Long Lost Treasure: Srihadi's Jakarta Mural Resurfaces, With Few Unwanted Additions
Jakarta. Eighty-five year-old painter Srihadi Soedarsono said he felt a sense of relief that the public can now finally see "Jayakarta," a painting he originally made for Jakarta Governor Ali Sadikin in 1975, even though the painting no longer looks the way he originally envisioned it.
The 2.75 m x 12 m mural painting consisting of six panels is currently on display at the "Menyingkap Ja(Ya)karta" (Unveiling Ja(Ya)karta) exhibition along with two more of Srihadi's works at the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum in Kota Tua — Jakarta's old town center — until Oct. 23.
"There’s of course a sense of relief because the painting is finally being displayed in the place it deserves. Being exhibited at the museum, thanks to the efforts of the Jakarta Museum Partner Foundation (YMMJ), means everyone can now see it," Srihadi told the Jakarta Globe last week.
"Jayakarta" was finished in 1975 upon Ali Sadikin's request, apparently to make amends after the famously temperamental governor scribbled in anger over another of Srihadi’s painting about Jakarta, "Air Mancar," since it depicted the city being completely taken over by advertising billboards.
"Jayakarta" depicts how the city transformed itself from 1527 to 1970. Governor Ali liked it and the painting was hung on the wall of his personal office at City Hall.
"When Ali was in office, the painting was very well taken care of, it was something that Ali wanted to have there in the first place. He liked to show it off to his guests," Srihadi said.
However, once the much-beloved Ali left, his successor Tjokropranolo chose another room at City Hall to be his office and so did his successors.
Ali's old office was neglected. It stayed locked most of the time, and only opened for special events.
No one paid attention to the painting until Srihadi asked Fauzi Bowo, Jakarta's governor in 2010. Srihadi knew Fauzi had worked for Ali in the 1970s, and as expected he responded well to Srihadi's inquiry, saying he wanted to move "Jayakarta" to his office.
When Srihadi finally visited City Hall to find his long-lost painting, he found it was defective in some parts through lack of care.
Tables were placed too close to the wall where the painting was hung, causing dents on some parts of the canvas. Hot smoke from stoves that were used during dinner parties in the room had also caused the paint to fade.
"People thought my painting was just decoration," Srihadi said.
The painting was going to undergo extensive restoration works before it was taken down and moved to Fauzi’s office. Srihadi was going to do the restoration himself.
"We sent a proposal which explained in details which parts were to be restored and how much the whole project would cost. Fauzi had agreed that Srihadi himself was going to do it," Srihadi’s wife, Siti Farida Nawawi, told the Jakarta Globe.
Unfortunately, the restoration cost was considered too high, and Fauzi was only willing to pay for half of the total cost.
"But then they also asked Srihadi to add two more panels to the original painting, which was impossible," Farida added.
Negotiations reached a dead end and the project to restore the painting fell by the wayside.
When Fauzi lost the 2012 Jakarta gubernatorial election to Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, the wall on his office at City Hall remained bare.
Lost and Found
Last year, Srihadi was informed by high-profile curator and YMMJ chairman Amir Sidharta that after an extensive search "Jayakarta" was found in a storage room belonging to the Jakarta Tourism and Culture Agency.
No one knew when the painting was taken down from City Hall's wall or who did it.
"We didn’t know who took it down. I wasn't able to see it, either. But I assumed nothing had been done to it," the painter said.
It was only when YMMJ decided to include Srihadi’s Jakarta-themed paintings in the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum’s new permanent collection that the painter was able to reunite with "Jayakarta."
What he saw completely befuddled him.
Shoddy restoration works had been done to the painting. Whoever did them added elements that were not in the original version and used acrylic paints of unknown brand and quality, instead of the Rembrandt oil paint that Srihadi had used originally.
Parts of the painting that suffered the amateurish restoration work could be recognized easily since they were much less opaque than the rest of the painting.
"When you restore a painting, you have to research the original version and make it resemble that as much as possible. You can't just make it up as you go. This person [who did the restoration] could clearly paint, but had no idea about the ethics of restoration," Farida said.
Unveiled
The curator for the "Menyingkap Ja(Ya)karta" exhibition, Sally Texania, said she only heard about the painting's unfortunate condition a few days before the exhibition’s opening. She was shocked.
But the show must go on, and with Srihadi's permission the exhibition went ahead with "Jayakarta" — legally still the possession of the Jakarta city administration — hanging proudly on one of its walls.
Sally said she hoped organizations like the YMMJ, which helps museums and art institutions improve their management and infrastructure, can make sure there will be no more failed restoration attempts like what had happened to "Jayakarta."
"That is what YMMJ is for. To make sure these things don't happen. There are people who want to restore paintings but have no idea how to go about it," Sally told the Jakarta Globe.
Srihadi could have taken legal action against the exhibitor or the Jakarta city administration since the unauthorized restoration works can be considered as copyright infringements.
His wife Farida mentioned an earlier case when Balinese maestro Nyoman Gunarsa took to court in 2007 people who had forged his works.
But in the end, Srihadi and Farida decided to let the matter go.
"We're too old now. If we meet the person who did [the failed restoration], we will just tell him how to do it properly, professionally. We will also remind him never to infringe other artists’ copyrights," Farida said.
The "Menyingkap Ja(Ya)karta" exhibition will run until Oct. 23.
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