evi pangestu

Challenging the Boundaries

Creatively rebellious, Evi Pangestu is a prominent young artist who has dived deep into the realm of conceptual art. She was always drawing when she was a child, and what started as a favourite pastime grew into a strong passion. Today, as a graduate from the Royal College of Art, London with a master’s degree in painting, Evi is known for her unique works that break the boundaries.

Her love for exploration pushed her to challenge the convention of paintings. Her practice is informed by negotiations and compromises, and Evi herself sees her work as a very personal project. Nevertheless, she expects her works to be independent once they are out of her studio, in that the creations should be able to engage with audiences on their own. She also tends to create multiple paintings at once to keep the conversation going. “I feel like I’m talking with my paintings and that helps me find ideas,” she adds.

The early years of her journey were full of challenges – which Evi treated as learning opportunities. She explored various medias, attempted to initiate a group show on her own, and even sold rendang to raise funds for the group show, which then became one of her most treasured memories. At one point, Evi even had to learn the finer points of safety the hard way. She was also not well aware of the safety procedure during the art creation process. “I wasn’t wearing gloves when experimenting with hazardous materials. I still having nightmares about what came after that,” she recalls.

Today, however, Evi has participated in a long list of exhibitions. Her debut was in 2010 when she showcased her works in a selected exhibition by Jakarta Art Teacher and I at Elcana Gallery Jakarta. Last year (2021), Evi saw her first solo exhibition dubbed “Dalam Sangkar” held at Galeri Ruang Dini, Bandung. Her upcoming projects include a solo show at D Gallerie Jakarta in November, followed by a group exhibition at Lawangwangi Creative Space, Bandung.