Yesterday’s opening ceremony proved this exhibition strikes something deeper than casual cultural exchange. Representatives from Dinas Kebudayaan Bali joined curators and art lovers for an evening that felt both celebratory and significant.
The timing wasn’t accidental – “Reflections Across Borders” launches alongside Pesta Kesenian Bali 2025 and marks 75 years of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and France. This isn’t your typical Bali art exhibition. Six Bali and French artists have contributed 42 works that speak to each other across cultural divides.
Made Wianta’s Gift to Balinese Art
Made Wianta (1949-2020) understood cultural fusion before it became fashionable. This painter, poet, and conceptual artist from Bali became Indonesia’s most internationally recognised contemporary artist through sheer intellectual rigour. His revolutionary spirit drives this entire exhibition, with his family preserving his legacy through careful curation.
His Karangasem Period paintings steal the show. After visiting Belgium in 1975, this young artist collided head-first with European surrealism. Art critic Robert C. Morgan noted how Wianta offered “new content to traditional Balinese paintings based on graphic and structural principles” that remained culturally rooted. These works prove that influence flows both ways when cultures truly connect.
French Voices in the Pacific
Titouan Lamazou brings decades of global wandering to Museum Pasifika’s walls. Born in Casablanca, this UNESCO Artist for Peace traded his solo sailing career for a paintbrush after winning the first Vendée Globe in 1990.
He spent years documenting women across five continents, creating his acclaimed “Zoé-Zoé, Femmes du Monde” series. His Indonesian portraits reveal something tender – the way he finds beauty in every face, every story, turning anthropology into art.
Joël Alessandra sketched his way through Java and Bali in 2012, fuelled by his daily coffee habit. This Marseille-born graphic novelist and travel journal artist captures quiet moments between ceremonies.
Morning light on temple walls. Weathered hands preparing offerings. His architectural training shows in every precise line, but his heart transforms documentation into poetry.
Pascal Hierholz (Paisi) rounds out the French contingent with works that bridge his European perspective with Pacific sensibilities, creating visual dialogues that speak to our connected world.
He completes this cultural circle. Born in France but deeply connected to Balinese spirituality, this contemporary painter creates abstractions that feel like prayers made visible.
His works employ oil on cardboard, Chinese ink on burlap, and watercolour on paper – each piece mapping the emotional and symbolic dimensions of Bali rather than offering direct representation.
Balinese Masters, Contemporary Vision
I Wayan Sujana Suklu brings philosophy to his paintbrush. Born in Klungkung, this leading contemporary artist and senior lecturer at ISI Denpasar has spent decades blending local wisdom with contemporary visual languages. “I use lines as therapy, repetition as memory,” he explains. His meditations on form and cultural memory prove that contemporary Balinese art can honour the past while pushing forward.
Ketut Budiana spent decades as a master craftsman creating sacred temple art before turning to personal expression. Born in 1950 in the artisan village of Padang Tegal, Ubud, he studied under renowned Dutch painter Rudolf Bonnet and served as curator at both Museum Puri Lukisan and ARMA Museum. His journey from ritual objects to gallery walls mirrors Bali’s artistic evolution perfectly.
Why This Exhibition Matters
Walk through these galleries and witness something rare among Nusa Dua attractions. This isn’t cultural appropriation or tourist pandering. It’s real artistic dialogue between minds that happen to live on different sides of the planet.
The French artists don’t try to become Balinese. The Indonesian artists don’t abandon heritage for Western approval. Instead, they find common ground in the act of creation itself.
This matters more than you might realise. In our divided world, art like this shows what’s possible. Differences don’t have to separate. They can inspire.
Made Wianta knew this truth. Every brushstroke in his paintings whispers the same message: creativity belongs to everyone. Beauty recognises no borders. Understanding flows both ways.
What Makes Museum Pasifika Special
This Pacific art museum provides the perfect backdrop for cultural exchange. The exhibition space itself was designed to showcase how different traditions can coexist and strengthen each other.
You won’t find this depth of cross-cultural dialogue at typical Bali cultural attractions. Museum Pasifika has always understood that the Pacific connects rather than divides – this exhibition proves that philosophy in living color.
The works span multiple mediums and approaches. Wianta’s surrealist-influenced paintings. Lamazou’s intimate portraits. Suklu’s repetitive line work. Alessandra’s documentary sketches. Together, they create visual proof that art transcends cultural boundaries.
Visit “Reflections Across Borders” at Museum Pasifika, Nusa Dua before July 19, 2025. Witness how six artists transformed distance into connection.
Photography by: I Gede Muliawan
English