April/May, 1998
No. 034/VI/98
cover story
Ground Breakers
Bali's top corporate
women
Out of the Frying
Pan
The legacy of widow
burning in modern Bali
beyond
bali
Pedal Power
Cycling around Lombok
regular
features
Sidelines
The cultural
value of
Indonesia textiles
Adventure
Off-road trips by Land
Cruiser
Home Grown
Bali's surf hero of
nineties, Rizal Tanjung
Health and Beauty
Mandara's many
Bali
spas
Books
The Butterflies of Bali
Food
Four delis that have
survived the crisis
Photo Gallery
F.X. Marit captures nyepi
on film
Jungle
Drums
advertising index for
Bali Echo web site
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The
shadow puppet: truly one of Bali’s most extraordinary art forms. Small, beautifully
crafted leather figures are lit from behind, their images projected on to a screen in
huge, imposing shadows for all to see.
In some ways, Desak Nyoman Suarti is the living symbol of the Balinese shadow puppet. Through her international stature as an artist, dancer, jewelry designer, and musician, Suarti has projected the culture of Bali to all the world. Indeed, like the awesome shadows projected by the puppets, Suarti’s talent is larger than life.
National representative - International celebrity
Suarti is truly the daughter of Indonesia. Her paintings are inspired by ancient tradition and the natural beauty of her homeland. Her dance celebrates movement of dance, traditional craftsman-ship of Bali and Java, and patterns inspired by nature and the architectural motifs found in the temples.
Because she was blessed with so much artistic talent, and had the passion and
discipline to follow her muses, Suarti achieved a number of firsts for her beloved
homeland. She was the first Balinese woman artist to have a solo exhibit of her paintings,
the first Balinese dancer to work with the prestigious Asia Society in New York to teach
throughout the U.S., the founder of one of Bali’s first women’s gamelan
orchestra, and, most notably, she the first Indonesian jewelry designer to achieve
international notoriety, and to become a media celebrity.
Since September 1996, Suarti has been a featured television personality in the United States and England on the QVC and Value Vision home-shopping networks. She appeared for the first time in just a one - hour segment. The response was so tremendous that she continue to be invited back almost every month. To date, Suarti has put in more than 60 hours of live television, broadcast nationwide.
It’s no surprise that Suarti has been so successful. She has the artist’s vision of what is beautiful, and the boundless creativity to design a variety of pieces that marry ancient tradition with modern sensibility. People respond to her jewelry as they would to a piece of art that is timeless and has universal, cross-cultural appeal.
Born to Create
Suarti’s destiny as an artist was fated. Born during the religious
festival celebrating Saraswati’s birthday, she was named after this goddess of art
and knowledge. Dance was Suarti’s first passion - influenced by her grandmother who
was herself an accomplished dancer. Suarti began at the age of seven, and by the age of
12, Suarti’s career as an international ambassador of Balinese culture had begun. She
was commissioned to teach dance at the village of Sebatu, of soon after, in the late
1960s, she competed in the first all island dance competition, and captured the top price
in her specialty, Teruna Jaya. She performed for the President of Indonesia and the Queen
of Holland, and toured Australia.
Upon her return, Suarti was drawn to the visual arts. “My father was a well-known, talented artist, “ she recalled in a recent interview in New York. “I would sit with him and watch him paint. One day I took a canvas, went up on the roof, and did my very first painting - a rice paddy. It was all in secret because women weren’t really allowed to paint. But by the time I had about six paintings, my father saw them and he was very proud !”
Above:
1. Cobra holding eclipse of the moon, with quartz stalactite crystal, by Suarti
2. "Tulang Naga Kotak", Borobudur and Anyaman styles.
3. Suarti in the TV studio.
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