“I think everything is ironic. My work is black and white. Everything resides in a “grey area’’or a graduation. On that spectrum, you can choose the position and the ideal life you want to live.” - Maryanto

Deeply concerned about geo-political and environmental issues around Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia, Maryanto creates evocative monochrome paintings, drawings, and installations that remind us of underlying power hierarchies that invisibly demarcate our lands. Over the years, he has conducted extensive treks to the different mountains and volcanoes across Jakarta, often collect-ing local fables and narratives by the people living in these areas during his explorations. Combined with archival research, Maryanto transforms these socio historical accounts into highly intricate landscapes that almost seem apocalyptic. In Indonesia, mountains are revered as symbols of divinity, fertility and life. Yet the beauty and tranquillity of nature’s lush greenery have been continually marred by the growing presence of tourism, corporate mining and deforestation, which Maryanto vividly documents through his paintings.

lereng Gede biosphere (The Biosphere ofMount Gede) and Dredge up fate (sand excavation site Kaliworo) were developed by Maryanto’s signature method of layering and scratching, a technique that demands meticulous attention and control of the artist’s hand to carve and etch each line, as he cautiously reveals the degradation of our lands. By extension, there is a deliberate sense of unveiling the sobering realities of such vastly contested and political terrains obscured from public scrutiny. Weighed down by rocks, the other two charcoal on canvas works recall the tent structure typical of sand miners’ temporary shelter, drawing on first-hand experiences of the sand mining Maryanto had witnessed along the slopes of Mount Merapi. Underpinning these works isa profound understanding of the ongoing struggle to protect these lands, which not only means protecting the environment, but also preserving the traditions of indigenous culture that are resultantly becoming displaced. But amid the horror and destruction, the sublime seeps through as an inkling of possible salvation.