Interview
Yugie Kartaatmaja
Born 1986 in Bandung, Indonesia, Yugie graduated from the Bandung Institute of Technology, majoring in Ceramic Art. A curious, multi-talented artist and entrepreneur, he has worked in several creative industries including graphic design, art directing, and marketing managing.
In 2016, Yugie returned to ceramics as a freelance art teacher at Ganara Art. His work with children enabled him to reflect on clay’s capacity to enhance creativity, well-being, and interdisciplinary learning. For example, children simultaneously learned maths, (clay) science, and social skills. He also noticed that when focusing on creating with clay, participants experience a state of flow, similar to meditation.
Currently, Yugie’s art practice integrates his artistic knowledge with this focus on clay’s educational potential, and capacity to enable mindfulness and well-being. He works as a Studio Manager and Teacher for Studio Ceramic, a pottery studio by Kevala Ceramics in Bali.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I graduated from Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia major in Ceramic Arts. I have always aspired to be a full-time artist, but I am also a realist and work is a necessity to live. I was thrilled to be offered the opportunity to manage Kevala Ceramics Studio in Bali - the offer came at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, which was a surreal period for the world, including me having the chance to share my dedication to ceramics through teaching the values and processes. This has been an exciting time, and I have been here now for 1,5 years.
During that period, Wendy Thomas, the owner of Kevala, also offered me the studio space to explore my work and I got a chance to be mentored by a world-known modern and contemporary ceramic curator and coach, Dr. Wendy Gers, in my second art project. I then started to believe that this can work.”
What inspires you most?
“Human interaction fascinates me, our social behavior is what inspires me and this connection to our mental health as individuals. In my job, I get to interact with different people every day on a physical and mental level. I like to think of each day as a new journey. I have the opportunity to share my life’s experiences with my guests, and that seems to empower them to open up and share in creating a bond of exchange, which is built as a by-product of teaching pottery.”
How would you describe your work?
“My work is about the relation between myself and the audience, the audience and my work, or sometimes between two individuals who may or may not know about the artwork. It is a conduit for a social experience. I create a physical or digital space to be used for a particular theme that I want to convey, which is triggered by the audience. They are the ones who decide to participate, and this makes my work really come alive. Without that, I consider my work to be unsuccessful.”
“The material that I use is stoneware and/or mixed it terracotta using the throwing technique. The final artwork will be determined later when I can see all my work together. Each ceramic piece can stand alone or be combined to create a more substantial meaning.”
Which artists influence you most?
“Cawan Berbisik (Whispering Cups) was inspired by Marina Abramovich's work titled ‘The Artist is Present’. How she works, and she as an artist, has a direct impact on somebody's life. It is a very intense experience for me although I am only able to see it on video. That is what I want with my work, always.”
What is your creative process like?
“As the Studio Manager and Pottery Teacher at Kevala Ceramic Studio, we conduct a demonstration of the technique beforehand, in each class. While explaining the process, I will share and exchange stories. That process then becomes the base idea of my work. From the concept to the initial vision of my work which is created during that time.
The material that I use is stoneware and/or mixed it terracotta using the throwing technique. I used to love hand-building more than wheel throwing. But I found the beauty in it. The wheel-throwing table represents society. The technique is the process and the final work is the path that I‘ve chosen in life. Although I am blessed to be provided with a variety of glaze options, I mostly focus on shape, simplicity, clay exploration, and imperfections.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“The first Cawan Berbisik project was exhibited twice in 2019. At first, I was not confident that the work would affect people as much as I wanted it to. And I began to think that this will not work when the pandemic started. But in April 2020, I received an email from one of my audience members that participates in the art project, saying that she and her brother met and resolved their communication problem. Her last message on her email was ‘The presence of the Cawan Berbisik opened a deep conversation between us. Thank you for echoing the essential matters through this. God bless you and the works that you have created’.
That gets me going and I think that should be an artist’s role in society. That it helps people's life for the better. With the public nowadays having more understanding of arts, especially in contemporary arts, this will evolve into something more than just a visual and concept appreciation in a work of art.”
Website: www.yugiekartaatmaja.com
Instagram: @y.kartaatmaja
