Charred skeletons lie heaped against the austere white gallery walls while golden crows perch and pick on them. Hanging near this grim scene are monochrome images - of glazed-looking boys and a weird, glaring man - painted with oil colours mixed with melatonin pills.
But for its title, this art exhibition seems made of dark material. Illuminance, which is being held at the National University of Singapore Museum (NUS Museum) until November 14, is a collaboration of sorts between Indonesian contemporary artist Agus Suwage and Bali-based Italian artist Filippo Sciascia.
Featuring recent drawings, paintings, video works and mixed-media installations (Suwage's skeletons are made of graphite polyester and gold-plated brass), the exhibition's theme is mortality and light. It also serves as a dialogue between Suwage and Sciascia's artistic practices.
The Sicily-born, US-raised Sciascia first met Suwage a decade ago, when he tried to include Suwage in a group show of Indonesian artists at a Bali art gallery. In the 10 years since, Suwage's profile has risen considerably, thanks - or no thanks - to his controversial Pinkswing Park exhibit at Jakarta's international biennale in 2005. The installation showing a nearly nude couple led to anti-porn protests and a close shave with the law.
Last year, Sciascia tried initiating another joint project. This time, the pair decided, Suwage would make something and Sciascia would respond to that work. They kept in touch by e-mail but after some time they realised it was too difficult to do a standard collaboration.
'We artists have big egos and little time. So we decided to go our separate ways and do our own thing,' says 51-year-old Suwage. Yet their 'own thing' began to show signs of overlapping in scope and philosophy. 'The concept is almost similar. We both deal with fall and rise, cycles, the balance between life and death, yin and yang.'
