R. E. HARTANTO

The faces in Hartanto’s paintings portray expressions ranging from curiosity to suspicion, shock to deep contemplation—each demonstrating how anxiety manifests outwardly. In his Post North Korea Nuclear Test (2009) series, a satire on the global anxiety caused by the rivalry of powerful nations, Hartanto’s figures appear to stare directly at the viewer. This disruption of the subject-viewer dynamic suggests that the source of fear might even be found within interpersonal conflicts—within the viewers themselves.

Hartanto obtained his BFA from the Bandung Institute of Technology in 1998 and completed further training at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam in 2002.

Notable exhibitions include Asianow (2025), Monnaie de Paris; Suppose You Are Not (2024), Arter Museum, Istanbul; Museum Potret Dokter Rudolfo (2019), Museum dan Tanah Liat, Yogyakarta; Superhighway Visual Transformation (2019), Kalbis Institute, Jakarta; Re.claim (2012), National Gallery, Jakarta; Reality Effect (2010), National Gallery, Jakarta; The Past Forgotten Time (2008), Singapore Art Museum; and Bandung-Helsinki (2004), Kuvataideakatemia, Helsinki. The artist has also participated in major international festivals including Shadow Lines (2011), 11th Jogja Biennale, Yogyakarta; Maximum City (2011), 14th Jakarta Biennale; Fluid Zones (2009), 13th Jakarta Biennale; and OK. Video (2003), 1st Jakarta Video Art Festival.

Hartanto had his residency at the STPI Workshop in 2011, resulting in the group exhibition BMW Young Asian Artists Series III: Genevieve Chua, Lyra Garcellano, R.E. Hartanto (2011).

Courtesy STPI