Sulebar M. Soekarman
( 1 )
When we
are observing and examining an object or anything in our surrounding, we sense
that everything will change and will keep on changing, without any exception.
Is there a “thing” that is absolutely complete, accomplished and will never
change? When we ponder and use our intelligence more intensively, absoluteness
is something impossible; even humankind and life keeps evolving. We witness
various things grow and change. Changes may happen gradually or abruptly.
Everything has a beginning and an end. There is birth and death.
When everyhing shifts, human’s comprehension about
everything—knowledge—will consequently alter and develop as well. Accurate analyses
on the causes and the manners of how an object and an event changes leap further
ahead and lead to the stimulation for the advancement of human knowledge and
creativity of a true artist.
Why does everything
change? The occuring modifications is caused by both interior and exterior
factors. The main interior factor is the existence of a contradiction, the
unity of the struggling forces of the contradicting aspects within one object.
On the other hand, the outer factor is the situation and condition that affects
the changes. There is nothing separable from its environment. In its movement
and development, everything acts, moves and receives reactions from everything
that surrounds it.
The process of change is evident through the new artworks
of Baron Basuning’s, an abstract painter currently holding his solo exposition.
There’s a progress taking place inside him and the paintings. Flat spaces that are
shown via his previous paintings appear to be occupied by the emergence of
lines and dots as the representation of the turbulence of contradictions in
expressing his inner voice and thoughts
in coping with the issues of contemporary life. I capture the essence of an
object or an event and am challenged to collide knowledge and ideas with an objective
condition attached to the object. There is a desire to comprehend and seize the
essence of the contradicting forces that move the object. The contrasting
difference from the visual contradition that makes the object moves becomes a
contemplation material that needs to be further examined.
It’s contra-idealistic. A
Strawberry in a Corn Field, that’s the theme of my current exhibition. The
explanation is very simple; using the analogy of a field where many kinds of
plants grow. A piece of a strawberry rolls into a corn field and then grows
there. (Baron Basuning’s Note, via email July 23rd 2009)
By drawing a comparison (although it may occur in our own heads) between a
strawberry and a corn field, we can analyse the general characteristics that are
bound to the symbol or object contradiction. We find the features in other
contradictions. Comparisons help us in focusing the analysis to the essence of
the object and guide us in studying contradictions. Along the comparisons, we
also need to conduct a differentiation or a contrast in oder to recognize the
special traits of the examined contradiction. By making contrasts, we formulate
our understanding of an object. The analogy of the corn field as the land where various
plants grow and the contrast symbolization between a strawberry and a corn
field can be associated with how Baron Basuning’s paintings make use of the
contrast between color domains and independent lines, within a well maintained
contradiction.
( 2 )
A
contradiction is an opposition or a difference that emerges in an object or
among objects that scatter everywhere and everytime. The contradiction transpires
and comes about simultaneously, throughout the beginning and the final of the
process. This means that a contradiction definitely begins and ends. There’s a
beginning of a contradiction and an end to a contradiction. Once the
contradiction is over, there will be another contradiction, also with a
beginning and an end. That’s the way it goes; contradiction by contradiction
will always keep on going on. Contradictions are diversed, depends on each of
the object. Because something is different from another thing, thus the things
contained in those different objects will also be unrelated. Contradictions are
not only disparate based on the objects, but also depends on the levels of the
progress inside the object. It means that, since the levels of progress in an
object are varied, hence the contradiction that happens in a certain level of
development will also be different from the contradiction in another level of
development.
Let’s take a look at Baron Basuning’s piece entitled Alam #1. Here, we can sense the
appearance of a pivotal contradiction, in which the arising lines of whites and
greys become the focus of attention, in contrast with the greyish space as the
background. It is unlike his work entitled Stroberi
di Ladang Jagung #1 that shows the impression of an antagonistic
contradiction, by positioning an independent and separated background and
presenting brushes of wild yellow lines that seem to scream their own voices.
The terracota brown spehere is combined with a red domain on top of it, which
is highly contrasting yet feels gentle due to the existence of three yellow
circles that appear to be uniting a sense of harmony. Every contradiction
within each thing undoubtedly contains contradicting angles. Or, each object
includes contradictory and non-contradictory sides.
Aristoteles,
a Greek philosopher, once formally stated that among all rational principles,
the non-contradictive princple (the impossibility of the occurence of
logical contradiction) is the most essential logical principle. Which means, it
is impossible to believe any truth, even if it’s only the most simple sensory
truth—without accepting the non-contradictive principle.
The
essence of contradiction law is the law of union and struggles of the
contradicting sides, while the essence of learning dialectic is studying about
the contradiction law itself. Another absolute rational principle that is as
important is the law of causation whose core substance is that everything
requires a cause to exist, except for the existence itself.
The center of the dialectic
issue lies in the matter of the interconnection of everything and the matter of
movement or changes and development of each of the thing.
The demanding fate and destiny,
which we have to lead, like the strawberry does… that’s the life opportunity
which should be accepted, endured and defined by everyone by showing gratitude
to the Almighty (Baron Basuning’s Note, via email July 23rd 2009)
In the note above, there lies a superior contradiction aspect that serves
as the attitude of Baron Basuning, an acquiescence to fate and gratefulness to
the Almighty becomes dominant in determining the basic characteristics and the
essence of the painting. It can also be one of the signs of how paintings
change, grow and progress! If the contradiction princple is naturally attached
to it, thus the control to end or regenerate the contradiction conveyed into
the paintings or everyday life becomes highly significant.
A
contradiction ends when the union and struggle of the contradicting aspects
vanish, when the fundamentals of one of the contradicting aspects are eliminated—the
mature aspect falls behind, collapses, degenerates and reacts. Therefore, the unity among the contradicting
aspects are broken and the contradiction is overcome. A new contradiction will
commence within a new object. By knowing how a contradiction is dealth with and
how an object ends, now it is clear in our analysis, which resposibilities are necessary
and in which situations we can set aside the fundamentals from the
contradicting aspects.
Let us sense it in his work entitled Lahan #1; a balanced contradiction, emerges like a stage with brownish
nuance and dim lighting, with a spacing sphere that gets darker as it reaches
the background and contrasting bright white at the right corner of the farthest
background. The contradiction produced by a transparent white curtain in the
middle of the picture highlights the white sphere at the left corner of the curtain,
as if there is something screamed or echoed to the virtual universe.
Departing
from the subject, we can draw a reasoning line which explains that the
examination of the changes in Baron Basuning's paintings can be linked to the
basic logical principles or the law of logical fundamentals. The first law is Law of Identity that says, “an object is the
object itself”. Something or an object stays the same, as long as it is present
in one dialogue, and not to be messed with other objects, even if it's the same
object. From the above issue, we can see the identity vagueness. The second
logical principle or law is Law of Contradiction, which claims that “an object
cannot be the object itself and another object at the same time.” There's
something negative at one time or at the same place. The third logical
principle or law is the Law
of Excluded Middle which states that everything has to be either positive
and negative. Only one of the two contradicting
features is true for an object.
( 3 )
Nowadays, we live in the world of abundant information, yet with less
meanings. News, issues, gossips and other kinds of information surface in
various ways and packagings that are increasingly attractive. Nevertheless, the
whole information will never be enough for us to expand our knowledge.
Meanwhile, definition is more determined by our attitude and the management
efforts of the informations. Numerous events or hapenings that take place all
over the world grab our attention and it is difficult for us to identify true
facts from the manufactured or false ones.
Events and
occurences happen succesively, overlapping and demonstrating rapid “moves” of
change. We are encountered with offers for more comfortable and instant life,
plus many kinds of “new” happiness:
travel packages (with an array of choices—for holiday or other leisure
times—and classes, such as platinum, silver or gold) and “easier” system of
payment—as if the dimensions of time, space and movement have amalgamated into
one.
According
to the Javanese life principles, all activities in life are interconnecting,
not in a random way, but as a well-ordered entity which is obedient to fate, instead
of free will.
Today, everything is still correlating but with a human programmed
“orderliness”. An assortment of programmes that erode sense of humanity and
raise the culture of hedonism and consumerism. Mystically or practially, sense
can be described as the feeling of intuitive depth that everybody owns.
Everyone possesses different degrees of sense; some are more sensitive, while
some other shut their intuition. It all depends on the sense management, how
each and everyone sharpens and exercises his/her deepest feelings so as to make
it more sensitive and able to seize humanity “vibes”, both internally and
externally, especially from his/her own soul.
So is the chance to create that
was given to me. I must strive to turn it into a moment to stay evolving in the
contemporary situation. “Something that grows” has to be accompanied with
spirit, perseverance, hard work and sincerity….
A land or a field never chooses
the seeds that grow in it. It is open and accepting; eventually it’s the nature
that does the selection. The spirit of the little strawberry and a corn field
that is willing to genuinely accept; that’s what inspires me to survive,
develop, open up and yield when it’s possible.
(Baron Basuning’s Note, via
email July 23rd 2009)
There is a
proverb that goes:
Wong Jawa nggoning rasa, pada
gulangening kalbu,
Ing sasmita amrih lantip¸ kuwono
nahan hawa, kinemat mamoting driya.
(Javanese people are all about feelings. They always
battle with soul or conscience so that they are capable of grasping the hidden
intentions by witholding lusts, in order to give a space for the mind to
capture the real meanings.)
Yogyakarta, 1st of August 2009
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