Artwork is framed.
Framed size: 52 x 43 x 3 cm
Unframed size: 42 x 33 x 0.3 cm
Total of 10 unique editions + 2AP

[Excerpt from curatorial essay written by Tan Siu Li for the exhibition "Baroque Archipelago" at Mizuma Gallery, January 2021]

TOTON’s work seeks to “question, express, and at the same time celebrate all the differences in Indonesian cultures and ideals”, translating the beauty of the archipelago’s rich traditions into contemporary designs while also commenting on the contradictions and tensions in Indonesian society. Some of his recent collections examine the current climate in Indonesia, where notions of female sexuality and public identities are shifting towards a regulated conservatism, in contrast to ‘traditional’ values or the ‘past’ where attitudes were relatively more liberal. In TOTON’s vignettes, flowers have been overlaid on parts of the women’s bodies in what may be seen as a delicate, aesthetic act of veiling or ‘censorship’, the imposition of relatively recent or modern (imported) codes of decorum. At the same time, it can also be seen as an act of ‘re-wilding’ and hence reclaiming the beauty and sensuality of these women who were photographed.