Yunizar: the Garden in Eden

Gajah Gallery Singapore presents “The Garden in Eden”, a solo exhibition by Yunizar held in conjunction with Singapore Art Week and Art Stage Singapore. Co-founder of the historically significant Jendela Group, Yunizar has garnered critical acclaim for his practice of negating aesthetic trends towards realism, forming instead a body of work that reflects an ideal of imaginative and authentic expression. He remains an influential figure among a growing sect of Indonesian artists that invite a fresh perspective on contemporary art, not just in Indonesia but in the greater region of South East Asia.

“The Garden In Eden” will feature the artist’s latest creation in addition to a section of his seminal works from past years. His new works will premiere directly from the artist’s 
own studio, in addition to bronze sculptures crafted at Yogya Art Lab, an artistic production house and foundry built by Gajah Gallery.

When it comes to image-making, Yunizar discards the impositions of conceptual rationality and functional narrative. His process is organically derived – following impulse and feeling rather than structure or accuracy. The artist is know to revere the idea of “Rasa”, which engages both the artist and viewer in an experience of sensation and natural instinct. Thus, his recognizable forms have more to do with the essence of the subject than its actual appearance. He draws his subject matter from his daily life, infused with strong impressions of his cultural heritage. The simplicity of visual elements within his works, according to Yunizar, is the result of a personal aesthetic judgment. He seeks beauty, especially in the trivial and in what is deemed by all else as useless and unimportant. To capture intuition and impulse: that is the great aim of the artist.

Yunizar has in recent years completed successful solo exhibitions in London and Hong Kong, in addition to showcasing regularly at international art fairs. He received the Philip Morris Award for best painting in 1998, and partecipated in “Lokanat – Ground Zero” a landmark group show in Yangon, Myanmar.