Richard Hassell will give a presentation of new research, made in collaboration with Professor Adrian Vickers, Director of Asian Studies at the University of Sydney, and author of Balinese Art: Paintings and Drawings of Bali 1800-2010, on the links between M.C. Escher, Rudolf Bonnet, and the art of Bali in the 1930s. It is not widely known that Escher was very good friends with Bonnet, one of the founders of the Pita Maha group, which was set up in 1936 to promote the art of Bali. Bonnet and Escher spent time together both before and after Bonnet’s move to Ubud in 1929. This talk presents new data on the links between the two, together with analysis of graphic similarities between Balinese works from Bonnet’s collection and Escher’s works of the late 1930s. Particularly important are the flat, black and white intertwined animals and erotica works of the Sanur School, and the works of Dewa Kompiang Kandel Ruka of Batuan. Some works from the Margaret Mead and Geoffrey Bateson collection of Balinese paintings, dating from 1937-38, will be on display.

Venue: Gillman Barracks (Block 9, #03-21)

When: 3 Dec 2016, 4pm - 5pm

By: ARNDT Fine Art