Raden Saleh
Encyclopedia
Raden Saleh Sjarif Boestaman (1807 or 1811 - April 23, 1880) is one of the best known painter
s from Indonesia
and a pioneer of modern Indonesian art.
He was considered to be the first modern artist from the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), and his paintings corresponded with nineteenth-century romanticism which was popular in Europe at the time. He also expressed his cultural roots and inventiveness in his work.
Abdullah Bustaman from his mother's side. His father was Sayyid Husen bin Alwi bin Awal bin Yahya, an indonesian of arab
descent.
by the Belgian artist A.J. Payen.
Payen acknowledged the youth's talent, and persuaded the colonial government of the Netherlands to send Raden Saleh to the Netherlands to study art.
He arrived in Europe in 1829 and began to study under Cornelius Kruseman and Andries Schelfhout.
It was from Kruseman that Raden Saleh studied his skills in portraiture, and later was accepted in various European courts where he was assigned to do portraits.
From 1839, he spent five years in the Ernst I court, Grand Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who became an important patron.
From Schelfhout, Raden Saleh furthered his skills as a landscape painter.
Raden Saleh visited several European cities, as well as Algiers. In The Hague, a lion tamer allowed Raden Saleh to study his lion, and from that his most famous painting of animal fights were created, and subsequently brought fame to the artist.
Many of his paintings were exhibited in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Several of his paintings were destroyed in when the Colonial Dutch pavilion in Paris was burnt in 1931.
Here, he worked as conservator for the colonial collection of government art.
He continued painting portraits of the Javanese aristocracy, and many more landscape paintings.
He died in 1880, after coming back from a second stay in Europe.
', which depicted a famous betrayal by the colonial government to the famous Javanese prince. It was returned to Indonesia from the Dutch royal Palace in 1978.
Now it is displayed in the President's Palace Museum in Jakarta.
In the painting, Raden Saleh is said to show his views of the colonialist governments from deliberately making the Dutch look pompous and proud, but somehow imbalanced. The Javanese, on the other hand, were depicted as somehow more balanced in composition. It is also believed that one of the Javanese figures in the painting was a self-portrait.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s from Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and a pioneer of modern Indonesian art.
He was considered to be the first modern artist from the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), and his paintings corresponded with nineteenth-century romanticism which was popular in Europe at the time. He also expressed his cultural roots and inventiveness in his work.
Early life and career
Raden Saleh, was born into a noble Javanese family. He was grandson of SayyidSayyid
Sayyid is an honorific title, it denotes males accepted as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Husain ibn Ali, sons of the prophet's daughter Fatima Zahra and his son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib.Daughters of sayyids are given the titles Sayyida,...
Abdullah Bustaman from his mother's side. His father was Sayyid Husen bin Alwi bin Awal bin Yahya, an indonesian of arab
Hadhrami people
The Hadhrami or Hadharem are people from the Hadhramaut and their descendants in diaspora communities around the world. They speak Hadhrami Arabic....
descent.
European sojourn
Young Raden Saleh was first taught in BogorBogor
Bogor is a city on the island of Java in the West Java province of Indonesia. The city is located in the center of the Bogor Regency , 60 kilometers south of the Indonesian capital Jakarta...
by the Belgian artist A.J. Payen.
Payen acknowledged the youth's talent, and persuaded the colonial government of the Netherlands to send Raden Saleh to the Netherlands to study art.
He arrived in Europe in 1829 and began to study under Cornelius Kruseman and Andries Schelfhout.
It was from Kruseman that Raden Saleh studied his skills in portraiture, and later was accepted in various European courts where he was assigned to do portraits.
From 1839, he spent five years in the Ernst I court, Grand Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who became an important patron.
From Schelfhout, Raden Saleh furthered his skills as a landscape painter.
Raden Saleh visited several European cities, as well as Algiers. In The Hague, a lion tamer allowed Raden Saleh to study his lion, and from that his most famous painting of animal fights were created, and subsequently brought fame to the artist.
Many of his paintings were exhibited in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Several of his paintings were destroyed in when the Colonial Dutch pavilion in Paris was burnt in 1931.
Return
The artist returned to Indonesia in 1851 after living in Europe for 20 years.Here, he worked as conservator for the colonial collection of government art.
He continued painting portraits of the Javanese aristocracy, and many more landscape paintings.
He died in 1880, after coming back from a second stay in Europe.
Diponegoro
One of the creations Raden Saleh which gained popularity for its historical value was the 'Capture of Prince DiponegoroDiponegoro
Diponegoro , also known as Dipanegara, was a Javanese prince who opposed the Dutch colonial rule. He played an important role in the Java War...
', which depicted a famous betrayal by the colonial government to the famous Javanese prince. It was returned to Indonesia from the Dutch royal Palace in 1978.
Now it is displayed in the President's Palace Museum in Jakarta.
In the painting, Raden Saleh is said to show his views of the colonialist governments from deliberately making the Dutch look pompous and proud, but somehow imbalanced. The Javanese, on the other hand, were depicted as somehow more balanced in composition. It is also believed that one of the Javanese figures in the painting was a self-portrait.
Further Reading
- Karnadi, Koes (editor) 2006) Modern Indonesian art : from Raden Saleh to the present day introduction by Suwarno Wisetrotomo; with contributions by Agung Hujatnikajennong ... [et al.] Denpasar : Koes Artbooks. ISBN 9798704029