The Weight of What Remains, My Journey with the J+ Art Awards 2026
I am deeply honored to share that one of my most personal creations has been selected for the J+ Art Awards 2026 roadshow exhibition! Organized by Connected Art Platform in collaboration with ARTOTEL Group, this year marks the third edition of the awards under the evocative theme Mirage—an exploration of how perception, memory, and reality blur into one another.
The roadshow kicked off with a beautiful opening reception at ARTSPACE, ARTOTEL Gelora Senayan in Jakarta on July 24, 2026, where my work will be on display until October 24, 2026. Beyond being selected as a participating artist alongside an incredible group of creators, I am also humbled to be stepping into the space as a speaker during this journey, leading up to the main Awarding Night this October.
Exploring the Concept Behind "The Weight of What Remains"
Responding to the theme Mirage, my featured artwork—titled The Weight of What Remains (Mixed Media, 100 x 100 x 3.5 cm)—delves into the fluid, often painful boundaries between memory, grief, and presence. A mirage is something that feels tangible from a distance, yet shifts as you draw closer. Memory operates in much the same way; lives fade into absence, yet the emotional residue left behind remains remarkably real.
In this piece, I reconstruct memory by layering textiles from my late aunt’s clothing, paint, and fragments of an earlier painting of my grandfather. Once imagined as a merman navigating oceans and trade, his image in this work is now faded, reflecting how memory erodes over time.
Transitioning into waste textiles and mixed media allowed me to process personal loss in a raw, physical way. My aunt’s garments are reassembled on the canvas as evidence rather than decoration. Together with the paint, the composition forms a literal wall of fragments—where each “brick” holds personal loss and silenced histories. Red marks cut through the piece, evoking blood, illness, and the violence imposed on women’s bodies through rigid ideals of beauty.
Ultimately, this wall responds to ongoing harm where abuse is ignored and women are expected to endure. It becomes both a barrier and a firm demand for safety, accountability, and the right to exist without violation.
Turning Personal Grief into Universal Connection
Exhibiting this piece at ARTOTEL Gelora Senayan has been an intensely moving experience. During the opening reception, stepping up to speak and having visitors spend time with such a vulnerable part of my life reminded me why I create.
In my practice of healing through art, I’ve come to realize that our private heartbreaks and systemic struggles are rarely ours alone. When we allow ourselves to process personal grief through raw, tactile mediums, it creates an invitation for others to reflect on their own unspoken losses. The conversations shared in front of the artwork brought a comforting warmth, reinforcing that memory—much like art—is a shared human experience.
Looking Ahead to October
I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the J+ Art Awards team, the curators, judges, organizers, and my fellow participating artists for building such an inspiring sanctuary for contemporary art in Indonesia.
If you are in Jakarta between now and October 24, 2026, I warmly invite you to visit ARTSPACE at the lobby level of ARTOTEL Gelora Senayan. Come spend a moment with The Weight of What Remains, explore the Mirage exhibition, and stay tuned as we move toward the Awarding Night this October!
Thank you, as always, for walking alongside me in this evolving creative journey as an Indonesian artist.
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