ARMA Suggests Mangku Pastika to Immortalize Laudable Figures for Globalizing Ubud

Gianyar (Atnews)—The Agung Rai Museum of Art (ARMA) received a visit from the recess of a member of the Regional Representative Council (DPD) from Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, with the theme “The Existence of a museum in the Midst of Tourism Weakness,” in Gianyar, on Monday (25/7).

Mangku Pastika accompanied by his expert team consisting of Nyoman Baskara, Ketut Ngastawa and Nyoman Wiratmaja were received by ARMA Founder, Anak Agung Gde Rai, or commonly called Agung Rai.

ARMA was built on an area of 7.5 hectares in the Ubud area which has just won the third place in the list of The 25 Best Cities in the World in the version of the travel magazine from the United States, Travel Leisure.

The global names of Ubud and Bali have become the main capital of ARMA known to tourists and art activists from all over the world.

Agung Rai revealed that ARMA is one of the fine arts museums in Bali that keeps overseas.

Collection of the museum consists of traditional to contemporary arts, including classic Kamasan paintings on tree bark, works by Batuan artists of the 1930s and 1940s as well as the only work of Javanese artist from 19th century that can be seen on the Island of Bali, namely that of Raden Saleh.

Meanwhile, collections of prominent Balinese painters include the works by I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, Ida Bagus Made, Anak Agung Gede Sobrat and I Gusti Made Deblog.

In the meantime, foreign painters are those who lived and worked in Bali such as Willem Gerard Hofker, Rudolf Bonnet and Willem Dooijewaard. The works of the German painter Walter Spies have a special place in the collection because of his important contribution to the development of Balinese arts.

The buildings in the museum area are designed in a traditional Balinese architectural style with the dominance of local materials. ARMA combines the arts naturally and place them side by side with nature and people. It stands firmly in the middle of trees, fountains, and ponds and rice field landscapes.

Apart from being a painting museum, the ARMA Museum also features dance and theater performances as well as exhibitions from Balinese, Indonesian and foreign artists. Visitors can also see the process of making works at the cultural workshop and see the collection of books in the library.

Even it is equipped with accommodation and restaurants. More interestingly, tourists are also invited to farm and plant rice. It is a form of rare moment. Three months after planting, they usually come again to see the rice planted and even until harvesting.

The museum was inaugurated by the Minister of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia, Prof. Dr. Ing. Wardiman Djojonegoro, on June 9, 1996.

Agung Rai never stays silent, but continues to innovate and get bored in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Thankfully, despite the pandemic, we are still fighting and innovating. This is self-managed, of course it cannot stop,” said Agung Rai.

Most of his life is devoted to popularizing, preserving and developing Indonesian art and culture. Because of this, ARMA has also been visited by great figures of the world and Indonesia such as Queen Elizabeth, Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin KBE (comedian, director, and film composer) from England, Walter Spies (painter, artist and a German-Indonesian musician) as well as the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama.

Even at ARMA there is a statue of Dreamer of World Peace, Chinmoy Kumar Ghose, better known as Sri Chinmoy who is a writer and artist from New York that inspires many people to create peace.

Sri Chinmoy was also an Indian spiritual master who taught meditation in Western countries after moving to New York City in 1964. Chinmoy founded his first meditation center in Queens, New York, and currently has hundreds of students in 60 countries.

Similarly, he once reminded that development of Ubud to date cannot be separated from the role played by the artists from various parties in promoting the tourism of Ubud to the world. Among them, there are Walter Spies, Rudolf Bonnet, Arie Smith, while from Ubud there is an artist named I Gusti Nyoman Lempad.

For this reason, Agung Rai also proposed those names to be immortalized in the form of the names of highways in the Ubud area. This is a form of respect for their services. At the same time, he believed it can be an international promotion.

Meanwhile, Mangku Pastika welcomed the proposed road names presented by Agung Rai. If it can be realized, Ubud will become an international village. Even though Ubud is a sub-district, it is ranked third in the list of The 25 Best Cities in the World 2022.

“Ubud is not the capital of Gianyar, but it is the third best city in the world. Indeed, Bali has always been known for having Ubud and Kuta,” said Mangku Pastika.

For this reason, the proposed names of roads in the Ubud area is without omitting the names of figures of local Bali and Indonesia.

The intelligent thoughts and ways of Agung Rai should be known by young people. Although there are 430 museums in Indonesia and 30 museums in Bali, ARMA is able to bring art to life both physically and psychically (sekala and niskala). The balance in museum management deserves to be appreciated.

Actually, Agung Rai cannot paint but can build a world-class museum and has been visited by prominent figures. “They are great at promoting, narrating and storytelling. Try to come and learn more from him (Agung Rai—Ed) every now and then,” added Mangku Pastika.

Normally, the art for art serves as a form of offering. However, at this time it is necessary to think realistically, not just ideally, so that art itself can support life.

Aside from being busy managing galleries, museums and art activities, Agung Rai also manages a resort with a nuance of local culture and the natural life of the Ubud countryside (with rice fields as a backdrop). “ARMA is really good at creating a market to come back,” he concluded. (ART/001)