Vendy Methodos

kohesi Initiatives proudly present Suwung: Luruh dan Tumbuh (Suwung: Fading yet Pervading), a solo presentation by Vendy Methodos which presents his artistic discoveries on the exploration of vacant houses. These ‘vacant spaces’ phenomena are not politically neutral; personal or mystical narratives often overshadow the deeper complexities of this issue. This presentation presents 16 works in oil paint, acrylic, charcoal, and a video that captures the exploration of stories and layers in urban reality and its socio-political discourse.

The exhibition title, “Suwung”, is not merely the Javanese term for emptiness—though it directly relates to uninhabited homes and structures—as something far deeper: a spiritual vacancy. In Javanese philosophy, suwung is not a void devoid of meaning; it is a profound stillness of the soul, a state of spiritual maturity that leads to liberation. The awareness within suwung is not one of absence, but of presence, an attunement to the essence of being. In this sense, these abandoned houses may not simply be vacant; they might be transforming, moving toward a state of release.

For this exhibition, Vendy Methodos juxtaposes the physical reality of these abandoned houses with his distinctive visual style, using bold black-and-white lines that reimagine the lives once lived within them. Through visual imagination, Vendy brings together the past and the present, building a conversation between the two. Moreover, Vendy plays with a realistic background to meet his comical characters, as if two distinct worlds coexist within the canvas.

Curated by Alia Swastika, the results of Vendy's exploratory practice in exploring abandoned houses or what is called urban exploration offer his capacity to observe the complex and long historical story of the 'house', not only tied to colonialism, assimilation, and cultural hybridity but also reflect the tension between rationalism and spiritualism, the ecological negotiations between nature and human-made structures, and the speculative entanglement of intersecting stories.