Dullah (1919-1996)

Two Balinese boys with a rooster

signed and dated 'Dullah 1953' (centre left)

oil on canvas, unframed, 91x68 cm

Provenance: -Acquired by the grandfather of the present owner during his stay in Indonesia in the 1950's.

Dullah was born in Solo in Central Java. His mother worked with batik and painted.

As with many other modern Indonesian artists he was autodidact because of the lack of a proper art education. According to Dullah, he learned a lot from the artists Affandi and Soedjojono who were in the independent movement Putera (Pusat Tenaga Rakyat) which was led by among others, Sukarno and Mohammed Hatta. He produced a few historical important paintings depicting the guerrilla battle against the Dutch army. From 1950-1960 he was the first official palace artist of President Sukarno. In 1956 he selected 206 paintings from his private collection which is depicted and documented in a luxurious publication in 2-parts, printed in China and the text in 4 languages by Dullah and Sukarno. The edition of 6000 pieces flew away. After Dullah stopped as the palace artist, he went to Solo, where he became co-founder of an artists’ association. He later stayed many times on Bali where he established a workshop for realistic art, Pejeng Art Centre, Bali, because that is where his heart was; painting with reality. In 1970 he opened a museum in Solo, dedicated to his work but where works of other painters, like Sukarno and Raden Saleh, are also shown.

The painting with the two Balinese boys with a rooster was purchased by a Dutchman who saw the painting in a gallery in Jakarta. After a time in Indonesia working for a Dutch company, he returned to Holland with a lot of rupiahs and some beautifull Indonesian paintings.

Frans Leidelmeijer