The Wall: Asian Un(real) Estate Project

Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world and its cities are the fastest developing in Asia. Aditya Novali’s ‘The Wall: Asian (Un)Real Estate Project’ 2018 comments on the chronic housing shortage in Indonesia’s cities, and draws attention to the ways in which housing is intimately connected to our physical and emotional welfare.

Novali trained as a ‘dalang cilik’ (child puppetmaster) from the age of seven, a demanding role in which he would take on the parts of all the characters in a play. At the same time, he would have to link jokes to an underlying message or ethical position for the audience to interpret. Novali now refers to Indonesian traditions in a more subtle way; however, the rotatable elements of ‘The Wall’ recall the audience participation from his childhood role. With a slice-through view of a high-rise apartment building, viewers are able to scroll through different environments revealing internal living spaces, a brick wall, and the metal bars of a prison cell. Novali’s work affords viewers glimpses of personal urban spaces, presented in miniature with a touch of subversive humour. According to the artist: ‘For me, a building is not just about building; it’s a complex system of life which can also be seen from different perspectives’.

Exhibited in 'The 9th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art' (APT9) | 24 Nov 2018 – 28 Apr 2019