Tapak Dara

I Wayan, Setem Tapak Dara. [Show/Exhibition]

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Abstract

In the symbol Setem represents, he is not looking for Bali, he is not making a statement of identity. He is on the contrary looking but for the universal in Balinese symbols. And he is aware of what he does.For example,one of his works is a Tampak Dara,which he calls a salib or cross.This symbol is often drawn on doors or entrances lintels to ward off evil influences. Setem does not fail to notice the general problematic of the cross beyond Bali, and in particular as a Christian symbol. In fact, what he is trying to unearth is not the cross, it is rather the problematic of the cross as an archetype found across cultures. Asif he were trying to bring to the fore, out of the darkness of the subconscious, the basic forms and structures that haunt the human mind. Yet, he is aware of what he is doing and theorizes his works to an extent rarely found in artist. Does this mean that his “subconscious” is more intellectual than being a genuine experience? The key, of course, is in the works. When he paints, he defenes the theme, and then just “lets go”, forgetting his theories. It is then the brush that takes over, and color. And with color it is the artist’s sensitivity that denitely takes over, for the viewer’s pleasure

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