Bali, Batu artists display "nature culture"

Bali painter I Made Arya Palguna and fellow artist Fadjar Djunaedi from Batu, East Java hold an exhibition "Nature Culture" at the Gracia arts gallery here Sept 10-20, 2008.

Fadjar Djunaedi said here on Wednesday he displayed seven paintings along with nine works from Palguna.

"We try to respond to mother nature in our own specific style. I personally feature forest fires as main theme," he said.

One of the artist`s works was called "Tutup Mata Tutup Telinga" (Eyes and Ears Closed) to describe lack of care of the people for the matter.

Fajar, born on June 17, 1970 in Batu and an graduate of the State University of Malang majoring in Arts Education, portrayed a child sitting calmly on a swing in the middle of a forest fire.

Another painting "Kenikmatan Merokok Tidak Hanya pada Tembakau" (The Pleasures of Smoking not Only Concerns Tobacco) featured forest fire as a daily happening. People inhaled smoke from the forest fires like smokers do.

The painter portrayed a man standing in a cleared forest with dense green forests at the background but still threathened by many hot spots in a painting called "Menghitung Titik Api" (Counting Hot Spots).