Though Bali and Art are two words that link together nowadays, in the Balinese language there’s no such word for ‘art’ or ‘artist’. This has to do with the fact that traditionally producing art was not something that was to be treasured. It was necessary for decorating festivals or temples and it was respected, but it didn’t matter who the artist was so it was never signed.

Today you find ‘art’ everywhere in Bali. There are thousands shops and galleries which offer a wide range of quickly produced pieces, good for souvenirs. These handicrafts are often quite remarkable, but it’s meant for the mass. If you dig deeper, you might have the change to find quite a lot of high quality Art. In and around Ubud you find some famous galleries where only the one-of-a-kind art is presented.

Painting
The paintings you see around in Bali today, are clearly influenced by the western demand and ideas. Traditionally, paintings were very limited to subjects and were almost only used to decorate temples. Basically, paintings were limited to three different kinds; Langse, Iders-iders and calendars. Langse are rectangular paintings, that were hanged in temples for decoration. Iders-iders are scroll paintings that were hung in the roof corners of temples. Calendars were usually astrological paintings. The subject of those paintings were commonly mythological, like Hindu epics. These paintings were always executed in the Wayang style; figures that were painted two-dimensionally like the shadow puppet show ‘Wayang Kulit’. The colorscheme was limitied; shades of brown, red, blue yellow and a slight of ochre.

above: Wayang style painting

Changing scenes
In the 1930’s, the scenes in the painting changes because of foreign influences. Instead of painting legends and narrative tales, they started to paint the daily life and the painting became more of an art, instead of just decoration for temples. Foreign painters like Walter Spies, Rudolf Bonnet and Arie Smit settled in Bali and became an important influence of change.

above; a colorful painting by Arie Smit

Woodcarving and Sculpture
Like painting, woodcarving and sculpturing was practiced for the use of decorating, but now it gained importance as an art. In smaller or less important temples you might find just little carved decorations, but in some bigger temples, especially in the North of the island, you can find impressive and detailed work. Often, the temple gateways are fully carved with figures like demons protecting the place. Next to the gateway you might find statues from stones guarding the place as well. These door guardians are legendary figures, like Arjuna, a hero from a Hindu epic. Above the main entrance to a temple you find the guard Kala; a monstrous face and sometimes displayed several times. The ancient swastika symbol stands for good fortune and prosperity and you see them everywhere around the island.

In and around Ubud you find stylish woodcarving of figures, animals, decorative panels and so on. Nowadays the wood is often in it’s natural state and note painted like it was the traditional practice before. Mas, a small village nearby Ubud, is also famous for it’s many woodcarvings, so make sure to go around there if your searching for some fine artworks.

Silver
If your looking for silver, Bali is the right place. If you look around well, you might find some real artistic jewelery or artworks made of silver. Celuk, between Denpasar and Ubud, is known for their many silver and goldsmithing specialist. Here you find big showrooms for the touring groups, but also tiny shops with big treasures. Go around and bargain, the prices are probably much lower then your home country. If you dare, it’s better to go around here yourself, without a taxi driver bringing you somewhere; he’ll bring you to his friends and will probably get a commission after your purchase, so the final price will usually be lower when you go alone.