I Dewa Ngakan Made Ardana, born in 1980, is an Indonesian Asian Modern and Contemporary painter. He attended the Indonesian Institute of Art, Denpasar, from 1999 to 2006. In 2001, he became a member of Klinik Seni Taxu, a group founded to debate and criticise the traditional content in the methods and subjects of paintings created by many Balinese artists. His early work from 2003 was marked by the Garlic series, in which he employed a realistic approach to produce abstract paintings. Relocating to Yogyakarta in 2009 marked a significant transition for Ardana, leading him to explore objects, particularly those in the Museum of Yogyakarta Palace collection, representing the city. Following the Garlic series, during what he considered a challenging transition period in Yogyakarta, Ardana delved into objects, particularly those housed in the Museum of Yogyakarta Palace, as a representation of the city. Between 2013 and early 2014, he focused on producing a series of paintings resembling family portraits, inspired by his contemplation of the concept of “home.” As a Balinese artist, Ardana has maintained a deep interest in the 1965 conflict in Bali, and his recent works delve into this issue. Utilising visual language, he conducts experiments on how history is digested and presented. Ardana draws from accounts in history obtained from various ‘visible’ sources, recognising that history has formal and rational aspects and unknown parts that are often challenging to comprehend using logic.
Selected Exhibitions:
2021 ARTJOG MMXXI: Time (to) Wonder, Jogja National Museum, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
2020 Di Hadapan Bayang-bayang, Nadi Gallery Jakarta, Indonesia
2018 Biennale Jateng #2: The Future of History, Indonesia
2017 ARTJOG X: Changing Perspective, Jogja National Museum, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
2016 Hana Tan Hana: Life and Death of the Unknown, REDBASE Foundation, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
