Gajah Gallery

Suara Rasa Perut (The Voice of the Feelings in My Stomach)

About Artwork

Artist Profile

Born in Bali in 1966, Murni’s early life was marked with hardship, movement and profound resilience. After surviving sexual abuse from her father as a young girl, she worked as a domestic worker in Ujung Pandang at the age of 10, a seamstress in Jakarta, then a jeweler in Bali before she embraced her calling as an artist. In her mid-20s, she trained under the tutelage of artist I Dewa Putu Mokoh, who taught her the Pengosekan School composed of pale earthy tones, thick black outlines and traditional motifs of flora and fauna. Murni, however, remained mainly self-taught as an artist. She eventually honed her own childlike style of strong curved lines and bright, bold colours; and broke away from traditional themes to embrace a deeply personal, interior subject matter—her traumatic past and wild, vivid dreams.

Since Murni’s death in 2006, her works have been hailed across the globe for their strength, originality, and ability to transcend stereotypes of other survivors of injustice. Her work has been exhibited in or acquired by prestigious institutions such as the Carnegie Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Australia, the National Gallery of Singapore, the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara (MACAN), and the University of Chicago.