Bali Now
Mizuma Gallery is proud to present Bali Now, I Nyoman Arisana’s first solo exhibition with the gallery, curated by Hermanto Soerjanto, opening on 1 November 2025. Growing from the aesthetics of tradition, the series of new paintings offer a reflection on how global influences and economic change shape life in Bali today.
Bali has long been a place of negotiation between tradition and modernity. Since the 1930s, when European artists Rudolf Bonnet and Walter Spies introduced Western techniques through Pitamaha artist collective, which maintained the quality of Balinese art, evolving without losing its essence. Growing up in a family of artists, Arisana continues this trajectory, employing intricate methods such as sigar mangsi shading and bamboo brushwork on dense compositions of the traditional Batuan style, while introducing voids, vibrant colours, and unconventional placements that make his works unmistakably contemporary.
Arisana’s works finds mediation on cultural loss, commodification, and ecological strain felt in his immediate surroundings. His paintings critique the growing deviation from Tri Hita Karana, the Balinese Hindu principle of harmony between human, their god, and their surrounding nature. Konversi (Conversion) shows concrete pillars rising in forest greenery, while Tentang Air (About Water) recalls a once-vital river now polluted. His largest work, Mencari Tempat Baru (Searching for a New Place), imagines an ark filled with flora and fauna seeking refuge; a vision of nature’s fragile survival amidst unchecked development.
From afar, Arisana’s works might seem to echo scenes common in a Batuan style painting, yet up close they reveal cartoon-like figures inspired by Japanese manga that the artist consumes. This fusion of sacred technique and global pop culture captures the paradox of Bali today: a global destination shaped by tourism, yet evident of an unwavering integrity rooted in tradition. Even in small works like Berhenti Sejenak (Momentary Pause), Arisana’s fascinating details beckons and invites viewers to pause, reflect, and restore balance amidst the rush of contemporary life.
Solo exhibition by I Nyoman Arisana
Curated by Hermanto Soerjanto
1 November – 7 December 2025
Opening Reception: Saturday, 1 November 2025, 4pm-7pm
Exhibition walkthrough: 5pm-5.30pm
The artist will be in attendance.
https://www.mizuma.sg/exhibitions/2025/10/08/bali-now/
Mizuma Gallery is proud to present Bali Now, I Nyoman Arisana’s first solo exhibition with the gallery, curated by Hermanto Soerjanto, opening on 1 November 2025. Growing from the aesthetics of tradition, the series of new paintings offer a reflection on how global influences and economic change shape life in Bali today.
Bali has long been a place of negotiation between tradition and modernity. Since the 1930s, when European artists Rudolf Bonnet and Walter Spies introduced Western techniques through Pitamaha artist collective, which maintained the quality of Balinese art, evolving without losing its essence. Growing up in a family of artists, Arisana continues this trajectory, employing intricate methods such as sigar mangsi shading and bamboo brushwork on dense compositions of the traditional Batuan style, while introducing voids, vibrant colours, and unconventional placements that make his works unmistakably contemporary.
Arisana’s works finds mediation on cultural loss, commodification, and ecological strain felt in his immediate surroundings. His paintings critique the growing deviation from Tri Hita Karana, the Balinese Hindu principle of harmony between human, their god, and their surrounding nature. Konversi (Conversion) shows concrete pillars rising in forest greenery, while Tentang Air (About Water) recalls a once-vital river now polluted. His largest work, Mencari Tempat Baru (Searching for a New Place), imagines an ark filled with flora and fauna seeking refuge; a vision of nature’s fragile survival amidst unchecked development.
From afar, Arisana’s works might seem to echo scenes common in a Batuan style painting, yet up close they reveal cartoon-like figures inspired by Japanese manga that the artist consumes. This fusion of sacred technique and global pop culture captures the paradox of Bali today: a global destination shaped by tourism, yet evident of an unwavering integrity rooted in tradition. Even in small works like Berhenti Sejenak (Momentary Pause), Arisana’s fascinating details beckons and invites viewers to pause, reflect, and restore balance amidst the rush of contemporary life.
Solo exhibition by I Nyoman Arisana
Curated by Hermanto Soerjanto
1 November – 7 December 2025
Opening Reception: Saturday, 1 November 2025, 4pm-7pm
Exhibition walkthrough: 5pm-5.30pm
The artist will be in attendance.
https://www.mizuma.sg/exhibitions/2025/10/08/bali-now/