National Gallery Singapore’s ‘Diplomacy and Desire’ reconsiders beauty, nationhood and artistic influence through the lens of the Indonesian master
Installation view of ‘Diplomacy and Desire: Basoeki Abdullah’ in Singapore, National Gallery Singapore, 2025.
National Gallery Singapore presents ‘Diplomacy and Desire: Basoeki Abdullah in Singapore’, a focused exhibition exploring the influential painter’s relationship with Singapore and his role in shaping cultural diplomacy during a pivotal era of Southeast Asian history. From 9 May 2025 to 1 February 2026, the exhibition is the fifth edition in the ‘Dalam Southeast Asia’ series, housed within the UOB Southeast Asia Gallery.
Basoeki Abdullah (1915–1993) was one of his generation’s most prolific and sought-after portraitists. Known for his luminous depictions of women and political elites alike, Basoeki’s paintings embodied a unique negotiation between aesthetics and influence. His works were collected by regional leaders such as Presidents Soekarno and Soeharto of Indonesia, Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines, and King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit of Thailand.
‘Diplomacy and Desire’ focuses on the years Basoeki spent in Singapore between 1958 and 1960, coinciding with the country’s movement towards self-governance in 1959. During this period, he gifted two major works to the city: Labour (1959), received by then-Minister for Culture S. Rajaratnam, and Struggle for the Re-establishment of Democracy and the Right for the People (1981), later donated to the National Museum Art Gallery. These gifts serve as entry points into the broader narrative of Basoeki’s art as a tool of cultural diplomacy.
The exhibition delves into the “geopoetic” dimensions of Basoeki’s practice—how his paintings reflected and shaped regional consciousness, postcolonial aspirations, and personal networks of influence. Curated by Kathleen Ditzig, it brings together never-before-exhibited archival photographic assemblages on loan from the Museum Basoeki Abdullah, alongside pastel drawings and portraiture drawn from Singapore’s National Collection.
A highlight of the show is the series of female portraits that showcase Basoeki’s romantic realist style—sensuous yet symbolic, grounded in the political nuances of his time. These were among a group of works donated in 1994 by collector Lok Bok Sim to the Singapore Art Museum and form a compelling lens through which to understand the complex relationship between gender, power and artistic representation in the region.
Presented within ‘Dalam Southeast Asia’—the Gallery’s curatorial project space for lesser-known narratives—the exhibition questions how artists like Basoeki contributed to emerging national identities. In doing so, it invites viewers to think beyond conventional art historical frames and consider how beauty and diplomacy were co-constitutive in the making of modern Southeast Asia.
‘Diplomacy and Desire’ opens during National Gallery Singapore’s 10th anniversary, reflecting its ongoing mission to reframe Southeast Asian art history through critical research, bold curation, and cross-cultural dialogue. On 11 May, a special curator’s tour will provide deeper insights into how Basoeki’s artistic legacy intersects with Singapore’s postcolonial journey.
The exhibition reveals artists’ subtle but significant role in regional diplomacy by foregrounding Basoeki’s cultural impact and the personal-political networks that animated his art. It is an invitation to look at the surface of painted beauty and the complex histories and desires it represents.
The exhibition will be open from 9 May 2025 to 1 February 2026. For more information, please visit the National Gallery of Singapore.
