Sang gunung menyerahkan jejaknya ke laut (The mountain gives way to the sea)

Exhibition opening

11 August 2023, 7PM
Performance by Cok Sawitri

Exhibition dates and times

11 August – 10 September 2023
Mon – Sun 9AM – 5PM

ABOUT

‘Sang gunung menyerahkan jejaknya ke laut’ presents a series of moving image artworks that continues Leyla Stevens’ exploration of the space between documentary and fiction. The exhibition focuses on counterpoint histories in Bali that continue to shape and contest its position as an island paradise. Connecting several historical trajectories around political violence from 1965-66, surf tourism, the Wallace Line, Gunung Agung, and spirits who inhabit the natural world, the exhibition considers alternative archives that are embedded within Bali’s coastal landscapes. From her approach to moving image as a reparative form of witnessing, the artist invites an ocular shift around points of erasure and forgetting in the landscape. Extending upon current efforts to re-tell 1965 histories from survivor perspectives, the video proposes that non-human witnesses to these events offer significant redress to state endorsed silencing.

Sang gunung menyerahkan jejaknya ke laut offers a transcultural perspective on south Bali’s histories, particularly looking at the ways in which Bali’s coastlines have been reshaped by global tourism and sustained colonial imaginations. The transformation of place, history, and with that also belonging is central to how we make sense of the world around us. We exist within a particular locatedness in time and space that undergo a continual process of construction and deconstruction, which ultimately enables a nuanced understanding of a site’s history and culture and the tensions that may arise from their interactions. In the context of Bali, this transformation occurred rapidly with tourism changing the landscape of the island and its communities. The development of previously untouched beaches for touristic purposes has seen water pollution and waste management become key issues in Bali at present. This reaping of land and beaches to accommodate mass tourism has also disrupted the diverse local cultures and ritual practices, containing them in centralised spaces and in turn, homogenising cultural practices in Bali. Sang gunung menyerahkan jejaknya ke laut invites us to rethink our relationship to the landscape around us locally, regionally, and internationally, and the ways in which we are all, in one way or another, connected to each other. It is perhaps more important than ever to revisit these histories and reimagine our collective future.

Curator: Bianca Winataputri

Leyla Stevens, Kidung
(2019) 3 channel video, stereo sound, 10:58 minutes

PUBLIC PROGRAM
13 – 19 August 2023

Staged as collective gatherings inviting local artists, writers, historians, researchers, 1965 activists, and environmentalists to jointly discuss shared concerns and experiences in relation to the exhibition themes. These discussions and a guided walk will inform the writings for a post-exhibition publication. Each discussion will be hosted by a representation from a different community group and moderated by Bianca Winataputri. Both artist and curator will be present in all discussion sessions held at CCG.

All programs will be delivered in English and Bahasa Indonesia.

13 August 2023
Tri Semaya guided walk of Sanur with Gede Maha Putra
10AM, meet at Warung Mak Beng

Join us for a guided historical walk of Sanur with urban historian Gede Maha Putra. Together we will discover the changing landscapes, architectures, and communities in Sanur and unravel the ways in which social and cultural structures have adapted to the currents of time.

The walk will end at Hyatt Sanur.

Beyond the Frame: process, collaboration, and storytelling in video art-making 5PM, CushCush Gallery

Join us for an insightful discussion on the dynamic world of video artmaking. This event will explore the collaborative processes behind Balinese-Australian artist Leyla Stevens’ works in the exhibition Sang Gunung Menyerahkan Jejaknya ke Laut (The mountain gives way to the sea). Together we will delve into the intricate processes of visual language, translation, and non-linear storytelling in making video art, and how you can get started. The discussion will also reflect on the power of video art to reimagine and reinterpret untold stories and histories.

Speakers: Leyla Stevens (artist), Wayan Martino (filmmaker and founder of Niskala Studio), and Savitri Sastrawan (curator and writer)
Moderator: Bianca Winataputri

16 August 2023
Tri Semaya “past, present, and future”: navigating the shifting tides of Balinese cultures and landscapes
7PM, CushCush Gallery

This event brings together historians, environmentalists, artists, creatives, and community members to collectively reflect on Bali’s past, present, and visions for the future. Together we will explore the rich tapestry of Bali’s history, its evolving culture, and the profound impacts of modern changes and tourism on its landscapes. With rapid urban developments, the onset of climate change, and changing social, cultural, and environmental structures, how can we foster a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive future for Bali? Share your ideas, aspirations, and concerns about what the future holds for Bali, and join us as we collectively discuss Bali’s storied past, thriving present, and strategies for a hopeful future.

Speakers: Made Bayak (artist) and Ngurah Suryawan (antropologist)
Moderator: Bianca Winataputri

19 August 2023
Collective memory: mapping history, and uncovering untold stories of Bali
2PM, CushCush Gallery

Join us for a reflective discussion on the 1965 tragedy in Bali, its lasting impacts, and the importance of remembering to learn, understand, and heal as a community. This event fosters intergenerational dialogue and invites different generations of community members to exchange stories and experiences of historical injustices within a safe space. The discussion will also collectively explore ways to promote more inclusive storytelling of history that respects diverse voices and perspectives through literature, archives, and artmaking.

Speakers: Juli Sastrawan (author and researcher) and Sidhi Vhisatya (curator)
Moderator: Bianca Winataputri

26 August 2023
Writing with Art
9AM-3PM (workshop – RSVP only)
7-9PM (live reading performance – open for public)

This full-day workshop and live reading performance invites writers of fiction and non-fiction, poets, artists, and storytellers to respond to featured artworks by Leyla Stevens.

Stevens’ moving image artworks explore the space between documentary and fiction, engaging with histories of political and social injustices, trauma, and collective memory and remembering in Bali. The works featured in the exhibition offer a transcultural perspective on south Bali’s histories and landscapes, and how they have been reshaped by global tourism and sustained colonial imaginations.

The program encourages participants to think, feel, imagine, and write with artworks through collective reflections and discussions. Each participant will have the opportunity to produce new writings and present them live to a public audience.

The session will be facilitated by Kadek Sonia Piscayanti and Made Adnyana Ole from Komunitas Mahima in Bahasa Indonesia.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body, and in collaboration with Goethe-Institut Indonesien.

DIGITAL PUBLICATION

Sang Gunung Menyerahkan Jejaknya ke Laut translated to The Mountain Gives Way to the Sea is an exhibition and digital publication that emerged from three moving image artworks by Australian-Balinese artist Leyla Stevens. Presented first as an exhibition at CushCush Gallery in Bali in 2023, Stevens’ artworks serve as starting points for collective discussions on transcultural and transnational histories, memories, and the ways in which Bali’s coastlines have been reshaped by global tourism and sustained colonial imaginations.

This publication includes essays by artist Leyla Stevens, curator Bianca Winataputri, and Balinese writers and scholars Savitri Sastrawan, I Ngurah Suryawan, I Nyoman Gede Mahaputra, and Juli Sastrawan, who explore the transformation of place, counterpoint histories, and belonging in Bali at present and into the future. This publication is also produced in memory of writer and performer Cok Sawitri and features her latest poem, Segara Gunung Tak Menepi, commissioned for this project.

You can access the digital publication of Sang Gunung Menyerahkan Jejaknya ke Laut by visiting the digital publication at sanggunung.com

SUPPORTED BY

PRESS RELEASE

Click here to download press release

NEWS