Yuswantoro Adi has been known for his works that offer some social commentaries by employing ironical forms. In observing the various social facts, he tends to be critical toward values that people generally take for granted as norms. Armed with such attitude, his subconscious always selects and interprets many phenomena in human life, especially the ones creating contradictions. In his effort to depict the social facts, he builds a new construction by using visual symbols in his works. The depictions appear to be unique as he frequently employs certain objects - children or money - to ridicule these sociopolitical facts, subtly or slyly. Supported by his strong realist techniques, he had once even gained considerable success with his portrayal of the ironies in the Indonesian monetary crisis of 1997.

In the work displayed in this biennale, Yuswantoro Adi again offers a social commentary full of irony. Through the title DPR/MPR (2003), Yuswantoro already reveals his satirical reading on these institutions. According to him, DPR - Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat or the Indonesian Legislative Assembly - actually stands for "Dalam Permainan Riang" ("In a Gleeful Game"), while MPR - Majelis Perwakilan Rakyat or the Indonesian Consultative Assembly - stands for "Mereka Paling Rasional" ("They are the Most Rational of All"). It was a mocking title, not only because the institutions have now become quite theatrical, but also because Gus Dur's remark that the MPR resembled a kindergarten seems to be increasingly truer everyday.

The painting slyly depicts the assembly room being used by children as a playground. The children seem to be noisily climbing the chairs and tables with innocent cheerfulness. The panorama betrays a contradictive atmosphere. As Yuswantoro adds another parody on the Indonesian motto, turning "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" ("Unity in Diversity") into "Bhinneka Tinggal Apa?" ("What left of the Diversity?"), the painting as a whole seems to be depicting the worrisome situation of the country. Yuswantoro wants to steal our attention to the bleak conditions of the country by portraying the cacophony in the assembly.

In another occasion, Yuswantoro has once used a medium other than painting. He arranged an exhibition space so that it resembled a kindergarten, complete with the various toys. The toys themselves were actually installation works full of ironies about the children's lives, or even offering a wider social commentary. Although he has never employed such technique again since then, it still showed how his exploration to depict the ironies of life by way of children seemed never-ending.

During Yuswantoro Adi's creative journey, he has always explored the realistic techniques so that it can now be said that he has mastered the techniques. In his early career as a painter in Indonesia, his realist skills in portraying many social phenomena by depicting coins and currency were unique and caught the attentions of critics. His works put him into a group of painters with their own genre; painters who have mastered the realist skills to develop further the creativity in the Indonesian contemporary art.

M. Agus Burhan

Born on November 11, 1966 in Semarang.
Studied at Indonesia Institute of The Arts (ISI), Yogyakarta (1986).

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
1998 "Money and Our Children", Bentara Budaya Art Centre, Yogyakarta.
1999 "Playing and Learning", Lontar Gallery, Jakarta and Bentara Budaya Art Centre, Yogyakarta.

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
1998 Travelling Exhibition to Manila, Brunei and Singapore.
1999 Fine Arts Biennial VI, Yogyakarta Cultural Centre, Yogyakarta.
2000 "Bentara Budaya Collections", Bentara Budaya Art Centre, Yogyakarta.
2001 "Reading Frida", Nadi Gallery, Jakarta.
2002 "Dimensions of Raden Saleh", Semarang Gallery, Semarang; "Exploring Realism", Canna Gallery, Jakarta.
2003 "In Memoriam Gampingan", Gelaran Budaya Arts Centre and Benda Art Space, Yogyakarta; Vanessa Art House, Jakarta.

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