ARTI – WHY WE STARTED AND WHAT WE STAND FOR

ARTI – WHY WE STARTED AND WHAT WE STAND FOR

ARTI – Why we started and what we stand for.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi.

THE JOURNEY HAS JUST BEGUN

ARTI was founded on the simple observation that there was no easy and affordable way to get Art in Indonesia. It was a mere 3 months ago when that realization struck me after staring at that blank wall at work (pictured above). We are proud to say within two months we developed a foundation for an Art Print Marketplace and currently have just over 30 curated artists from around the world. Though our range of products, a variety of artists, and content are all still in their infancy, the team is thrilled to stay on this mission to spread art all over Indonesia.

The journey has just begun. There is so much to talk about – from the impact of the digital world on art and to the stories of the artist themselves. However, this blog post will forego those important topics and instead will take it extremely high level: what we stand for.

ARTI VALUES

We believe Art has the ability to directly and indirectly change the world. No matter what holds in the future of ARTI from a product and services perspective, our core principles shall remain the same.  Art shall always be our medium where we spread our three core values: Love, Creativity and Empathy.

These three works that I have now hanging on the same wall (pictured above) each represent one of those values. They may not resonate with you who, but that is the beauty of art – it moves us individually in different ways.

LOVE

Let’s start with Love. Love is what will keep us going. Love is often painted as very abstract and hard to describe but I personally believe it is a practical driving force of our society. I often hear ‘Hard Work’ as one of the answers to success. But if we do what we love, or love something or someone so much, ‘Hard Work’ is just a natural result of that. I think Art, especially in a physical form (Print, Sculpture, etc) has the ability to remind us of the things that we love. When we are reminded of what we love, we will be filled with gratitude, joy, and filled with energy to better ourselves and the world around us.

On a personal level, the first print on the left (Gone Fishing by Irie Wata) is a personal reminder of the things I love. Firstly, space and the grandeur of the cosmos has always been something that inspired me. The father and son in the same shot is a nod to my love for family. Lastly, not only is fishing a hobby of mine since childhood, but speaks to patience and my love for games.

Again, you may not relate to anything in this print, yet alone like it - and that is ok.

That is why we believe the power of the internet can bring all the different artists and art from around the world so that hopefully you find something that speaks to you.

CREATIVITY

Creativity is what advances are society. Artists are the best at manifesting the pure essence of creativity. Indeed not everyone is an Artist, but everyone should strive for creativity. Some of the most creative people I have met are in fact not artists.

It is quite hard to measure the ‘impact’ of Art and its unique capability to stimulate the brain and creativity. But imagine this scenario:

We distribute 100 prints of different works to people from different walks of life. A mathematician, a YouTuber, a software developer, a executive of a large firm or a factory manager. Let's say for 99 of those who bought some art simply enjoy the art in their homes/office; it makes their room feel great and puts a smile on their face. But imagine for that last 1 out of 99, imagine it being the lead software developer in a startup like Uber who had been stuck coding for several days. When he/she glances to stare at the art for several minutes, it kick starts a creative thought process and leads him/her to solving it. Imagine if that solution would be the reason why we have Uber/GOJEK/Grab around the world now (instead of 2 years later). Now think about how many lives were impacted from a single piece of Art.

I personally chose ‘Yippie’ by Nur-mut because creativity and art will always remind me to keep climbing to greater heights and explore places where people have never been.

EMPATHY

Last but not least, Empathy. Art does a great job at teaching Empathy. Art teaches us how to look at something from a different perspective. The meta of art itself also teaches us how its is fine to not like a certain piece and how one’s opinion of a work is subject to their own viewpoint. I believe the power of empathy is all the more important in the early 21st century as the world embraces the internet and the pot of ideas and cultures around us. Great things in this world are all built together, and if we all can empathize more with one another, we will be on a better path to building a better world.

This last piece ‘Everyone is different’ by Andreas Lundskog is a favorite of mine. The different poles remind me that everyone in my life is different-  they have different values, strengths, and goals.

Thank you for those who have read this long and continue to support Arti. Like I said, we have a long and exciting journey ahead of us. At the very least this blog post will document our inception and so that maybe one day we can look back and and be reminded that no matter where we are in the future we shall not lose sight of of our founding principles.

Share this:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *