National heroes and enigmatic figures, 19th-century painters Raden Saleh and Juan Luna traversed the colonial territories of Southeast Asia and the imperial cities of Europe. Their agile navigation of these competing positions resulted in dramatic paintings that are today animated as allegories of anti-colonialism in their respective homelands of Indonesia and the Philippines. Published on the occasion of an exhibition at National Gallery Singapore, this catalogue features over a hundred full-colour image plates of their works: from sweeping Orientalist hunting scenes to gritty Realist portrayals of the working class. Essays and biographical timelines examine each artist’s practices, as well as frame them within the cultural and social dynamics of the 19th century.
