Cost of Dreams, 2009, used clothes, pva glue, coffee, wool, 500 x 500 x 500cm

In Brita L. Miklouho-Maklai's book "Exposing Society's Wounds - Some Aspects of Contemporary Indonesian Art Since 1966" (published in 1991) the author lists Dadang Christanto as a member of the influential group "tim", exhibiting 'situation art' in a space designed to resemble a modern shopping centre in 1987. Christanto settled in Australia in the late 1990's but continues his practice in Indonesia, working as a performance artist, painter and sculptor. A strong political voice underpins his practice, even when his aesthetic creates paintings of great beauty. This is Dadang's second solo exhibition in South Australia (first in 1991), following on from an appearance in the 2008 Adelaide Biennial Handle With Care.


American Dreams, 2009, 33 implements of steel and wood, dimensions variable

In this exhibition, American Dreams, a deliberately didactic approach is taken in the three major installations, illustrating the cost to the rest of the planet in sustaining the "American Dream". The "Face" paintings echo the infinite variations of violence and aggression that can be inflicted on the human psyche, in this case a clearly Asian face.


left: Face 7, centre: Face 10, right: Face 5, 2009, acrylic on linen, 136 x 112cm

DADANG CHRISTANTO

Biography
1957 Born Tegal, Central Java, Indonesia
1975–7 Studied painting, Pawiyatan Sanggarbambu, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1975–9 Studied painting, Sekolah Menengah Seni Rupa (SMSR), Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1980–6 Studied painting, Indonesia Institute of Arts (ISI), Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1999–03 Lecturer, School of Art and Design, Northern Territory University, Darwin
2004 Lecturer, College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, Sydney
2008 Adjunct Professor at Griffith University, Brisbane
Lives and works in Brisbane

Selected Solo Exhibitions since 1991
2009 American Dreams, Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide
2008 Reading the Heads, Helen Maxwell Gallery, Canberra
Batik has been Burnt, Jan Manton Gallery, Brisbane
2007 Victims, Sherman Galleries, Sydney
Work of Body, Jan Manton Art Gallery, Brisbane
2006 Pilgrim Project, Gaya Fusion Gallery, Ubud, Bali, Indonesia
2005 Testimonies of the Trees, CP Art Space, Jakarta
Heads and Trees, Sherman Gallery, Sydney
They Give Evidence, Asian Gallery, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
2004 Head from the North, Marsh Pond, Sculpture Garden, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
2003 Count Project, Northern Territory University Gallery, Darwin, NT
2002 Unspeakable Horror, Bentara Budaya Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia
2001 The Dark Century, Raft Art Space, Darwin, NT
2000 Beginning of the Dark Age, Centre de Reflexion sur I’Image et ses, Sierre, Switzerland
Reconciliation, 24 Hour Art Gallery, Darwin and Watch This Space, Alice Springs, NT
1998 Cannibalism or Memoir, Guarrant Gallery, Canberra School of Art, ACT; Switchback Gallery, Faculty of Art and Design, Gippsland, VIC
1997 About the Heads and Hearts, LIP Gallery, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1996 1001 Earth Humans, Marina Beach-Ancol, Jakarta, Indonesia
1995 Terracotta or The Case Land, Bentara Budaya, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1991 Contemporary Indonesian Artist, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA and Victoria College of the Arts, Melbourne, VIC

Selected Group Exhibitions since 1992
2009 Temperature 2, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane
2008 Handle With Care, Adelaide Biennial, Adelaide
Manifesto, National Gallery, Jakarta, Indonesia
Recovering Lives, Drill Hall Gallery, Canberra
Red, Zaim, Yokohama, Japan
Dari Penjara ke Pigura, Salihara Gallery, Jakarta, Indonesia
2007 Neo-Nation, Yogyakarta Biennial, Indonesia
News From Island, Campbelltown Art Centre, Sydney
Imagining Affandi, Gedung Arsip Nasional, Jakarta, Indonesia
Threshold and Tolerance, School of Art Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra
2006 Echigo-Tsumari Triennial, Niigata, Japan
Artery-Inaugural Exhibition, Singapore Management University, Singapore
2005-6 Open Letter, touring exhibition, Sydney, Bangkok, Manila and Kuala Lumpur
2005 Echoes of Home, Museum Brisbane, Brisbane
Future Tense: Security and Human Right, Dell Gallery, Griffith University, Brisbane
2004 Contact pre Text Me, Sherman Galleries, Sydney, NSW
Contemporary Territory, Museum and Art Gallery Northern Territory, NT
2003 They Give Evidence, opening exhibition for contemporary Asian space, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Country-bution, Yogyakarta Biennial, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Interpellation, CP Open Biennial, Jakarta, Indonesia
Witnessing to Silence: Art and Human Rights, School of Art Gallery, Australian National University, part of a multi-institutional project organised by the Humanities Research Centre
Mourning Lost Paradise, Indonesian Pavilion, Venice Biennale, Italy
Austral-Asia Zero Three, Sherman Galleries, Sydney, NSW
2000 Kwangju Biennale 2000, Kwangju, South Korea
From Asian Forests, Yokohama open-air art exhibition, Japan
1999 From Asian Forests, Kanazu Forest of Creation, Fukui, Japan
The Third Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art 1999, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
1998 XXIV Bienal de São Paulo, Brazil
Begegnung 3:3 in Yogya, Taman Budaya, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Plastic (or Other Waste), Center of Resources, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok Art Project, Bangkok, Thailand
1997 Art in Southeast Asia 1997: Glimpses into the Future, Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo and Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Japan
Befragung Der Raume, Magdeburg Museum, Magdeburg, Germany
Yokohama International Open Air Art Exhibition’97, Yokohama, Japan
1996 Tradition/Tension: Contemporary Arts in Asia, Asia Society Gallery, New York, travelling to Vancouver (Canada), Perth (Australia)
Linkage and Leakage, The Tanks, Cairns, QLD
Mata Perupa, Pagelaran Kraton Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1995 Realism as an Attitude 4th Asian Art Show, Fukuoka Art Museum, traveling to Hakone, Akita, Tokyo, Japan
Asian Peace Art, War and Art 1995, Osaka International Peace Centre, Osaka, Japan
Osaka Triennial 1995: Sculpture, Dome exhibition Hall, Osaka, Japan
1994 Quinta Bienal de la Habana, Nasional Museum, Havana, Cuba
Nur Gora Rupa, Taman Budaya Surakarta, Solo, Indonesia
1993 The First Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
The 9th Jakarta Art Biennial, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta, Indonesia
1992 Binal, Senisono Art Gallery, Yogakarta, Indonesia
New Art from Southeast Asia II, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Apace
Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Kirin Plaza, Osaka, Japan
Mobile, Museum City Project, Fukuoka, Japan

Performances
2008 Survivor,  Taman Proklamasi, Jakarta, Indonesia
2007 For Those Who Have Been Killed, Galery of Modern Art, Brisbane
Litsus, Manukau School of Visual Arts, Auckland, New Zealand
Washing the Wound, Old Canberra House, Australian National University, Canberra
2005 Searching Displaced Bones, Old Canberra House, Australian National University, Canberra
Litsus, Griffith University, Brisbane
2004 Family Portrait, Old Canberra House, AustralianNational University, Canberra, ACT
For Those Who Have Been Killed, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, ACT
2003 Litsus, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, ACT
2000 Reconciliation, 24 Hour Art Gallery, Darwin and Watch This Space, Alice Springs, NT
1999 Api di Bulan Mei, The Third Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art 1999, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
1998 Violence, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, WA
For Those Who Have Been Killed, Switchback Gallery, Gippsland, VIC
1997 Violence, Western Front, Vancouver, Canada; Magdeburg Museum, Magdeburg, Germany
For Those Who Have Been Killed, Dock 11, Berlin, Germany
199 Earth Man in Jakarta, Marina Beach-Ancol, Jakarta, Indonesia
Violence, Cairns Regional Gallery, Cairns, QLD
Violence, Z Gallery, New York
1995 Man in Surabaya, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
1994 Earth Man in Solo, Solo City, Indonesia
1993 For Those Who Have Been Killed, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, QLD
Museum Affandi, Yogyakarta and UNS, Solo, Indonesia
1992 I’m Human Being, Daimaru Shopping Center, Fukuoka, Japan
Earth Man in Tenjin, Tenjin Area, Fukuoka, Japan

Residencies
2007 Artist in residence, School of Visual Arts, Manukau - Auckland, New Zealand
2004 Artist in residence, School of Art, Australian National University
2003 Artist in residence, School of Art, Australian National University
1999 Artist in residence, Ecole Cantonale d’ Art du Valais (ECAV), Switzerland
1998 Artist in residence, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT
Artist in residence, Monash University, Gippsland Campus, VIC
1997 Artist in residence, Western Front, Vancouver, Canada
Artist in residence, Magdeburg and Berlin, Germany
1991 Artist in residence, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA

Grants and Awards
2004 Australian Art Council
1997 The Pollock-Krasner Foundation, New York

Collections
Fukuoka Museum of Modern Art, Fukuoka, Japan
Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, Japan
Magdeburg Museum, Magdeburg, Germany
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
Kanazu Forest of Creation, Fukui, Japan
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
The Australia National University, Canberra
Museum and Art Gallery Northern Territory (MAGNT)