashkal Alwan, Beirut, Lebanon.

- 147 tahun merdeka (147 Years of independence), in collaboration with tian Chua, reka Art space, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- Urban Culture, CP Biennale, museum of the indonesian national Bank, Jakarta, indonesia.

- you are here, Valentine Willie Fine Arts Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- media in “f”, the 9th international interdisciplinary Congress on Women, ewha Woman’s’ University Campus, seoul, south Korea.

2004 - Flying Circus Project: 04, seeing with Foreign eyes, theatreworks, Fort Canning Park, singapore.

- Batu Bata tanah Air (Building Blocks of Homeland), a collaborative project with tian Chua, Cemeti Art House, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

- Living Art: regional Artists respond to HiV/AiDs, Queen’s Gallery, XV international AiDs Conference, Bangkok, thailand.

- Paradise Found/ Paradise Lost, WWF Art For nature Fundraising exhibition, rimbun Dahan Gallery, Kuang, selangor, malaysia.

- seriously Beautiful, reka Art studio, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- Gedebook, Group Fundraising exhibition, Kedai Kebun Forum, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

2002 - Asean Art Awards, Bali international Convention Center, nusa Dua, Bali, indonesia.

- touch, WWF Art For nature Fundraising exhibition, rimbun Dahan Gallery, Kuang, selangor, malaysia.

- Pause, Gwangju Biennale 2002, exhibition Hall 1, Gwangju, south Korea.

2001 - Philip morris Art Awards, national Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- exhibit X, taksu Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia. - Flashpoint, WWF Art For nature Fundraising exhibition,

rimbun Dahan Gallery, Kuang, selangor, malaysia. - exhibit A, Valentine Willie Fine Arts Gallery, Kuala

Lumpur, malaysia.2000 - Arang, taksu Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

Written Publications2010 - review. “ Underutilised Democracy”, Off the edge

magazine, march 2010.2009 - Article. “Upon Deflection”, Off the edge magazine,

november 2009.2007 - Article. “Creating Critical Perspectives of normalised

spaces in malaysia”, Candidacy Proposal PhD, november 2007, (Unpublished).

2003 - Article. “1965: indonesian Historical memory - the enforcement of Forget”, second Asian Public intellectuals Workshop, economic Prospects, Cultural encounters, and Political Decisions: scenes in a moving Asia (east and southeast), Denpasar, Bali, indonesia, 8-12 December 2003.

- Article. “30th september 2003”, Latitudes magazine - views from 6 degrees above and 11 degrees below the equator, Volume 32, Bali, indonesia 2003.

1999 - Article. “the Hot Potato: sexuality Advocacy rights in malaysia”, Published in in God’s image, Journal of Asian Women’s resource Center for Culture and theology, Vol. 20, no.2, June 2001, and in www.saksi.com, issue 3, 1999

- interview with Xanana Gusmao in Cipinang Prison, Jakarta 1998, Published in www.saksi.com, issue 3, 1999.

1997 - Book of non Fiction. Aksi Write, rhino Press and Word Wizards, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia, 1997.

Public Collections- Petronas Gallery, Kuala Lumpur- muzium & Galeri tuanku Fauziah, Usm Penang- singapore Art museum, singapore- the singapore national museum, singapore

- Fetish: Object Art Project #1, Biasa Artspace, Denpasar, indonesia.

- selamat Datang ke (Welcome to) malaysia: An exhibition of contemporary art from malaysia, Gallery 4A, sydney, Australia.

- Processing the City: Art on Architecture, Central market Annex Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, malaysia.

- never mind, Video Art exhibition, ViaVia Café, Yogyakarta, indonesia.

ACKnOWLeDGements

this work came out of a year of many challenges. Critical in helping me through the process of gathering my ideas, researching the topic, hunting down objects to draw, pulling my hair out, resolving the designs, and finally executing the drawings, were several steadfast family members, friends, and hard-working staff. i would like to thank richard Koh and the staff of richard Koh Fine Art (rKFA) for striking a fine balance between providing tremendous support and letting me do my thing. thank you for organizing, cataloging, and hosting Poised for Degradation, my second solo show with rFKA. thank you to my assistant Desri surya Kirstiani for her tremendous help in the studio, and for being part of the team of women in my home from whom i learn much about the stoic complexities of Javanese women. my good friend and photographer Heru Prasetyo Jalal, who accompanied me on all my object hunts and providing additional support; such as dragging me out of knee high cow shit in the southern padi fields in Yogyakarta, being totally cool about the fact that we had just climbed the 409 steps up to the Makam Raja-Raja Imogiri only to find it closed, and for calming me down after being seriously spooked by the penunggu of the Keraton Surakarta museums. thank you Aisyah Hilal, my relentlessly open-hearted and loving friend, who despite her many responsibilities made time to talk with me about my work, and write the text that helps illustrate the ideas behind this exhibition. thank you Anto Hercules, from the aptly named emergency technical services. i would also like to also thank my father Ahmed s. Bamadhaj for his enthusiasm, love and support. And my husband Arie Dyanto, the fleshy rock upon which i cling, for his critical role in helping me turn into myself, and for his participation in this exhibition. Finally i’d like to thank my son, Lanang Pijar Lentera, for being a ‘not in the least bit terrible two-year-old’ despite always hearing the words “Umi harus kerja”. You’re my lantern, the great love of my life.

nadiah BamadhajDecember 2013

this catalogue has been published on the occasion of the exhibition

nadiah BamadhajPoised for Degradation14 Jan - 14 Feb 2014

at richard Koh Fine Art, singaporeArtspace@Helutrans39 Keppel road #01-05 tanjong Pagar Distriparksingapore 089065 t +65 6221 1209F +65 6221 1249

essay by Aisyah HilalPhotography by Heru Prasetyo JalalCatalogue by richard Koh Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur

Limited edition 500 copies

Lot no. 2F-3, Level 2Bangsar Village ii, Jalan telawi 1 Bangsar Baru59100 Kuala Lumpur, malaysiat +60 (03) 2283 3677 F +60 (03) 2283 4677

www.rkfineart.com

KUALA LUMPURLot No. 2F-3, Level 2Bangsar Village II, Jalan Telawi 1 Bangsar Baru59100 Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaT +60 (03) 2283 3677 F +60 (03) 2283 4677

SINGAPOREArtspace@Helutrans39 Keppel Road #01-05 Tanjong Pagar DistriparkSingapore 089065 T +65 6221 1209F +65 6221 1249

www.rkfineart.com