BOOMING SENI LUKIS INDONESIA, SIAPA YANG DIUNTUNGKAN?

Abstract

In the development of fine art in Indonesia there was once an interesting phenom- enon, namely, “painting boom.† It first happened in 1987, then in 1991-1992, in

1999-2000, and the last in 2007.  Painting was booming for the first time in coinci- dence  with the economic crisis in 1997 and this phenomenon grew stronger.   The economic crisis which was indicated by the collapse of private banks, the deprecia- tion of rupiah against dollar, and the stoppage of wheel of real sectors which led to unemployment in  cities, caused capital flight and transfer of investment to other sectors, especially to artistic objects.  Painting was suddenly believed as an object of investment which could  give a big advantage in short time.   Then a business community of painting emerged  and most of the businesspersons were Chinese. And the paradigm changed from painting as a work of art which had philosophical- aesthetic value to a commodity which was  subject to commerce law.   In other words, painting had become a commodity and entered the global capitalist indus- try.  And then the question is why painting could change into a special object which people were willing to collect and invest in.   This writing is  trying to answer the above question using an economic-politic approach and discuss who  took part in making painting enjoy a boom and who was the most powerful and took an advan- tage.