"The mood on the ground was one of relief that the upheaval had subsided before the fair, now so central to Indonesia's art market. "In this time of uncertainty and economy, gallerists did not set such high expectations this year," said Art Jakarta's director Tom Tandio. "The series of demonstrations definitely left a scar on us Jakartans, as we saw a number of civilians get hurt and even died during the process.""
"Among the booths with more pointed content was new Indonesian player Ara Contemporary, established earlier this year by former staff of Sullivan and Strumpf, Roh Projects and Art Jakarta itself, with a focus on promoting Southeast Asian artists. Among its more charged works were Agung Harahap's manipulated photograph of late Indonesian president and ladies's man Nkrumah Sukarno with Marilyn Monroe, selling for $4000, part of series depicting the politician with Western celebrities and politicians."
The fair ran from 3 to 5 October shortly after nationwide anticorruption protests that also spread to Nepal, the Philippines, Morocco and Madagascar. The atmosphere on the ground was relief that the upheaval had subsided before the event. Gallerists set modest expectations amid economic uncertainty. Demonstrations left scars on communities, with civilians hurt and killed. Jakarta's art world organised donations, attended protests and circulated digital posters on social media that strengthened community bonds. New Indonesian gallery Ara Contemporary, founded earlier in the year by former staff of several local galleries, focused on promoting Southeast Asian artists and sold around 70% of its stand, attracting collectors from Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong and Indonesia. Ara also showed sculpted paper installations by Irfan Hendrian.
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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