Page 62 - Sidharta Auctioneer

745
otto djaya, r. 1999 Rp. 9 - 13.500.000
oil on canvas
(Rangkas Bitung, W. Java, 60 x 80 cm US$ 643 - 964
1916 - 2002)
signed and dated (lower right):
”Otto Djaya 1999”
The Fortune Teller

Along with his brother Agus Djaya, Otto Djaya Seated behind her is a figure resembling Petruk,
was sent on a secret mission to Holland by Su- one of the Punakawans of the wayang, who tries to
karno. There, they had their first duo get her attention. It is quite an amusing scene.
exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum in This painting comes from the collection of the
Amsterdam, and various other exhibitions in late Adnan Buyung Nasution, a famous
Europe. He painted various scenes of folk life, Indonesian lawyer and human rights advocate.
often times with a great sense of humour. His select eclectic collection consists of artworks
Here he depicts a man’s visit to a fortune teller. by various Indonesian artists, ranging from the
The fortune teller is dressed in Javanese tradi- more, humorous artists, like Otto Djaya, to the
tional garb, while the man is dressed in modern abstract artists like Made Wianta, Tulus Warsito
clothing. Perhaps he wears a blue jean top and and Hanafi, to the more serious, senior artists,
bottom. Behind him, a woman, presumably his like Sudjono Abdullah and Basuki Resobowo.
wife, sits quietly watching the session. She wears
the kebaya and sarong, which was Sukarno’s idea
of how an Indonesian woman should be dressed.
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