Ivan Sagita
Ivan Sagita was born in 1957 in East Java. A versatile artist with a diverse practice, Sagita is one of the most prominent artists who is associated with the Jogja surrealism movement in the 1980s, a form of surrealism that is locally situated and contextualized. Well-versed in the art of paintings and sculptures, his subjects are often portrayed as modern people with modern lives, who hold beliefs in traditional and folk myths, resulting in a unique blend of surrealism that bridges the two contrasting ideas seamlessly.
He’s known as an introvert and a mysterious artist, but his artworks are well known in the world of art. He uses realistic painting techniques to make unrealistic images. Out of this tension, he strives to depict the uncertainties of everyday life, especially as they impact those who are powerless in the face of poverty and injustice. He has said: "To me, life always goes differently than we expect to. This is why I tend to express uncertainties. Seeing the life in my surroundings I get the impression that everybody is controlled by an invisible power..."
Sagita's subjects are frequently the traditional Javanese people whose life struggles he observes in Yogyakarta. He has noted: "They struggle to survive, but they accept whatever happens to them." In preparation for a painting, he may take multiple photographs of a subject in an attempt to capture their inner reality. He almost always paints human figures repeatedly within one work, depicting them in shifting poses.
Artworks
Biography
Born
Malang, Indonesia, 1957
Education
Art Institute of Indonesia
Selected Solo Exhibitions
1988
Duta Fine Art Gallery, Jakarta, Indonesia
2000
Freezing the Time, Gallery of Northern Territory University, Darwin, Australia
2003
Red Mill Gallery, Vermont Studio Centre, USA
2005
Death Containing Life, CP Artspace, Jakarta, Indonesia
2011
Final Silence, Netherlands
2014
They Lay Their Heads on a Soft Place, Equator Art Projects, Singapore
2015
11 Art Installations, Sweden
Selected Group Exhibitions
2001
Osaka Triennale, Japan
2001
Membaca Frida Kahlo, Nadi Gallery, Jakarta, Indonesia
2003
CP Open Biennale, Jakarta, Indonesia
2005
Urban/Culture, CP Biennale 2005, Jakarta, Indonesia
2005
The Second Beijing International Art Biennale, China
2014
Equator Art Projects at Art Stage Singapore 2014, Singapore
2017
Linda Gallery at Art Stage Singapore 2017, Singapore
2018
Linda Gallery at Art Stage Singapore 2018, Singapore
2023
Bodies Beyond Our Own: A Group Show, Linda Gallery​
Awards
No Information Available
Public Collection
No Information Available