1 Vanessa Singgih Pranoto Jeffrey Say Art Interpretation and Aesthetics 11 November 2010 AFFANDI: Aesthetic Analysis on Self-Portrait

III (1975) Introduction Affandi is one of the most established painters in Indonesias art scene. He is also known as the father of Indonesias modern painting. With his signature painting technique, Affandi open the window of the world to the concept of a brand new realism with his state of mind of expression and intuition. This paper will talk about the quality of Affandis Self-Portrait III on aesthetic and emotion context in comparison with Collingwoods theory and other paintings in the same era. The Emotional or Expressive Qualities Of The Work Being an artist to Affandi is like a taxi driver. He has to learn how to drive well in order to delight the passenger. This expressionist painters ideology goes on the same direction of Collingwoods theory of art as an amusement. On his first few years of painting, Affandi, a self-taught expressionist painter, exploring his knowledge of painting by making self-portraits to seek for existence. One of the well-known works of his is Self-Portrait III (1975). Deriving from an occurrence that happened in Bandung in 1935 that he was banned for entering an exhibition in Bandung, he keeps wondering what is wrong with his face, Whats wrong with my look?. Nevertheless that curiosity became a turning point for Affandi to set his firm line
Illustration 1 Self-Portrait III (1975) Affandi Oil on Canvas

2 of his artistic direction in painting.1 As written on Ovi Magazine about Collingwood ideology about R.G. Collingwood theory of arts as Expression and Fantasia, artist, becoming aware that they are in the grip of an emotion, they give form to it via the work of art they create.
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Self-Portrait III is one of the self-portraits that Affandi made during re-affirming his artistic attitude until his death. This painting reflected Affandis smiling face assembled with many curve lines and colors. According to Jim Supangkat on his article about Affandi, the analysis of Affandis self-portraits brought to light why these self-potraits from the keynote for this tune of expressions as a whole (2007:64). It explains why Affandi consistently returned to self-portraits when he felt that he was failing with his painting it was as if by doing this, he could fine-tune his emotional tones. This shows how tension between the social reality, the face, spiritual selfishness, existence, and art expressions form the basis of Affandis work (Ibid.). Therefore, Affandis self-portrait a long the road of his career life can be seen as the essence of his artistic development. Achieving the Emotional Qualities The emotional quality of Self-Portrait III can be seen with the line works and the color that Affandi used. The vigorous curve lines that he made reflected on emotion state that he feels when he tried to say what he saw on the canvas. Not only in this painting, a lot of Affandis painting shown a huge complexion of emotions as well. His belief of nature force drove him to express the reality into a phenomenal mind-set. Sun was his depiction of the nature forces that he belief in on some of his self-portrait, including Self-Portrait III.
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Jim Supangkat, Reanalyzing Affandi, Affandi Volume I 2007. Emanuel L. Paparella, R. G. Collingwood's Theory of Art as Expression and Fantasia, Ovi Magazine. 2010. http://www.ovimagazine.com/art/3838

I like the sun, so I paint the sun. is a symbol of my life. It is like a god. It should be burning, and hot like the painting. If I only painted one sun, it is not hot enough, so I paint another; two suns, three suns or four. It depends on
Illustration II Oil on Canvas Total the sense of heat that I want to convey. (Affandi) Eclipse I (1983). Affandi

It

Affandi also believe that the best teacher of this belief is also the experience itself. Owing to the fact that Affandi lived and doing his paintings at Cirebon and Yogyakarta, Javanese culture took big part of influencing his approach on done his painting. One of them is wayang kulit or Shadow Puppet. He was enjoying wayang kulit most of his time. wayang kulit is one of the ancient traditional art form that can be found in Java, Indonesia. wayang kulit purely inspires his curve line works on most of his artwork. If we look carefully, wayang kulit rarely use straight lines.3 By this major influence on his painting style, Affandi manages to voice the Eastern and Indonesian worldview that strives for stability and balance between the individual and the universe.4 Tangible Signs of Emotion Quality and How It Affects the Artwork Itself Art proper is distinguished by a particular and unique emotion, not possessed by either craft of art as amusement.5 Painting for Affandi was a process of fixing into colour and form the storm of energy from his emotions which had arisen through concentrating on something which had initially inspired him (Wright 1994:112). This inventor of the smear and squeeze technique often utilized
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Affandi Speaks, 2010. http://www.age.jp/~pranoto/bookenglish/007.htm

Bambang Asrini Widjanarko, Affandi: The NeverEnding Legend, 2007, The Magazine of Garuda Indonesia, May. 2010. http://www.affandiartgallery.com/GarudaM.html 5 Arts Theories and Arts Histories 2010.

4 lines and vibrant colors to express what he felt about the object. According to Astri Wright on Soul, Spirit, and Mountain (1994), Affandi would spend a long time looking for the painting subjects, and then a long time studying on the object, probing into its being, until he felt he had become part of it (112). This statement advocates Wu Shuang statement on how Affandi most of the time uses his impulse and instinct to paint.6 By using the paint tube and his hand as the brush itself, the emotion that he felt for the object directly transmitted to the canvas. Collingwood also mentioned that artists explore carefully the particularity of their emotion, taking pain to understand it as a particular specific instance it is. In other words, artists are more interested than most of us in deciphering their emotions.
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The nature or surrounding who once one of his primary object for expression, changes how Affandi paint his artwork. Different from his previous self-portraits, which are more compact in composition, on Self-Portrait III, Affandi pictured himself with a lot of spaced line works to create his face and his expression. Nearing the 1980s, Affandis self-portrait gradually becomes increasingly transparent, in a way that the painting looks as if Affandi is disappearing in his struggle with the nature (Samichan, 2007:64). It seems that Nature has change him from existence seeker to one of the man who want to disappear with nature in the end. The composition of SelfPortrait III is less condensed from the previous works that are more energetic with fully loaded composition and colours on the canvas. Affandi seldom leave a single space on his canvas. It could be shown on his self-portrait from 1966. The mixture of vibrant red, dark brown and green colour filled the entire canvas with strong expression on the expression of his face. The curly lines are a little
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Wu Shuang, Affandi Vs. Van Gogh, 2007, Wu Shuang, 27th May. 2010. http://boonscafe.com/wushuang/?p=64 7 Emanuel L. Paparella, R. G. Collingwood's Theory of Art as Expression and Fantasia, Ovi Magazine. 2010. http://www.ovimagazine.com/art/3838

5 bit arranged to depict his self-expression. Affandis Emotional State Affandi admitted that he is a kind of person who hates a straight likeness to reality.8 That explains why he often paints or draws using a bunch of line works that is inspired by wayang kulit. This also can be shown on self-portraits that he did, including SelfPortrait III (1975). For him, the most important thing of the drawing is the subject itself. Affandi believe in his intuition. With this intuition, he sorted out the reality surrounding him to find aesthetic objects which then became the basis for his expressions.9 In a process that certainly he himself was not aware of, his perceptions in reality entered the realm of sensitivity. Affandi always wants to know and get into his object of painting and become one with it. He will loss himself and then there were a feeling as if he will going to fight against something. Fight against the reality that is what he means. Along the journey of his artist life, he always came with this undeniably art works that are out of the box, out of the usual interpretation. His depiction of his surrounding is highly influenced by wayang kulit. Affandi once mentioned that he wants to capture the sign that natural force shown in his painting, that is why he always feel that he have not done nothing great on creating an artwork. He has not capture anything yet, that is why he feels that he has to learn a lot more. Conclusion In my own interpretation, Affandis Self-Portrait III (1975) has a quite loose energy on it if comparing to his previous artwork. I feel that he on a difficult situation but what he tries to always do is smile. By painting, he feels very happy and there are just only him, God, and the object. Affandi, to me, is considered as a total
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Affandi Speaks, 2010. http://www.age.jp/~pranoto/bookenglish/007.htm Jim Supangkat, Reanalyzing Affandi, Affandi Volume I 2007.

6 expressionist artist rather than modern artist. It is true that he started the modern movement of painting in Indonesia, but I can feel a lot more emotions and expressions on his complex way to draw using curve line. There are some rhythmic inside the lines that he created on his Self-Portrait (1975). To Conclude, Affandi on his way of finding the true direction of his work did not perceived the reality as the real one, as a naturalist but his art is beyond real. Hence, the depiction of reality in his painting find shape without having been planned before, along with the R.G. Collingwoods theory about artist and craft man. An artist does not plan on what he or she want to make, and that is what Affandi done to expressed his feeling of the object that he paint.

Illustrations Cited Affandi. Self-Portrait III. 1975. Affandi Art Gallery, Indonesia. Affandi. Vol. 1. Jakarta: Bina Lestari Budaya Foundation, 2007. 121. Print. Affandi. Total Eclipse I. 1983. Affandi Art Gallery, Indonesia. Affandi. Vol. 1. Jakarta: Bina Lestari Budaya Foundation, 2007. 65. Print.

Works Cited "Affandi Speaks." Interview. Affandi Speaks. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://www.age.jp/~pranoto/bookenglish/007.htm>. Kemp, Gary. "Collingwood's Aesthetics (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)."

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2009. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/collingwoodaesthetics/#ArtAmu>. Paparella, Emanuel L. "Ovi Magazine : R.G. Collingwood's Theory of Art as Expression and Fantasia by Emanuel L. Paparella." Ovi Magazine. 29 Dec. 2008. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. Shuang, Wu. "Wu Shuang Affandi vs. Van Gogh." | Art in Singapore Reviewed. Wu Shuang, 28 May 2007. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://boonscafe.com/wushuang/?p=64>. Supangkat, Jim, and Sardjana Sumichan. Affandi. Vol. 1. Jakarta: Bina Lestari Budaya Foundation, 2007. Print. Widjanarko, Bambang Asrini. "The Magazine Of Garuda Indonesia." Affandi ArtGallery ::: Exclusive Dealer of Affandi's Graphic Art. Affandi Art Gallery, 2007. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://www.affandiartgallery.com/GarudaM.html>.

Wright, Astri. Soul, Spirit, and Mountain: Preoccupations of Contemporary Indonesian Painters. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford UP, 1994. Print.