One of the most celebrated artists in his home country, Heri Dono has exhibited internationally including at the Venice Biennale, Asia Society New York, Singapore Art Museum, and the Gwangju Biennale.

For almost 40 years, Heri Dono has developed a fantastical world of dichotomies in his paintings. Humorously juxtaposing reality with imagination, folk with contemporary art, and politics with fiction, the tension between these opposing forces create narratives that cut across a complex, multilayered system of ideologies. Having lived through the struggle against oppression by the Indonesian regime in the 1980s, and later the “reformasi” in 1998 that spawned from the end of Suharto’s regime, Heri Dono’s artistic methodology reexamines power structures through satirical illustrations of humans versus the Other, man versus machine, offering a kind of passage for others to survive real life transitions during challenging times.

Known for his uniquely contemporary, Javanese style inspired by traditional Wayang Kulit puppet theatre, Heri Dono “humorously skewer[s ] the current political situation with imagination and illusion,” writes critic and curator Hou Hanru.

His new series of paintings speak to very current times. The tides of global politics have shifted with the inauguration of new world leaders, causing a great divide of opinion among the masses. “Trump vs the Dragon” and “Between Two Cards” examine the ethics of choosing one thing over another, each begging the question, do their moral consequences weigh the same? Who gains, and who suffers?

The exhibition will also showcase his 2004 kineticsound installation “Born and Freedom”. Inspired by John Barry’s song “Born Free”, the archaiclooking figures of five dogs leashed to five humans parallels the relationship between the Indonesian population and the government, despite being freed from military regime after the 1998 reform.

“Land of Freedom” runs through August 12.