Dede Eri Supria, Act of War, 2002

Oil on canvas
79 x 79 cm (visible), 81.5 x 71.5 x 3 cm (framed)
Condition: Very good

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Dede Eri Supria (Indonesian, b. 1956) studied at the Sekolah Seni Rupa Indonesia (SSRI, Yogyakarta) during 1975–1977, though he left before completing the course and continued his training independently. He emerged in the mid-1970s as part of the early wave of the Gerakan Seni Rupa Baru, showing his first works in a 1976 group exhibition at Balai Budaya, Jakarta. Over the years he gained recognition and has received several awards, including the General Award for the Arts from The Society for American-Indonesian Friendship in 1978, the Best Painting Award at the 1981 Jakarta Biennale, the Adam Malik Award in 1986, and the Affandi Award in 1993. His career spans decades of active exhibition and production, with works held by private and institutional collections both domestically and internationally.

Dede Eri Supria is best known for his socially engaged realist paintings, often depicting the struggles of urban poor, labourers, street vendors, and others marginalised by rapid urbanisation. His canvases are frequently detailed and hyper-realistic and capture the harsh contrasts of a modern city, such as overcrowded slums, chaotic construction sites, and decaying neighbourhoods beside glittering concrete jungles. While rooted in realism, his work often incorporates surreal or symbolic elements to emphasise alienation, societal imbalance, and the psychological weight of living in transforming cities. Through his art, he reflects on social inequality, consumerism, and the human cost of metropolitan modernity, making his paintings both documentary and critical.

Acquired from Borobudur Jakarta in 2007.

(Photographed in November 2025)