Indonesian art forms can include designs traced back to early animistic beliefs, ancestor worship, Hindu or Buddhist influenced motifs brought by Indian traders, Chinese or Islamic symbols and beliefs.
Common Indonesia Art
There are lots of work arts of Indonesia, especially Indonesian paintings which are unique works of art. The intricate and expressive Balinese paintings are quite famous and often express natural scenes and themes from the traditional dances. A long-standing tradition of sculpture can also be seen in the art and culture of Indonesia, some dating back to the Bronze and Iron Ages.
Indonesia Art inform of Puppets
Wayang (Puppets) is one of the must-see for Indonesian arts. Puppets have been used for centuries in Indonesia to tell the stories of the ancient epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabarata, as well as ancient myths. Modern stories also utilize this ancient art form for contemporary audiences.
Puppets fall into two major classifications – wayang kulit – the leather or shadow puppet of Central Java, and wayang golek – wooden puppets of West Java. There are several varieties of wooden puppets. Some visitors enjoy collecting the same character by various artisans, or all the characters in a scene or story, or just characters that hit their fancy. Good guys, bad guys, gods, demons, nobles, giants, clowns, princes and princesses and monkeys, all can be found in traditional puppet forms. Less commonly seen is the Wayang Klitik, a flat wooden puppet.
Indonesia art of architecture
You also can see some of sculptures illustrating the story of the life of Buddha in the temples of the 8th and the 10th century.
Indonesia art and fabric
Indonesia’s art and culture is famous for their unique batik, ikat and songket cloth which is even popular today. The batik process of waxing and dyeing originated in Java around centuries ago. Classic designs have been modified with modern trends in both pattern and technology. There are several centers of Batik in Java, the major ones being Yogyakarta, Surakarta, Pekalongan and Cirebon.
Indonesia art and handicrafts
In additional, Indonesia is rich in handicrafts. Various forms of handicrafts practiced are woodcarvings for ornamentation and furniture, silverwork and engraving from Yogyakarta and Sumatra, filigree from South Sulawesi and Bali with different styles of clay, sandstone and wood sculptures. These are just a few of the handicrafts found in Indonesia.