Eko Nugroho's 'STRANGE MONSTER VIEW' Opens at Singapore Tyler Print Institute
Eko Nugroho's exhibition, STRANGE MONSTER VIEW, is currently on display at the Singapore Tyler Print Institute (STPI) until 10 October. This showcase features artwork that delves into feelings of alienation linked to mobile phone usage. One highlighted piece, KEEP IN TOUCH BUT NOT TOUCH (2025), depicts two figures holding phones, with one figure having multiple heads contained in boxes. Nugroho, an Indonesian artist from Yogyakarta, has been active in various artistic forms for over 20 years. His prominent works include Global Identities 1 (2011) and Ala Carte Modern Slavery (2023). He established Wayang Bocor in 2008 and has collaborated with brands like Louis Vuitton (2013) and Ikea (2015). Starting as a street artist in 2000, he held his first significant solo exhibition in 2002. An interview with him will be featured in the Autumn 2026 edition of ArtReview Asia.
Key facts
- Eko Nugroho's solo exhibition STRANGE MONSTER VIEW is on view at Singapore Tyler Print Institute (STPI) through 10 October.
- The exhibition explores alienation resulting from ubiquitous mobile phone use, including the 2025 print KEEP IN TOUCH BUT NOT TOUCH.
- Nugroho is based in Yogyakarta and lived through the fall of Suharto in 1998 and the Reformasi era.
- His studio employs 13 fulltime people, including three embroiderers he has worked with since 2007 after buying six sewing machines from their shop.
- A 3m by 3m canvas-embroidery now takes four months to make, compared with at least six months previously.
- He founded the self-funded theatre company Wayang Bocor in 2008; its production God Bliss (In the Name of Semelah) was commissioned by the Asia Society in New York and shown there in 2017.
- Collaborator Gunawan Maryanto, the playwright, director and performer of God Bliss, passed away in 2021, and the company is currently on break.
- Commercial tie-ups include a Louis Vuitton scarf in 2013, an Ikea poster in 2015, Major Minor ready-to-wear in 2016 and Sejauh Mata Memandang scarves and clothing in 2025.
- His first major break came with two solo shows at Cemeti Art House, starting with BERCEROBONG in 2002 when he was twenty-five.
- The Traveller (2015) was first developed during a 2012 residency in Paris as a self-portrait and later shown at Salihara Art Center in Jakarta.
Entities
Artists
- Eko Nugroho
- Gunawan Maryanto
- Arief Sukardono
- Adeline Chia
Institutions
- Singapore Tyler Print Institute
- ArtReview Asia
- ArtReview
- Louis Vuitton
- Ikea
- Wayang Bocor
- Institut Seni Indonesia
- Apotik Komik
- Cemeti Art House
- Salihara Art Center
- Asia Society
- Major Minor
- Sejauh Mata Memandang
- Heri Pemad Manajemen
Locations
- Yogyakarta
- Indonesia
- Singapore
- Paris
- France
- New York
- United States
- Jakarta
- Java
- Beringharjo Market