We’ve been looking for art since we arrived in Indonesia. Maybe invest in a few nice paintings by up-and-coming artists, so that it’s cheap but will grow in value through the years. We heard that there are good painters in Bali & Jogjakarta so every time we visit, we look around.

Traditional Jogjakarta transportation: Becak. Their version of the tricycle – except that the driver is in the back.

We didn’t find any until our 2nd trip to Jogja.  Though I am an art newbie, I know what I want. Please forgive me if I am using the wrong terms – but I hope you understand what I am trying to describe:

• I want it to be modern and minimalist but nothing too abstract
• Like my clothes, I can’t stand too many colors. So I’d love something that was 2 colors, or 3 at the most.
• I want to have just 1 subject or a central focal point

The problem is that the art we’ve seen so far have been very colorful or in Batik! As we all know Batik is full of print and color. (like below)

On our second trip, we went on a memorable wild goose-chase around Jogja for an art gallery that our friend said had such an great selection that it probably had what we were looking for. The other problem was that she couldn’t remember the name of the gallery and she only remembered the ff:

• It  did not exclusively sell batik paintings, there are oils as well
• It was big
• It was elevated and you had to drive up to get the the parking area of the gallery
• It was sorta behind the main street, Jl. Malioboro
• And a becak driver brought her to this place so the other becaks must know where it is

Day 1:

Around 10 of us decided to be dropped off on Malioboro to buy art. We got on 5 Becaks and we were off. It was so much fun being part of BECAK CONVOY =) They were racing & razzing (to heckle playfully) each other. The sun was bright, the wind was in our faces as the becaks zipped in and out of traffic.

They said they knew of a place that fit the description, but we were brought to 4 or 5 small stores that exclusively sold batik paintings – and old fashioned ones at that! On the upside, we saw so much of Jogja life that we would only see via becak!

Check out the hidden pathways and beautiful treelined streets…

… lots of thrift shops, a church and many bird cage stores! They must really love birds here!

Did you know that becak drivers have to push the becak when the streets are inclined? Look at this poor guy!

One of our stops was Taman Sari or water castle (where the royal family used to bathe). There are lots of small stores behind it, yet most of it sells batik paintings.

This is us taking a break. Calling people who might be able to help and talking to the becak drivers …sadly to no avail.

BECAK FASHION

I love the green Jogjaholic uniforms of some of the drivers, but the Best Outfit goes to this guy – he had a Brit thing going!

BEAUTIFUL SIGHTS

So much lush greenery and  tree-lined streets…

This bright blue sky and white wall make for a great pic!

It was a bit frustrating because all the places that they brought us did not fit our description at all. I found out later on that usually becak drivers will take you to stores wherein they get a commission if any paintings are sold. Together with our frustration we felt bad for them too because they were the once who were  really sweating it out.

Day 2

And then there were 5. The becaks ended up being more expensive than a cab so we decided to cram ourselves into one… Oh AC how we’ve missed you! Check out this picture of the  5 of us “hardcore” art-gallery hunters. Take note, none of us are very skinny and the cab was even tinier than a Toyota Vios! =P

Still many sights to see along the way, like this his motorcyle with ducks crammed into a basket. Just fitting right?

And many more graffiti turned art…

Gallery hunting detour: Batik Plentong – where we asked for directions (Batik Plentong has gorgeous high-end batiks)

We were so near already but couldn’t find the tiny street to turn into! The cab driver went out of his way by calling friends who might know of the gallery based on our description. One of his friends came in motrocycle and showed us the way! Wow. Talk about taking initiative!

IMAM GALLERY

WE’RE HERE!!! Woohoo! You can’t imagine how happy we felt when we finally found it! We were all smiling ear to ear! It was unbelievable that we found it considering the elevation S was talking about  (“we need to go up to the parking”) was in reality only a few inches! LOL!

Our friend loving this massive Sutrisno painting! Too bad she couldn’t hand-carry it on the plane =P She would have bought it if she could!

There was no AC in the gallery so we were sweating loads! Good thing I brought a fan =)

All happy with our paintings wrapped up and ready for the trip home – we asked the gallery proprietor to take our pic. He took 2 and the other one is even more shaky =P

PIZZA HUT MARLIOBORO

By then we were ravenous, and sought familiar and filling fastfood to satisfy our hunger. Unfortunately this Pizza Hut wasn’t very good and the garlic bread made me miss the super buttery and garlicky one’s in Manila. It didn’t matter though because we were too hungry.

TD and our friend are a match made in dipomat-heaven – workaholics addicted to their phones!

MIROTA BATIK MARLIOBORO

Since we were so near already we decided to spend the rest of the day – or evening – at Mirota Batik. Where we found many cheap crafts and home decor. Our friend found 2 antique lamps which she loved!

Incase you are complaining

1. with our service
2. with the product we sell
3. about our staff
4. when you are depressed
5. when you want to kill yourself
6. when you are heartbroken

Call this number 0274 – 682 5450

FUNNY SIGN BY THE CASHIER

Wahahaha! Laughtrip! And with that we ended our crazy 2-day wild goose chase for art in Jogja.

It was hilarious, the lengths we went to find Imam Gallery, but totally worth it!!  What an experience. Who can say that they’ve been on a Becak-convoy with the ambassador of Thailand?!? We saw so much of Jogja AND we were able to bring home 2 paintings that we LOVE that fit all of my above aesthetic requirements. The paintings are both done by Sutrisno, an established Jogja painter. We just loved his style!

• See our beautiful paintings by Sutrisno
• Check back in on Friday to see pictures of the gallery and our purchase from our latest trip to Jogja

Tomorrow I’m finally posting pics of the BWA Annual Fashion Show & the fabulous Filipiniana I wore. I’m pretty excited about it because there were so many great moments to capture and I really hope I am able to take you with me throughout the entire fun, fabulous night! See ya back here tomorrow!

Imam Gallery

Ngadinegaran, MJ III/126, Jogjakarta 55143, Indonesia
(0274) 384240
imam_gallery@yahoo.com