Publisher's Synopsis
Affandi's art is summed up in his own words:
"One day an art collector looked in my studio and said he couldn't select any of my paintings because the paintings he saw hurt his feelings. He asked me why I didn't make paintings of beautiful objects: landscapes, girls, and so forth. I too like beautiful things, but they do not necessary provide inspiration for my work. My subjects are expressive rather than beautiful. I paint suffering - an old woman, a beggar, a black mountain ... My great wish is that people learn a little from my work. I do know the danger of doing paintings with this in mind. I have no intention of becoming a social propagandist, and I must be careful. One day, in India, visiting a village with my Daughter Kartika, I saw a dead body covered by a mattress. Kartika said, "That's a good subject for you." I felt very touched by what we had seen, but I told her I would not paint it. My next painting was of a flower, in reality very fresh, but which on my canvas lacked all life".
Suhardjono, or Djon, Affandi's assistant, who was present at the creation of every Affandi painting from 1963 until the artist's death in 1990, knows the truth about the man and his art.
A memoir of life with a great artist from the perspective of a simple man thrust by circumstance into the world of international art, Witnessing Affandi is the final victory of truth regarding Affandi's body of work.
"One day an art collector looked in my studio and said he couldn't select any of my paintings because the paintings he saw hurt his feelings. He asked me why I didn't make paintings of beautiful objects: landscapes, girls, and so forth. I too like beautiful things, but they do not necessary provide inspiration for my work. My subjects are expressive rather than beautiful. I paint suffering - an old woman, a beggar, a black mountain ... My great wish is that people learn a little from my work. I do know the danger of doing paintings with this in mind. I have no intention of becoming a social propagandist, and I must be careful. One day, in India, visiting a village with my Daughter Kartika, I saw a dead body covered by a mattress. Kartika said, "That's a good subject for you." I felt very touched by what we had seen, but I told her I would not paint it. My next painting was of a flower, in reality very fresh, but which on my canvas lacked all life".
Suhardjono, or Djon, Affandi's assistant, who was present at the creation of every Affandi painting from 1963 until the artist's death in 1990, knows the truth about the man and his art.
A memoir of life with a great artist from the perspective of a simple man thrust by circumstance into the world of international art, Witnessing Affandi is the final victory of truth regarding Affandi's body of work.
