Through the Lens: Leonard Suryajaya

Indonesian photographer on ‘The Families, Out of Law’ at Hatch Art Project
By Danisha Liang

‘Through the Lens’ is a series that explores in detail images from fashion image-makers in Southeast Asia, shining a light on their creative and technical processes.

Leonard Suryajaya, ‘Virtual Reality’, ‘False Idol’ series, 2017, archival pigment print. Image courtesy of the artist.

Leonard Suryajaya is an Indonesia-born visual artist who is currently based in Chicago, USA. His photography career began in 2013, and he uses his work to test the boundaries of intimacy, community and family. Through photography, video, performance, and installation, the artist shows how the everyday is layered with histories, meanings and potential.

Exhibition view of ‘The Families, Out of Law’. Image courtesy of Hatch Art Project. 

Four images from Leonard’s ‘False Idol’ series are on display at Hatch Art Project in Singapore, as part of group exhibition ‘The Families, Out of Law’, which runs from 10 July to 14 August 2021. The show also features the work of Eduardo Enrique, Iqi Qoror and Nguyen Quoc Dzung.

What camera and lens were used to shoot the photographs featured in ‘The Families, Out of Law’?
I use the 4x5 Linhof Technikardan large format film camera in my practice. It is a manual film camera and I use Kodak Ektar 100 ISO film for all my photos.

I understand the images in the group exhibition ‘The Families, Out of Law’ are from your ‘False Idol’ series, which you started in 2016. How did you select these specific four images for the exhibition?
The curator selected the images to show.

Leonard Suryajaya, ‘Red (Initiation)’, ‘False Idol’ series, 2019, archival print pigment. Image courtesy of the artist.

What is the concept behind ‘False Idol’? How did you come up with this?
‘False Idol’ traces my experience immigrating to America through the green-card marriage process. This requires that I document my life, work, background, relationships, and worth to submit to the government. Challenging the rigid and heteronormative expectations of what a family and relationship look like, ‘False Idol’ is my alternative view of that experience in defining my identity.

Could you introduce us to the team whom you worked with to make this series of images?
I enlist my partner, family, friends, and community in making my work.

Leonard Suryajaya, ‘Wrecking Ball’, ‘False Idol’ series, 2019, archival print pigment. Image courtesy of the artist.

Are there any specific elements in these four images that you would want people to pay attention to, and why?
I strive to show that family, community, and culture ground us as human beings in the midst of the chaos and confusion in the world. They are the training ground in which we learn how to achieve our goals and fulfill our potential. I come from a Chinese Indonesian family with a history of persecution and displacement in our bloodline.

My grandfather sailing from China to Indonesia before Indonesia was an independent country, the eradication of Chinese culture in Indonesia in the 1960s, running away to Malaysia when I was nine years old due to the economic collapse that ignited violence towards Chinese minority in 1998, and moving to America when I was 18 to discover my identity and queerness – all of that is my origin story. I am the weird one in my family, amongst relatives who always question the reality of the discrimination and persecution we are in. It is through art that I get to process hard information and gain a sense of power over my existence. I want to acknowledge my experience and the stories people like me go through in the world. I am not asking for retribution. I simply want our stories to not be erased. Also, I want to show that despite the tough experiences I have had in life, there is still humanity in me and I am capable of offering excellence.

“It is through art that I get to process hard information and gain a sense of power over my existence. I want to acknowledge my experience and the stories people like me go through in the world. I am not asking for retribution. I simply want our stories to not be erased.”

Leonard Suryajaya, ‘Feminine Conference’, ‘False Idol’ series, 2017, archival pigment print, 71 x 89cm. Image courtesy of the artist.

Exhibition view of ‘The Families, Out of Law’. Image courtesy of Hatch Art Project.

What has it been like to participate in ‘The Families, Out of Law’? How do you see your works in interaction with the others in the show?
I am very proud of it. I am happy to show my work with the other artists for ‘The Families, Out of Law’ because I consider Southeast Asia my home. It is where I am from and where I first learned about love, beauty, and hardship. I have now settled in America but I long for the world to be a place of compassion and acceptance — a place where we could celebrate one another’s specificities as we strive for progress.

I am happy to be showing in Southeast Asia so that viewers who experience isolation due to their culture, race, gender, social background, and sexual identity can look at me as an example. I want them to aspire to live their lives to the fullest and never give up on themselves and their dreams. 

Which (fashion) photographer’s work inspires you most?
Ren Hang.

More information on ‘The Families, Out of Law’ at Hatch Art Project here.