The art of glass painting
The art of glass painting, which originated in Europe, was introduced to Indonesia in the early 20th century by the Dutch and flourished there during the 1930s. The glass paintings of Balinese style is different. Together with that are such renown centers as Yogyakarta, Surakarta, Cirebon where glass paintings are produced in Indonesia. Artists paint on the reverse side of the glass, the last stroke on glass would be the first one laid down on a paper or canvas picture. The first stroke on glass is in the foreground as we view the painting through the glass. Sulasno, Maryono, Sastrogambar etc. are well-known artists.
The collection of O‘ong Maryono and Rosalia Sciortino
Mr. O'ong Maryono (1953-2013) was a well-known Indonesian Pencak Silat master. He not only did extensive research about martial arts but also shared with his wife, Dr. Rosalia Sciortino, an Italian medical anthropologist and development sociologist, adoration for glass paintings.
With the love for the country’s diversity and attracted by the bright colors of Indonesian glass paintings, they built a wonderful collection. Rosalia Sciortino bought the first glass paintings in 1986 in Yogyakarta and in 1989 in Magelang, Central Java. The majority of this collection was made between 1993 and 2001 when they resided in Indonesia and had the opportunity to visit many villages and collect old works.
In 2006, they donated 68 glass paintings to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology.