Mantra was born on 22 August 1971 on the Indonesian island of Lombok. He is of Balinese Hindu descent and an active painter and musician.
In a very young age he was struck by polio and since then he depends on a wheel chair.
Mantra’s determination and willpower alone made him the outstanding talent he now is.
In 1989 he visited the Fine Arts High School in Batubulan, Bali for 4 years and was then accepted by the prestigious Indonesian Institute of Arts in Yogyakarta. He graduated in 1999 with a BA in Fine Arts.
After graduation he returned to his home island Lombok to implement this beautiful and colourful island comprised of enormous richness in traditional elements, into his art forms.
He then started to experiment with different concepts creating music combined with visual art using his own perspective.
Mantra’s art and music reflect a tingly dosage of the ethnic identity of Lombok, which he infuses into the contemporary and ever changing accents of our lives like technological advancement and multiculturalism.
Regarding his paintings, Mantra says:
“I have been consciously searching for some principles in my artistic life. The search has been among abstract issues manifesting themselves as spontaneous symbols resulting from the mind so severely repressed by automatism. They generally bring forth the language of the body by reflex, as I have myself experienced it.”
Among the symptoms of automatism are the dream world; a term ordinarily associated by some people with communication between the unconscious and the psyche and last but not least the “language of the body”.
Mantra’s future project evolves around the “Organic Mind” and he created a collection of visual art works focusing on this issue for his solo exhibition in Yogyakarta December 2010.
In February 2010 he wrote the music for the “New Life” concept performed in Lombok by a group of local artists in conjunction with the Australian curator Beverley Hornibrook. “New Life” was part of an international Artist in Residence Program and included elements of visual art and performing art.
The idea of the “Unknown World” concept emerged partly from the “New Life” creation and later the idea of “Organic Mind” was added to Mantra’s future work project commitment.
Later in 2010 Mantra visited Malaysia to connect with art linked brains and further received a one month work program with the Australian Association for Disabled Artists “DAADA” under David Doyle in Perth, West Australia.
~ E x h i b i t i o n s and Performances ~
2023
Program Cultural Exchange – NEW MEDIA EXHIBITION –
@kersanartfoundation and @espaco8.cultural
@espaco8.cultural #saopaulo – São Paulo Time. Brazil
Perfomance Music Contemporary ORGANIC MIND & SANGGAR PANDAWA – Badan Pelestarian Budaya – NUSRA
Festival Komunitas Seni Media 2023 –
- NEW MEDIA ART – “JTDS 5.0: SONG OF THE EARTH” dari Bulqini berkolaborasi dengan Mantra Ardhana dan Sanggar Aruntala NTB
- “Ritus Alam” dari Faisal Kamandobat dengan Sanggar Maturnuwun & Univ. Nahdlatul Ulama NTB & Organic Mind
KISSING THE POETRY – Solo exhibition by Mantra Ardhana at SANTRIAN GALLERY SANUR BALI
NEW MEDIA VISUAL ART – GROUP EXHIBITION ~ lanö art project – TitiK Dua Ubud Bali
2022
Music and Sound Theme for independent movie “
JAMAL “ The WINNER of 23th edition of YOUKI Youth Media Festival 2021 . [ www.youki.at/en/winner-21-2 ]
ORGANIC MIND – Music and Performance Art | @ Taman Budaya Mataram .
2016
ORGANIC MIND [ VIII ] – Range Art Gallery, 54, Lower Range, Beck Bagan, Ballygunge, Central, Kolkata
2015
ORGANIC MIND [ VII ] – Hachiōji Tokyo – Japan
2014
ORGANIC MIND [ VI ] – 13 Almond Crescent Singapore
2013
Group Exhibition Sanggar Dewata Indonesia at ARMA MUSEUM BALI
2012
ORGANIC MIND # 4 [ MUSIC , THEATER , NEW MEDIA ART ] at Muesum Mask in UBUD BALI
ORGANIC MIND # 3 EXHIBITION at Hotel Fort Canning SINGAPORE
Music Performance at HOTEL TUGU for THE YAK AWARD – BALI
Music Performance at SERAMBI ANTIDA – BALI
Music Performance SUARAMANTRA WORLD MUSIC FESTIVAL at TAMAN BUDAYA – LOMBOK
Music Performance and painting exhibition ORGANIC MIND at DEUS EX MACHINE CANGGU – BALI
2011
Solo Paintings Exhibition at Galeri Canna, Jakarta Art District #4, Grand Indonesia Shopping Town, Jakarta
Solo exhibition at SANKRING ART SPACE – Yogyakarta Indonesia on tittle ORGANIC MIND
2010
Music Performance in Crocodile Villa in Meninting Lombok, CCTA Artist in Residence Program
DAADA Program, Perth, Australia
2009
Music Performance and painting exhibition in Sangkring art space Yogakarta
Solo Concert SUARAMANTRA at Taman Budaya Mataram Lombok
Painting exhibition at Tony Raka Ubud Bali
2008
Painting exhibition TERMOGRAM at NEKA Museum, Ubud, Bali
2007
Exhibition in the Netherlands at Gerrit van den Berk KUNST
2004
Exhibition at FLAMAN ART GALLERY ‘t College, Netherlands
www.flaman.nl
2003
· Exhibition TERMOGRAM with SANGGAR DEWATA INDONESIA at MUSEUM NEKA Ubud, Bali
· Exhibition at Malinda Gallery, Jakarta
2002
· Exhibition at Oberoi Hotel, Lombok
2001
. Exhibition in Belgium KUNSTGALERIJ De NEERPLAATS
2000
· Exhibition at Museum Lombok
· Exhibition at Virtual Gallery www.artistsownregistry.com.au
· Outdoor Exhibition at Holiday Inn, Lombok with SUARAMANTRA music.
· Exhibition at Malinda Gallery, Jakarta
. Contemporary Music Event in the Department of Culture, Lombok.[suaramantra]
1999
· Solo Exhibition at Sika Gallery in Ubud, Bali
· Exhibition at Malinda Gallery, Singapore
· Exhibition of the group Prasidha 93 in Museum Benteng Vredeburg Yogyakarta
· Exhibition with Sanggar Dewata Indonesia in six different museums in Ubud/Bali to celebrate the third Millenium and the year 2000
1998
· Exhibition of the 28th anniversary of Sanggar Dewata Indonesia in the Museum Benteng Vredeburg Yogyakarta
1997
· Exhibition with Sanggar Dewata at Taman Budaya Surakarta Solo
1996
· Exhibition with Sanggar Dewata Indonesia at Sika Gallery in Ubud, Bali
· Exhibition of the group 7 at Sika Gallery in Ubud Bali
· Exhibition of the group 7 at Bentara Budaya in Yogyakarta
1995
· Exhibition at the museum of Nyoman Gunarsa in Yogyakarta
· Exhibition at the Institute of Art for the second Anniversary in Yogyakarta
· Exhibition 25 years Sanggar Dewata Indonesia at Purna Budaya Yogyakarta
· Exhibition black and white at the Showroom of the Indonesian Institute of Art and Design inYogyakarta
· Exhibition of the “small “ Paintings at the Indonesian Institute of Art
1994
· Exhibition with a young group of artists at Purna Budaya Yogyakarta
· Exhibition of Afandiprize at Purna Budaya Yogyakarta
· Exhibition with SDI ( Sanggar Dewata Indonesia ) at museum Nyoman Gunarsa in Bali
· Exhibition with the group Prasidha at Bentara Budaya Yogyakarta