Heri Dono’s first solo exhibition ‘Animachines’ at Stockholm – Sweden, 28th March until 28th June 2015

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From 28th March until 28th June 2015, Färgfabriken presents Heri Dono’s first solo exhibition ‘Animachines’ at Stockholm, Sweden. With support from Indonesian Embassy in Sweden.  Färgfabriken was opened in 1995, serving its space for exhibitions and variant activities focusing in art, architecture and urban development, presenting works that are experimental and interdisciplinary offering visitors an on-going critical thinking as well as a memorable insight. As part of their long commitment with Indonesia, Färgfabriken showcases Heri Dono’s works through an extraordinary visual experience, which expresses the artist’s uniqueness through his distinctive style and raw presence that are intriguing yet provocative.

The exhibition is a collaboration work of the Indonesian Embassy in Stockholm with Färgfabriken. At the opening of the exhibition, the Indonesian Ambassador, Dewa Made J. Sastrawan, said that the ‘Animachines’ journey is a reminder to us that we are all puppets, playing our own role and parts while we are alive, directed by invisible hands of the puppet master, which in this exhibition is Heri Dono himself.

Heri Dono (Heri Wardono) was born in Jakarta on 12th June 1960, growing up in the art scene in his birthplace. Dreamed of being an artist, Dono continued in pursuing his interest at the Indonesian Institute of Art in Yogyakarta, which was then a painting programme in STSRI ‘ASRI’ Yogyakarta. Although he felt constrained in being limited in expressing himself within campus, he did not stop as he travelled and visited artists’ studios and houses in learning artistic skills and processes. The installations in the ‘Animachines’ exhibition reflect Heri Dono’s own life experiences of metaphoric relations between humans themselves, human to nature, human to universe, as well as the complex issues of the political situation in Indonesia.

Not only that Heri Dono’s major artworks are mesmerising in its installed assemblages, but spectators are involved as part of the artworks by activating their motions. Many artworks are installed with a labelled pedal, allowing our own curiosity to reveal Dono’s marvel that he has implied in his works. Thus, by compiling various materials for his works and inviting our different senses to connect with them – through seeing and listening– Dono has shown himself as the puppet master of these ‘Animachines’, a fascinating world that is Heri Dono. The exhibition produced and curated by Färgfabriken will travel to LAT.63 art arena located at Frösö Park Östersund, Sweden in autumn 2015. Heri Dono is currently representing Indonesia at the Venice Biennale 2015 with the theme ‘Voyage’, where his large site-specific work ‘Trokomod’ is present.

For more information and press images visit http://www.fargfabriken.se/en/component/k2/item/1103-heri-dono or contact; Emilia Rosenqvist, [email protected], +46(0)73-6442397.