Arahmaiani emerged as an artist in the period directly before Indonesia’s political reform in 1998, this was also a time when landmark exhibitions were being organised internationally which began to include artists beyond the West as a reflection of a changing global consciousness. In 1996 Arahmaiani participated in ‘Traditions/Tensions’ at the Asia Society, New York City and The 2nd Asia Pacific Triennial (APT2) at the Queensland Art Gallery, Australia. In 1997 she was part of The Havana Biennale, Cuba and Cities on the move – Contemporary Asian Art on the turn of the 21st century at the Wiener Secession in Vienna. Her participation in these important exhibitions, saw Arahmaiani positioned as an important voice in the emerging art scene of Southeast Asia. It also enabled her practice to transform its context of reference, leading to some of the artist’s most iconic works such as the performance Handle without Care (1996–2018) and the installation Nation for Sale (1996–2018).

Since the late 1980s, Arahmaiani has been living as what she describes as “global nomad” – moving between cities and countries with different cultures. This is an experience that has formed her social consciousness and has manifested in her work. This exhibition brings together works from the beginning of Arahmaiani’s career in the 1980s to the present. It includes early installations, paintings, drawings and photographic and video documentation, writing, and publications, to illustrate the surrounding social and cultural context in which her works were created and being presented.

In 1987 Arahmaiani stated, “If necessary, I can extend my canvases as wide as possible to become life itself and replace brush and paint with elements of daily life.” Her activities as an artist, writer, and social activist, have explored the intersections of Indonesia’s reformation and a broadening global discourse for art, often drawing upon the surrounding social, cultural, and political situation, and her personal experience.

Arahmaiani’s work has addressed Indonesia’s historic multiculturalism - the influence of Hindu, Buddhist and Animist traditions and its resonance in Javanese architecture and language; the cultural underpinnings of Islam; colonization, changing economic and political landscape, experiences of globalization and urbanization, the environment and the role of women in society. Her work, through a vast array of traditional and non-traditional media has engaged groups and communities around the world.