Silverlens and ROH Projects (Jakarta) continue their pioneering series of inter-gallery exchange and collaboration with the exhibition Iris, the first major presentation of large works by Indonesian artists Arin Dwihartanto Sunaryo (b. 1978, Bandung) and Syagini Ratna Wulan (b. 1979, Bandung) in Manila. Both based in Bandung, a city known for its vibrant art community that rests some 180 kilometers away from the capital city of Jakarta, Arin and Syagini initially trained in the famed Fine Arts program of the Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) before taking further studies in the UK in Central St. Martins and Goldsmiths, respectively. 

Arin has gained wide acclaim for his highly experimental approach to the painting process, often involving unexpected materials spanning from volcanic ash to culinary spices, each tiny speck caught in slow descent or mid splash, suspended in monumental resin panels. For her part, Syagini is regarded for her investigations into the nuances within the visual field, playing with the limits of perception and the human eye through the use of iridescent pigments, prismatic and spectral lighting and the rhythmic modulations of shaped canvases.  These, along with the subtler elements of their practice, will be made evident through a selection of works specially conceived for the space.

Two particular pieces, one from each artist, could be seen as the collaborative focal point of the exhibition. They rest on opposing walls, as if locked in a prolonged stand-off or a wordless dialogue. Upon closer look, one might notice a hint of echoing, with elements from each artist’s work crossing from one picture plane to the other, in a layered and circuitous feedback loop and it has now become impossible to retrace where it all began.

(This is the point where artists seemingly assume the role of a mystery novel writer or a puzzle maker: carefully choosing and laying out clues, weighing what could be revealed and what should be left unsaid.) While an actual mirror is depicted in both frames, the works themselves assume the quality of mirrors— more so if a mirror could ever be allowed to hold on and keep an imprint of the single image that it has chosen to reflect, in perpetuity.

With Iris, Arin and Syagini hint at the possibility of a common, albeit precarious ground; an imagined space where their individual practices could intersect.  And at this crossing, we bear witness to how two paths can briefly converge, not to espouse familiarity but to reinvigorate and further prolong our shared mysteries.

Words by Gary-Ross Pastrana

Arin Dwihartanto Sunaryo (b. 1978) is an artist based in Bandung, Indonesia and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Painting from the Bandung Institute of Technology (2001) and a Master’s of Fine Art at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, London (2005). He is particularly interested in the utilization of resin as a medium that conserves minerals, pigments, and other particles. He concentrates on the idea of expanding painting through investigating its core constituencies and forms. Recently his practice has begun to incorporate elements of video and new media, as well as sculpture. Arin’s work has been featured in numerous exhibitions in South East Asia, Europe and the United States including an exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York back in 2013. He was also nominated as a finalist for Best Emerging Artist using Painting by the Prudential Eye Awards in 2015.

Syagini Ratna Wulan a.k.a Cagi (b. 1979) is an artist based in Bandung, Indonesia who received a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts from the Faculty of Art and Design from the Bandung Institute of Technology (2001) and a Master’s Degree in Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths College, University of London (2005). She works with a non-linear visual approach throughout her career as an artist, and moves around many different mediums and methodologies of presenting her ideas. More recently, she has been focusing on interplays of light, colour, and perception. Syagini has been involved in numerous exhibitions domestically and abroad, such as the Jogjakarta Biennale in 2013, Solo Project at Art Stage Singapore 2016, as well as a recent solo exhibition, ‘Spectral Fiction’ at ROH Projects..