Affandi

• Affandi's father wanted him to pursue his studies, but Affandi was interested in drawing
• Affandi gave up his studies to pursue his desire of becoming an artist
• The self-portrait "Self-portrait (1975)" depicts Affandi as an elderly man with unkempt hair, downcast eyes, a set of broken teeth, and a wide grin
• The style of the self-portrait is semi-abstract and very expressive
• Affandi used oil paint applied directly from the tube onto the canvas, and he painted with his finger to create thick, swirly, and wavy lines
• The directional and dynamic lines in Affandi's artwork help create movement
• The warm, primary colors used in Affandi's face contrast with the cool colors in the background, creating emphasis on his face and depth in the painting
• The lines in the painting give definition to Affandi's face
• The subject matter of the self-portrait is Affandi himself
• The style, material, and technique used in the self-portrait are expressive, oil paint directly on canvas, and painting with a finger
• The Elements of Art in the self-portrait include warm colors for the face and cool colors for the background, with varying curly and wavy lines forming a vortex around his head
• The Principles of Design in the self-portrait involve color contrast drawing emphasis and creating depth, and lines giving definition to Affandi's face
• Affandi was the first Indonesian artist to develop and gain international acclaim from his art
• In the 1940s, he was very much involved in the formation of artists communities in Yogyakarta
• These communities later became significant art teaching institutions
• In the 1950s, he travelled and exhibited in India and Europe and was highly successful
• His art changed radically, abandoning strong linear brush strokes with a high level of realism to using a brush along with fingers, hands, and a palm
• He was aware of his success but realized the frailty of his physical self
• Born to a blue-collar worker, his father wanted him to be a doctor as a child but he was interested in drawing
• He dropped out of school to pursue painting
• Worked odd jobs and painted whenever possible
• He made his house into a gallery
• He was the leader of the Lima Bandung community, an artist community consisting of 5 Indonesian painters
• He died in 1990
• Theme: self-identity/interpretation
• He was highly successful as an artist but realized the frailty of his physical self, thus changing his art style from realism to expressive
• Dropped out of school to pursue art, worked odd jobs, was the leader of the Lima Bandung Community