EXI(s)T #2: Instruksi officially started on December 6, 2013 at Dia.Lo.Gue Artspace Kemang. The exhibition kicked off with opening statements by Mitha Budhyarto and FX Harsono, as well as a brief introduction of the eight participating artists.

“Our lives are filled with instructions that act as directions, orders, and cues as to how we must behave,” goes a line in Mitha’s introductory text in the guidebook. It is difficult to take a step back and analyze the very instructions that have shaped our behaviour and perspectives. Instructions – both written and unwritten – interlock with the way we lead our lives.

This year’s EXI(s)T focuses on the attempt to reevaluate and reinterpret society’s many instructions through artistic means. While some think that instructions are a form of repression, others see them as rules that can be manipulated. The 2013 batch explored the theme using different mediums – from drawings, videos to performances. From the diversity of the methods alone, one can see that despite the seemingly absolute nature of instructions, they are actually quite relative.

Below is the list of displayed artworks and their respective creators:

– Ilusi Kebebasan by Dhanny Sanjaya
– Blessed at the forgetful by Hendra Permana
– I Have No One To Blame But Myself by Ratu R. Saraswati
– New Place of Perception, Gallery in Gallery, and Malee Mars by Nady Azhry
– Turun ke Ilusi, Terjaga ke Niskala by Sarita Ibnoe
– Survival Tips by Angga Cipta
– Lost in Translation by Kara Andarini
– Untitled by Bey Shouqi

The field of art is expanding in ways that may have not been possible centuries, or even a few decades earlier. Art’s boundaries are becoming more fluid; therefore offering endless opportunities for aspiring and professional artists to experiment.

FX Harsono emphasized that as an educational program, EXI(s)T has no templates. It does not aim to produce artists who is like this person or that person, or whose works are like painting or that sculpture. Both FX Harsono and Mitha Budhyarto, as two experienced individuals in Indonesia’s art scene and the official mentors of he program, encourage new types of artists and new types of creations.

EXI(s)T #2: Instruksi will be open to public until January 6, 2014, so do stop by before it ends!

For more information, please visit EXI(s)T’s blog.