"I am currently working with archive photos from 20th-century Bali taken by Olivier Meslin which reveals how visual representations of culture are shaped, preserved, and repurposed over time through the commodification of my culture. These historical images framed Balinese traditions, rituals, and landscapes in ways that catered to exoticized Western perspectives. Over time, these photographs have been republished, exhibited, and sold, turning cultural heritage into consumable imagery. This process reflects a selective memory of Bali, where certain aesthetics and narratives are emphasized while others fade. The very act of working with these archives today—whether for research, artistic reinterpretation, or commercial use—continues the cycle of shaping and repackaging cultural identity for contemporary audiences.
This parallels how printing studios mass-produce postcards, transforming cultural symbols into marketable commodities. Just as early 20th-century photographs captured and ""froze"" Bali’s culture into romanticized snapshots, postcards replicate and distribute these images on a larger scale, often stripping them of context and reducing them to mere decorative souvenirs. Both practices illustrate how cultural heritage can be mediated and commodified—whether through archival reuse or commercial printing—raising questions about authenticity, ownership, and the evolving perception of Bali in the global imagination. The painting over printed photos also has something to do with the tension between the past and the present reality of the painting since the objects are taken by me whilst the pictures printed are from almost a century ago.
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