Citra Sasmita

CITRA SASMITA (b.1990, Bali, Indonesia) is a multidisciplinary contemporary artist from Bali whose work focuses on unravelling the myths and misconceptions of Balinese art and culture. She is also deeply invested in questioning a woman’s place in the social hierarchy and seeks to upend the normative construct of gender.

Sasmita’s work is inscribed with originality in a pan-Asian effort to revisit traditional artistic languages as tools of expression in contemporary society. Sasmita’s works thus use the vibrant and thriving genealogy of Balinese traditional painting, Kamasan, to express avowedly feminist perspectives. Often using multisensory elements and traditional techniques kept within male lineages, her artworks aim to open up discourse beyond the aesthetic to examine the experience of women in Bali. 

Born in Tabanan, Bali in 1990, Sasmita’s family are performing artists who often perform from village to village in Hindu ritual ceremonies. Having studied both literature and physics before going into theatre and illustration, her work is informed by these diverse fields of knowledge and their influence on her work process in formulating ideas and social issues is evident.

 

Solo exhibitions include  Atlas of Curiosity, Yeo Workshop, Singapore (2023);  Ode To The Sun, Yeo Workshop, Singapore (2020);  Under The Skin, Redbase Foundation, Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2018);  Beauty Anatomy, Laramona, Ubud, Bali, Indonesia (2017)

 

Group exhibitions include (Upcoming) All About Eve, Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, UK (2025); (Upcoming) After Rain, Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale 2024, Diriyah, Saudi Arabia (2024);  (Upcoming) Ten Thousand Suns, 24th Biennale of Sydney, Sydney, Australia (2024);  (Upcoming) Toronto Biennial of Art 2024, Toronto, Canada (2024);  Choreographies of the Impossible, 35th São Paulo Biennale, São Paulo, Brazil (2023);  The Open World, 3rd Thailand Biennale, Mae Fah Luang Art and Cultural Park, Chiang Rai, Thailand (2023);  Hoo Fan Chon, Citra Sasmita, Vuth Lyno: New Works, NTU CCA Singapore Residencies for Southeast Asian Artist in the EU, NTU Centre for Contemporary Art, Singapore (2023);  Body, Community, and Society: She is House, 333 Gallery, Bangkok, Thailand (2023);  Fundraising Tengara.id & Rubanah, Rubanah Underground Hub, Jakarta (2023);  From The Land of Gold Below The Winds in South Seas, Art SG, Presented by Yeo Workshop, Singapore (2023);  Bale Project Art Jakarta Gardens, Jakarta, Indonesia (2023);  Sua Kuasa Matra, ISA Art Gallery, Jakarta, Indonesia (2023);  Our Grandfathers Road, 16albermarle Projectspace, Sydney (2022);  Jakarta International Literary Festival, Jakarta, Indonesia (2022);  ASIA NOW Paris, Presented by Yeo Workshop, Monnaie de Paris, Paris, France (2022);  Garden of Ten Seasons, Savvy Contemporary, Berlin, Germany (2022);  Open School/Meet The Residents, WIELS Brussels, Brussels, Belgium (2022);  Flow, Yogya Annual Art 2022, Sangkring Art Space, Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2022);  Connectivity, Srisasanti Syndicate, Yogyakarta, Indonesia Art Jakarta Gardens, Bale Project, Jakarta, Indonesia (2022);  New Art From Bali and Bandung, 16albermarle, Sydney, Australia (2022);  Kathmandu Triennale 2077, Patan Museum, Kathmandu, Nepal (2022);  Good News From Bali, Mizuma Gallery, Singapore (2022);  Change Constellation, S.E.A Focus 2022, Presented by Yeo Workshop, Singapore (2022);  Post Identity, Bali Contemporary Art Now, Artsphere Gallery , Jakarta, Indonesia (2021);  Passion Of Three Kingdoms, Redbase Gallery, Sydney, Australia (2021);  ARTJOG MMXXII, Time To Wonder, Jogja National Museum, Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2021);  TRANSboundaries Yogya Annual Art, Sangkring Art Space, Yogyakarya, Indonesia (2021);  A Life Beyond Boundaries, JWD Art Space, Bangkok, Thailand (2021);  #Perempuan, Castlemaine Museum of Art, Sydney, Australia (2021);  Host, Edel Assanti, London, United Kingdom (2021); 

 

Citra Sasmita has received multiple residencies such as the SEA Air - Studio Residency by NTU CCA Singapore in the EU WIELS Centre d’Art Contemporain in Brussels ( 2022);  Residensi Jogja Biennale di Kota Kinabalu, Sabah-Malaysia supported by Bekraf, Jogja Biennale, and Valentine Willie (2019);  Artist in residence, Red Base Foundation Yogyakarta (2018);  Festival Bangsal Menggawe (Kolaborasi Seniman dan Masyarakat), Pemenang, Lombok Utara supported by Komunitas Pasir Putih dan Koalisi Seni Indonesia (2017).

Citra was also awarded the UOB painter of the year gold award in 2017 and has held multiple lectures all over the world.