History - Bali and Lombok - page 12

Wayang kulit stories are chiefly derived from the great Hindu epics, the
Ramayana and to a lesser extent the Mahabharata .
Puppets are made in the village of Puaya near Sukawati, south of Ubud,
and in Peliatan, just east of Ubud, but they're easy to find in craft, antique
and souvenir shops. Although performances are normally held at night
(for performances in Ubud, see p198), there are sometimes daytime temple
performances, where the figures are manipulated without a screen.

of widely available works. The Lontar Foundation (www.lontar.org) is a
nonprofit organisation run by Indonesian writers and is dedicated to get-
ting at least 100 of the most important Indonesian topics translated into
English so that universities around the world can offer courses in Indonesian
literature.

Cinema & T V
Fewer films have been filmed in Bali than one would expect. The main efforts
have been location work for box-office hits like Almayer's Folly and Toute
la Beaute' du Monde . However, the Bali Film Commission (www.balifilm
.com) is doing its game best to lure filmmakers. It's even copyrighted the
phrase 'Baliwood'.
The island is the site for numerous television documentaries, most focus-
ing on some aspect of the culture or environment.

Long before the gorilla
appears (!), you know
Road to Bali is one of
the lesser 'road' movies
of Bob Hope and Bing
Crosby. Few last long
enough to see the pair
vie for the affections
of 'Balinese princess'
Dorothy Lamour.

ARJA
An arja drama is not unlike wayang kulit in its melodramatic plots, its
offstage sound effects and its cast of easily identifiable goodies, the refined
alus, and baddies, the unrefined kras . It's performed outside, often with a
curtain as a backdrop. Sometimes a small house is built on the stage, and set
on fire at the climax of the story!
As the story is told by clown characters who describe and explain all the
actions of the nobles, the dialogue uses both high and low Balinese. The plot
is often just a small part of a longer story well known to the Balinese audience
but very difficult for a foreigner to understand or appreciate.

Painting
Balinese painting is probably the art form most influenced by Western ideas
and demand. There are a relatively small number of creative original paint-
ers, and an enormous number of imitators. Originality is not considered
as important in Bali as it is in the West. Even some renowned artists will
simply draw the design, decide the colours and leave apprentices to apply the
paint. Thus, shops are packed full of paintings in the popular styles - some
of them are quite good and a few of them are really excellent. It's rare to see
anything totally new.
Visit the Neka Art Museum and Museum Puri Lukisan in Ubud (p175)
to see the best of Balinese art and some of the European influences that
have shaped it. Visit commercial galleries like the Neka Gallery near Ubud
and the Agung Rai Gallery to view high-quality work. If you buy a painting,
consider buying a frame as well. These are often elaborately carved works
of art in themselves.
Traditional paintings faithfully depicting religious and mythological
symbolism were customarily for temple and palace decoration. After the
1930s, Western artists introduced the novel concept that paintings could also
be artistic creations which could be sold for money. The range of themes,
techniques, styles and materials expanded enormously.
A loose classification of styles is: classical, or Kamasan, named for the vil-
lage of Kamasan near Semarapura; Ubud style, developed in the 1930s under
the influence of the Pita Maha; Batuan, which started at the same time in a
nearby village; Young Artists, begun postwar in the 1960s, and influenced by
Dutch artist Arie Smit; and finally, modern or academic, free in its creative
topics, yet strongly and distinctively Balinese.

Literature
The Balinese language has several forms, but only 'high Balinese', a form
of Sanskrit used for religious purposes and to recount epics such as the
Ramayana and the Mahabharata, is a written language. Illustrated versions
of these epics inscribed on lontar (specially prepared palm leaves) are Bali's
earliest topics. The poems and stories of the early Balinese courts, from
the 11th to the 19th centuries, were written in Old Javanese or Middle
Javanese, and were meant to be sung or recited rather than read. Even the
most elaborate drama and dance performances had no real written scripts
or choreography, at least not until Westerners, like Colin McPhee, started
to produce them in the 1930s.
In the colonial period, a few Indonesians began writing in Dutch, while
Dutch scholars set about documenting traditional Balinese language and
literature. Later, the use of Indo-Malay (called Bahasa Indonesia) became
more widespread. One of the first Balinese writers to be published in that
language was Anak Agung Pandji Tisna, from Singaraja in northern Bali. His
second novel, The Rape of Sukreni (1936), adapted the features of Balinese
drama: the conflict between good and evil, and the inevitability of karma. It
was a popular and critical success. Most of the action in the novel takes place
in a warung (food stall). An English translation is available at bookshops in
Bali, and is highly recommended.
Most modern Balinese literature has been written in Bahasa Indonesia.
Short stories are frequently published in newspapers and magazines, often
for literary competitions. An important theme throughout these stories has
been tradition versus change and modernisation, often elaborated as a tragic
love story involving couples of different castes. Politics, money, tourism and
relations with foreigners are also explored. Several anthologies translated into
English are currently in print, some by Putu Oka Sukanta, one of Indonesia's
most important authors of poetry, short fiction, and novels. Another novelist,
Oka Rusmini, is both Balinese and female, which makes her book, Tarian
Bumi, a story of generations of Balinese women, rather special. Other local
writers of note include poet and novelist Pranita Dewi and the author Gusti
Putu Bawa Samar Gantang.

See examples of some
of the work by Bali's
female artists that is on
display, or available for
sale, at www.seniwati
gallery.com.

Bali Behind the Seen:
Recent Fiction from Bali,
translated by Vern Cork
and written by Balinese
authors, conveys much
of the tension between
deeply rooted traditions
and the irresistible
pressure of
modernisation.

CLASSICAL PAINTING
There are three basic types of classical painting - langse, iders-iders and
calendars. Langse are large decorative hangings for palaces or temples which
display wayang figures, rich floral designs and flame-and-mountain motifs.
Iders-iders are scroll paintings hung along the eaves of temples. Calendars
are still used to set dates and predict the future. They include simple yel-
low calendars from Bedulu, near Ubud; more complex calendars from
Semarapura and Kamasan; and large versions of the zodiacal and lunar
calendar, especially the 210-day wuku calendar, which regulates the timing
of Balinese festivals.