Image: Portrait of Basuki Abdullah, 1943. Image source: Djawa Baroe, Vol. 1, No. 9, 1 May 1943, p. 16, via Wikimedia Commons.

Basuki Abdullah (1915 - 1993)

Basuki Abdullah lahir di Surakarta, Jawa Tengah, 25 Januari 1915. Ia merupakan anak dari pelukis Abdullah Suriosubroto. Pendidikan formal Basuki Abdullah diperoleh di HIS dan Mulo di Solo. Basuki Abdullah pada tahun 1933 memperoleh beasiswa untuk belajar di Akademik Seni Rupa (Academie Voor Beeldende Kunsten) di Den Haag, Belanda. Ia menyelesaikan studinya dalam waktu tiga tahun dengan meraih penghargaan Sertifikat Royal International of Art (RIA).

 

Pada masa kolonialisme Jepang, Basuki Abdullah bergabung dalam Poetra atau Pusat Tenaga Rakyat, tepatnya di tahun 1943. Ia mendapat tugas mengajar seni lukis. Murid-muridnya antara lain Kusnadi dan Zaini. Basuki Abdullah aktif dalam Keimin Bunka Shidoso (Pusat Kebudayaan milik pemerintah kolonial Jepang) bersama Affandi, S.Sudjojono, Otto Djaya dan Basuki Resobowo. Setelah kemerdekaan, ia pergi ke Eropa

 

Pada tahun 1948 Basuki memenangkan sayembara melukis Ratu Juliana di Amsterdam, mengalahkan para pelukis Eropa. Setelah itu Basuki banyak mengadakan pameran di luar dan dalam negeri, dan menjadi salah satu pelukis favorit Sukarno, dikenal dengan gaya realis-romantik dan lukisan-lukisan potret para pemimpin dan bangsawan.  Hampir sebagian hidup Basuki selanjutnya dihabiskan di luar negeri, diantaranya beberapa tahun menetap di Thailand. Dia kemudian diangkat sebagai pelukis Istana Merdeka. Baru sejak tahun 1974 Basuki Abdullah menetap di Jakarta, hingga meninggal pada 5 November 1993.

Basuki Abdullah was born in Surakarta, Central Java, on January 25, 1915. He was the son of the painter Abdullah Suriosubroto. Basuki Abdullah received formal education at HIS and Mulo in Solo. In 1933, Basuki Abdullah obtained a scholarship to study at the Akademie Voor Beeldende Kunsten (Academie for Fine Arts) in The Hague, Netherlands. He completed his studies within three years and was awarded the Royal International of Art (RIA) Certificate.

 

During the Japanese colonial period, Basuki Abdullah joined Poetra or Pusat Tenaga Rakyat (Center for People's Power), specifically in 1943. He was tasked with teaching painting. His students included Kusnadi and Zaini. Basuki Abdullah was active in Keimin Bunka Shidoso (the Cultural Center owned by the Japanese colonial government) along with Affandi, S. Sudjojono, Otto Djaya, and Basuki Resobowo. After independence, he traveled to Europe.

 

In 1948, Basuki won a painting competition depicting Queen Juliana in Amsterdam, defeating European painters. After that, Basuki held many exhibitions domestically and abroad, becoming one of Sukarno’s favorite painters. He was known for his realist-romantic style and portraits of leaders and nobility. Much of Basuki’s later life was spent abroad, including several years residing in Thailand. He was subsequently appointed as the painter of the Merdeka Palace. It wasn’t until 1974 that Basuki Abdullah settled in Jakarta, where he lived until his death on November 5, 1993.

Source: IVAA Online Archive.