Gede Mahendra Yasa (Indonesian, b.1967)

Kematian Sita (Sacrifice of Sita) and Permainan Dadu (Game of Dice)

Footnotes

Provenance:
Private collection, Indonesia

葛得 ‧ 馬恆杜拉 ‧ 亞沙　悉多的犧牲　水墨樹皮紙　木框　二〇一六年作
簽名：Mahendra（背面）

葛得 ‧ 馬恆杜拉 ‧ 亞沙　骰子遊戲　壓克力畫布　木框　二〇一四年作
簽名：Gede Mahendra Yasa（背面）

來源：
印尼私人收藏

Gede Mahendra Yasa's Kematian Sita (Sacrifice of Sita) and Permainan Dadu (Game of Dice) are some of the Balinese artist's boldest and most original interpretations of traditional Balinese style paintings. Mahendra Yasa started to investigate the narrative and pictorial structure of old Balinese painting in 2010. The two works depict the centuries-old visual narratives of Hindu-Javanese epics: the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Kematian Sita (Sacrifice of Sita) exemplifies the ideal woman who possesses courage, chastity and sacrifices herself for her husband. It is a moral fable originating in India, told in Bali, but painted with ink and bark paper (Ulantaga paper) from China, showing how Bali sat at the crossroads of cultural influences. Permainan Dadu depicts a key moment in the Mahabharata epic where Duryodhana called upon the Pandava brothers to a game of dice. One of the brothers, Yudhishthira lost everything and even pledged and lost his wife, Draupadi, to a wager. Two contrasting stories of sacrifice and vice, of forbearance and foolishness, and interpreted in contemporary times by one of the most progressive Balinese artists who continually questions the place and relevance of history.