DENPASAR, balitourismnow.com – The “Impulse” exhibition at Kalpataru Art Space, Sanur Art Hub, brings together three artists from Sukawati—I Made Mahendra Mangku, I Wayan Arnata, and I Made Galung Wiratmaja—in a shared space, each with a distinct artistic approach.
Opened by Marlowe Bandem on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, the exhibition presents abstraction as more than an exploration of form and colour. It becomes a way of expressing experiences of nature, tradition, memory, and social life.
Set within a creative space surrounded by rice fields, the opening attracted art lovers and practitioners, cultural figures, and international visitors who came to experience the artworks as well as a contemporary music performance by Narreth. The exhibition runs through September 15, 2026.
Each artist works with a different medium. Mahendra Mangku works with paper, Arnata explores thread, while Galung Wiratmaja works on canvas.
Despite their different media and artistic experiences, the three artists meet through a shared language of abstraction rooted in their personal experiences and surroundings.
Mahendra Mangku responds to nature through the interplay of water and colour. The blobor technique, which allows pigment and water to flow freely across the paper, plays an important role in his creative process.
Yet this spontaneity remains guided by years of experience in reading the movement of water, colour, and composition.
“Nature is not present as an object to be depicted, but as an experience translated through colour and movement,” Mahendra Mangku said.
Unlike Mahendra, Wayan Arnata makes thread his primary medium. His choice is closely connected to childhood memories of his grandfather, a sangging who worked with fibres and thread through the ngodi technique for ritual purposes.
In “Impulse”, Arnata presents two new works, “Resonansi” and “Lintasan Lelaku.” Strand by strand, the threads are arranged into a visual language that speaks of interconnectedness, perseverance, memory, and cultural heritage.
“I am not simply repeating tradition, but translating it through a personal abstract language. Tradition becomes the root, while abstraction becomes a space to continue searching for new forms,” Arnata explained.
Meanwhile, Galung Wiratmaja uses canvas to explore figures, silhouettes, and the relationship between people and their social surroundings. The forms in his works are deliberately left unresolved, creating space for visitors to develop their own interpretations.
“I deliberately leave the forms open, allowing viewers the freedom to discover their own meanings,” Galung said.
Exhibition writer Vincent Chandra sees “Impulse” as a meeting between personal impulse and collective pulse. Inspiration can emerge from materials, memory, the environment, or cultural heritage before developing into each artist’s individual visual language.
All three artists grew up in Sukawati, one of Bali’s important centres of visual art and craft. According to Vincent, this shared background is one of the roots that connects them, even though their educational journeys and artistic practices have taken different paths.
“At this point, abstraction becomes more than simply a style. It becomes a language for bringing personal experience into dialogue with cultural roots,” Vincent said.
He also sees connections between the works and the Balinese philosophy of Tri Hita Karana, particularly the awareness of maintaining harmony between people and nature, fellow human beings, and the divine.
These values are not presented literally. Instead, they flow through each artist’s choice of materials, composition, and ideas.
The different approaches are precisely what give “Impulse” its strength. Mahendra Mangku explores nature and the spontaneity of colour; Arnata works through memory, thread, and ritual heritage; while Galung approaches the human figure and social life. Their three paths converge in an abstraction that remains rooted in Balinese experience and culture.
Founder and Art Director of Sanur Art Hub, I Wayan “Apel” Hendrawan, said the presence of the three artists in “Impulse” forms part of an effort to create an open space for art and creativity.
“We created Sanur Art Hub as an open space for art, creativity, and connection—a place where artists, communities, younger generations, and the wider public can meet and grow together,” Apel said.
Kalpataru Art Space was established from the aspiration to create an organically evolving space for art. As Sanur continues to develop as a tourism destination, its remaining green spaces, rice fields, and tranquil atmosphere provide an important context for the emergence of this creative space.
Through “Impulse”, the three artists from Sukawati demonstrate that abstraction does not have to be detached from reality. It can become a language for exploring nature, tradition, memory, identity, and human life—while opening new possibilities for Balinese art to continue evolving. [buda]