Located just to the South of the busy tourist mecca of Ubud, the Balinese village of Batuan possesses one of the richest cultural
legacies on the island and is widely recognized as ground zero
for Balinese creative arts.
Batuan's Rich History
In ancient times the Batuan area was home to one of Bali’s oldest kingdoms, the Warmadewa dynasty, which reigned until the fourteenth century. During this time, Balinese language, sculpture, bronzes, and other artistic styles, architecture and temples began to resemble those of highly civilized Hindu courts of East Java. As a legacy of this past, Batuan has to this day the widest variety of dances on the whole island, a richness which has inspired many generations of gifted sculptors and painters. more
More recently, Batuan has been the the subject of intense Western academic interest. The people and culture of Batuan have been studied, documented and celebrated by the likes of anthropologists Margaret Mead, Gregory Bateson and Hildred Geertz. MORE
Today, Batuan is renowned for some of the finest music, dance and sculpture in all of Bali, however it is perhaps best know to the world
as the birthplace of the "Batuan Style" of painting and "Gambuh",
the oldest form of dance-drama in Bali.
Fantastic Painting – Batuan Style
Traditionally, Batuan paintings were restricted to the Kamasan or Wayang style - visual narratives of Hindu-Javanese epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, which were produced for religious purposes. These renderings followed strictly prescribed rules, and were usually produced collaboratively and anonymously.
It was after the arrival of several famous western artists during the 1920s and 30s that painting in Bali took on a more secular and rural nature. In Batuan, paintings became dense, crowded scenes from daily life, juxtaposed with an unseen world of fantastic spooks and freakish monsters.
Today this style has evolved to incorporate whimsical artifacts of modern day life such as tourists, motorcycles, surfboards, computers, cameras and helicopters. MORE
Batuan Temple
Built around 1022 AD, the Batuan Temple complex is considered to be one the finest and oldest temples in Bali. The temples are alive with Balinese ornaments and home to some of the oldest statues of deities and demons on the island. Outside, temple gates are protected by carved stone Raksasas, while inside Meru shrines gleam with roofs made from the fiber of black palms. MORE
Gambuh, the Oldest Form of Dance-drama in Bali
Batuan Temple is also one of the only places in The World where it is possible to see the rare and beautiful ancient dance-drama, the Gambuh, with performances given twice a month, on the 1st and 15th.
The importance of Gambuh in Balinese artistic tradition cannot be overstated. It is said to have originated in and reflect the manners and ideals of the highly civilized Javanese/Balinese court life of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Gambuh is seen as the source of all Balinese dance-drama that exists today.
In fact, most dances which are popular in Bali today are descendents of the Gambuh tradition. Musically, the complex melodies and drum patterns of Gambuh became the base from which almost all forms of Balinese music arose, and the relationship between the music and the dance became a model for forms that were to follow. more
legacies on the island and is widely recognized as ground zero
for Balinese creative arts.
Batuan's Rich History
In ancient times the Batuan area was home to one of Bali’s oldest kingdoms, the Warmadewa dynasty, which reigned until the fourteenth century. During this time, Balinese language, sculpture, bronzes, and other artistic styles, architecture and temples began to resemble those of highly civilized Hindu courts of East Java. As a legacy of this past, Batuan has to this day the widest variety of dances on the whole island, a richness which has inspired many generations of gifted sculptors and painters. more
More recently, Batuan has been the the subject of intense Western academic interest. The people and culture of Batuan have been studied, documented and celebrated by the likes of anthropologists Margaret Mead, Gregory Bateson and Hildred Geertz. MORE
Today, Batuan is renowned for some of the finest music, dance and sculpture in all of Bali, however it is perhaps best know to the world
as the birthplace of the "Batuan Style" of painting and "Gambuh",
the oldest form of dance-drama in Bali.
Fantastic Painting – Batuan Style
Traditionally, Batuan paintings were restricted to the Kamasan or Wayang style - visual narratives of Hindu-Javanese epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, which were produced for religious purposes. These renderings followed strictly prescribed rules, and were usually produced collaboratively and anonymously.
It was after the arrival of several famous western artists during the 1920s and 30s that painting in Bali took on a more secular and rural nature. In Batuan, paintings became dense, crowded scenes from daily life, juxtaposed with an unseen world of fantastic spooks and freakish monsters.
Today this style has evolved to incorporate whimsical artifacts of modern day life such as tourists, motorcycles, surfboards, computers, cameras and helicopters. MORE
Batuan Temple
Built around 1022 AD, the Batuan Temple complex is considered to be one the finest and oldest temples in Bali. The temples are alive with Balinese ornaments and home to some of the oldest statues of deities and demons on the island. Outside, temple gates are protected by carved stone Raksasas, while inside Meru shrines gleam with roofs made from the fiber of black palms. MORE
Gambuh, the Oldest Form of Dance-drama in Bali
Batuan Temple is also one of the only places in The World where it is possible to see the rare and beautiful ancient dance-drama, the Gambuh, with performances given twice a month, on the 1st and 15th.
The importance of Gambuh in Balinese artistic tradition cannot be overstated. It is said to have originated in and reflect the manners and ideals of the highly civilized Javanese/Balinese court life of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Gambuh is seen as the source of all Balinese dance-drama that exists today.
In fact, most dances which are popular in Bali today are descendents of the Gambuh tradition. Musically, the complex melodies and drum patterns of Gambuh became the base from which almost all forms of Balinese music arose, and the relationship between the music and the dance became a model for forms that were to follow. more