Wouldn’t it be great if you could combine your passion for art with helping others in need? At Indonesian Luxury we think so too! That is why we are extremely happy to support a fundraising event with Happy Hearts Indonesia, a non-profit organisation working for access to education and safe school buildings. For this charity event, six accomplished Indonesian artists applied their talent and style on a piece of design furniture. The participating artists were Arahmaiani, Oky Rey Montha, Labadiou Piko, Sinta Tantra, Alexander Thian and Arkiv Vilmansa.
Happy Hearts is a very special organisation. It was founded by supermodel Petra Nemcova in 2006 to help children, who were affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami a couple of years earlier. The organisation also started to rebuild destroyed schools in Yogyakarta after the earthquake in 2006. Ten years later, Happy Hearts expanded its activities to Nusa Tenggara Timur, where it now helps set up schools in underprivileged communities. Happy Hearts believes that every child has a right to better education, which is also the key to eradicating poverty. The upcoming charity art auction will in particular support the #iamchange initiative launched this year, which celebrates Happy Hearts Indonesia’s fifth anniversary and aims to rebuild 200 schools in only five years!
The main concept behind the auctioned items is to build a bridge between art and design, and to create unique pieces, which are coveted amongst collectors. Many experts from the interior design industry recognise that art has become a vital component adding character and an individual touch to a modern home. Art inspires interior designers through its ability to transform a space and similarly, a room or a piece of furniture can ignite the creative process of an artist. All of the furniture pieces were supplied by BIKA Furniture.
For the artists, this is also a way to contribute to the community after them enjoying successful careers. Each auctioned artwork will be completely one of a kind and we are very excited to see the final results of this “art meets design” collaboration! Although all the artists are from Indonesia, the selection is varied and interesting, as we have people using different media.
Arahmaiani is renowned and internationally recognised for her engaging and provocative commentaries on social, political and cultural issues. Since the 1980s, her work has been included in over 100 solo and group exhibitions around the world and shown at several biennials and museums in cities such as Geneva, São Paulo, Israel, Brisbane and New York.
The second artist is Alexander Thian, a young photographer who has attracted an impressive number of followers on various social media platforms thanks to his relatable stories and captivating images. These personal stories accompanying each shot are an integral part of Alex’s appeal, completing his ingenious ability to capture the culture, scenery and people of the uncharted areas he explores, in Indonesia and abroad. He just had his solo show during Art Jakarta in August.
Arkiv Vilmansa has followed a different path, since he initially pursued a career in architecture, however soon after graduating, he engaged in his passion for drawing figures. He has since become a prominent name in the field of art and design, and is particularly popular in Tokyo and Taipei.
Sinta Tantra, a London-based painter and muralist with Balinese origins has branched out with a new medium of textile design for her contribution. Tantra’s work is an experiment in scale and dimension, a hybridity of pop and formalism. Her decade of work in the public realm has produced distinct colour abstractions which wrap around the built environment, enlivening and transforming them in the process. Her work now ranges from small painted canvases to huge architectural installations, from bold, tropical colours to a Calder-like minimalism.
Hailing from the highlands of North Sumatra where he grew up, Oky Rey Montha has won several competitions and awards for his work on national and international level. Intrigued by the philosophy of man, Oky commonly likes to explore themes and symbols relating to the psychosocial process of mankind, by playing with different shades of colour. Last but not least, Labadiou Piko is a self-taught painter who started as a photographer. Based in Yogyakarta, he has exhibited extensively at home and abroad, exploring the intuitive mind and daily memories in his works.
All proceeds of the live art auction was donated for the rebuilding of schools in Nusa Tenggara Timur. Deborah Carr Iskandar, founder and director of Indonesian Luxury and ISA Art Advisory, was responsible for auctioneering the artworks. As a long-standing and prominent figure in the Asian art scene, actively participating in a charity event is for her a way to give something back to society, while applying her knowledge and expertise.
This exciting charity event provided guests with world-class entertainment, brought to us by Sveceny on the violin to be accompanied by Klaus on the guitar. There was a special auction preview held from 31 Oct to 6 November 2018 at Bika Living in Plaza Indonesia to showcase the artworks. The auction was held at a private event on 7 November 2018.