Entang Wiharso

Entang Wiharso's art is marked by a multi-disciplinary practice that spans painting, sculpture, video, installation, and performance.

Biography of Entang Wiharso

Entang Wiharso, born in 1967 in Indonesia, is an internationally-renowned contemporary artist based in both Indonesia and the United States. He studied painting at the Indonesian Institute of Arts in Yogyakarta, where he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts.

Wiharso's career took off in 1996 when he became the youngest artist to receive a solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Indonesia. Since then, he has held over 45 solo exhibitions worldwide, including shows at Tang Contemporary Art in Bangkok, Marc Straus in New York, Mizuma Gallery in Singapore, and ARNDT in Berlin/Singapore. 

In 1997, he relocated to the United States in 1997 while maintaining a studio in Central Java, where he creates his large-scale installations.

Wiharso has also participated in numerous biennales, such as the 55th Venice Biennale (2013), Prague Biennale (2009, 2013), and Jakarta Biennale (2005). His work is featured in major international collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, Museum MACAN in Jakarta, Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, and the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne.

Wiharso has been awarded prestigious grants and fellowships, including the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant, a Ford Foundation Travel Grant, and the 2019 Guggenheim Fellowship. He has participated in residencies at the International Studio and Curatorial Program in Brooklyn, NY, the Norma Redpath Studio at the University of Melbourne, STPI, and Robert Wilson's Watermill Center in NY.

Entang Wiharso Art Style

Entang Wiharso's works are known for their dramatic visual language, blending contemporary life with mythologies from a centuries-old animist past and the hyper-connected lifestyle of the 21st century. His pieces address universal themes of power, loss, and love, alongside broader interests in ideology, philosophy, and geography.

His work is imbued with social, political, and sexual commentary, offering a complex perspective on the human condition. Wiharso employs imagery as a coded system of references and symbols that weave across the often expansive surfaces of canvas or industrial-grade aluminum. 

Wiharso's recent work delves into the duality of cultures and experiences in his two homelands, exploring themes that intertwine spirituality and transcendence with national narratives about progress and destiny through a sustained examination of landscape and geopolitical structures.