Le portrait du peintre au miroir de la nation

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Etienne Naveau, Institut national des Langues et Civilisations orientales, Paris Le portrait du peintre au miroir de la nation Contrary to the small number of writers' biographies, there are a lot of biographies of painters in Indonesia. How can we explain that sort of contrast ? Exploring a corpus of about thirty painters who were living in Java, and focusing on important painters such as Affandi and Basuki Abdullah, the article suggests at least three answers to this question. First, the multiplication of painters' biographies reflects the development of a market for paintings since the late twentieth century. Second, the painter himself often appears as a weird and eccentric personality who can then fascinate readers. Third, and above all, painting in Java is closely linked to the construction of the nation. Indonesian people recognize their painters, who contribute to the recognition of Indonesia as a great nation, which means a politically independent country with a high and rich culture.