The Stedelijk Museum is now offering the first European solo exhibition of  Indonesian artists’ collective Tromarama, which started on June 12th and will end on September the 6th 2015. The Stedelijk is always on the watch for innovative modern art that crosses boundaries between different media. The Stedelijk Museum is open every day from 10.00 – 18.00. On Thursdays, the Stedelijk is even open until 22.00h.
Here it is in all its glory.

About Tromarama

This collective was formed in 2004 by Indonesian artists Febie Babyrose, Ruddy Hatumena and Herbert Hansm. All three artists graduated from the Institute of Technology in Bandung and met in 2006 during an animation workshop. And what a meeting that was! Below is the smiling trio.

Since working together, Tromarama has created a great many animations featuring inconspicuous, everyday objects. In exhibitions, the trio likes to exhibit their animations as parts of installations. Sometimes they do so in combination with objects.These talented artists like to work in different media, particularly stop-motion animation while also experimenting with digital imaging technology. Their focus is on contemporary urban culture, and they insert their work beyond the art scene into the larger cultural fabric of Bandung. 

About TROMARAMA’s exhibition at The Stedelijk

The exhibition presents a selection of recent animations, as well as a new work the trio created especially for the occasion! In addition to presenting their art at exhibitions, the collective shares their work via online channels, such as Youtube. Their new work, First Wave, is a multi-layered reflection on how digital technology affects the artists’ self-image. The Tromarama solo exhibition is part of Global Collaborations, a three-year project launched by the Stedelijk Museum in 2013. The project offers a well-informed, nuanced view of developments in contemporary art from a global perspective, with particular emphasis on emerging regions such as Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

  Why is it interesting?

Yesterday, on Wednesday July 15, the Indonesian collective took over the Stedelijk’s Instagram account for the day! You will be able to check out Tromarama’s world of digital animation where all kinds of objects come alive! It is actually the first time that a museum has a social media channel open to artists, and fit into new social media policy of the City to “digital artists” to provide a platform.  As the Internet has great influence on their thinking and work, Tromarama decided to present work on Youtube and now via the Instagram on the account of the Stedelijk. When asked why they specialised in making animated videos, Tromarama simply replied “We love to play god”. Here one of their videos.

What else will the exhibition feature?

The exhibition features three animations that combine HD photos of animated objects, shoes, suitcases and a length of green fabric, with images of the urban Indonesian landscape. Tromarama doesn’t create flawless illusions: the animations are infused with imperfections, reminding us that we’re watching manipulated images of reality. This device serves to accentuate the friction between the materiality of the depicted objects and the digital technology used to animate them.

The presentation includes the new animation First Wave (2015), as well as the works Happy Hour (2010), Unbelievable Beliefs (2012), On Progress (2013) and The Charade (2014).

Interested? Read more about TROMARAMA on the Stedelijk site.