Ari Bayuaji

Ari Bayuaji was born in Indonesia in 1975. He graduated as a civil engineer and worked in Indonesia before deciding to move to Canada permanently in 2005. Once in Montreal, he studied Fine Arts at Concordia University from 2005 to 2010 and now divides his time between Montreal and Bali. The artist is known mainly for his art installations that incorporate the use of found and ready-made objects he collects from various parts of the world, thereby exposing himself to the different cultural traditions.
Ari Bayuaji is expert in conveying aspects of daily life within a culture as his works often expose the overlooked artistic value in everyday life expressed through objects and places and their roles within a society. The found or ready-made objects that compose his creative material might be "old", but he injects his work with emotion influenced by the contemporary issues he seeks to address to create the "content" as his artworks to create something "new".
Ari Bayuaji has been traveling extensively internationally to participate in numerous artist-in-residency programs while also being included in international group shows in Denmark, Indonesia, Germany and The United States. With a large sculptural installation currently exhibited as part of the permanent collection of Montréal Museum of Fine Art and another work acquired by the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec. The artist's work has been exhibited in major solo exhibitions in Singapore, Taipei (Taiwan), Ste-Alvère (France), Dusseldorf (Germany), Rotterdam and The Hague (The Netherlands), and Jogjakarta (Indonesia).
 
 
The Rangda
kayu, cat, benang plastik, kain tenun plastik dan katun
170 x 70 x 50 cm
2022
Bagaikan Langit dan Laut #2
Anyaman benang plastik dan katun, kanvas, tali plastik
185 x 70 x 2,5 cm
2022
Bagaikan Langit dan Laut #1
Anyaman benang plastik dan katun, kanvas, tali plastik
200 x 75 x 2,5 cm
2022
Bagaikan Langit dan Laut #1
woven fabric made of plastic and cotton thread, canvas, and plastic rope
200 x 75 x 2,5 cm
2022
Bagaikan Langit dan Laut #2
woven fabric made of plastic and cotton thread, canvas, and plastic rope
185 x 70 x 2.5 cm
2022
The Rangda
wood, nylon/plastic thread, cotton fabric
180 x 80 x 70 cm
2022
Dalam budaya Hindu Bali, sosok Rangda adalah simbol dari sifat-sifat buruk. Topeng dan kostum Rangda biasa ditarikan dalam upacara ritual yang penting. Ada beberapa jenis model, warna, dan material untuk mengkonstruksi Rangda tergantung dari daerah tempat Rangda dibuat. Karya Ari Bayuaji ini adalah bagian dari Project Weaving the Ocean, di mana dia menggunakan ribuan helai benang-benang plastik/ nilon dari tali-tali plastik yang ditemukan di hutan bakau. Dengan tangan, ribuan benang tersebut diikatkan pada helaian benang katun. Figur Rangda ini adalah simbol monumental dari plastik yang ada di dalam hidup kita sehari-hari.
Material utama dari seri ini adalah benang plastik dari tali-tali plastik yang ditemukan di laut. Benang-benang tersebut dianyam dengan benang katun dengan teknik tenun anyam ikat Bali, 'Endek'.
Selama masa pandemik, Ari Bayuaji dan beberapa nelayan bekerja sama mengumpulkan tali-tali plastik di laut, pantai, dan hutan bakau.
Langit dan laut menjadi "rumah" tempat tinggal mereka sehari-hari. Rumah yang menginspirasi Project Weaving the Ocean yang menghidupi banyak orang selama masa pandemik di Bali.