by Adrian Agoes
The first thing comes to mind when one says the word Ubud, is paintings. Ubud is assuredly respected by the world as the village of painters. The painting style in Ubud is also very specific. It is actually comparable with the painting from China in terms of perspective style. Ubud painting conventionally placed object that is in further perspective on the upper side of the painting, and those in closer perspective are placed on the lower side of the frame. Interestingly, those further and closer objects are painted in the same scale size. The style just as comparable to those of Chinese paintings.
Around Ubud there are lots of painting gallery. Also you can find some respectable museums which are famous around the world, such as Museum of Antonio Blanco, Neka Art Museum, Museum Puri Lukisan (literally means the temple of paintings), and also gallery of famous Ubud painter, Lempad Gallery. Ahead of the field, you can also go further out to the villages surrounding Ubud, such as Peliatan, and you can visit the houses of Balinese local painters.
It is also acclaimed that Ubud has received an award as the best town in Asia, according to the readers’ survey of the reputable American magazine, Conde Nast Traveller. Yes, town. Not village. It seems that everyone is also agree that Ubud village has now become quite crowded and galleries and art shops are rising everywhere. Yet, no one is to mind about Ubud’s crowded situation. In fact, more and more people are still attracted to come. It is perhaps because Ubud is also still maintaining its natural surrounding such as rice fields, hills, rivers, and its forrests.
Well, it’s a good thing that those natural resources are still there. If not, then where will the Ubud painters get their inspiration? Or maybe then those inspirational sources are in fact diminished, as Ubud paintings style are now also becoming more contemporary. Perhaps it’s because more different culture come to Ubud, then the painters get their inspiration from others? You find out.
