Wednesday, December 5, 2018

In Memoriam: Indonesian writer NH Dini



Today is a sad day. We received news of the passing of renowned writer and mother of Pierre  N.H. Dini in Semarang.

In 2007 we featured in our Fine Art auction three postcards from Rusli, addressed to N.H. Dini. It included a note to the young writer and was painted with his watercolors on the reverse.

             



Here is an image of one of the post cards with our write-up, including a transcription of the note Rusli wrote to N.H. Dini:



When Rusli met Dini

As a young junior high school student in the early 1950s, writer Nh. Dini was interested
in various fields, including art. Reading a report in the Minggu Pagi magazine, she
learned about the painter Rusli (1916-2005) of the Seniman Indonesia Muda group. Eager
to know more about the artists of the city of culture, she wrote a letter to the artist,
starting a chain of correspondence between the two. Dini would write to the painter
whenever she had something to say, while Rusli would send the young writer postcards
embellished with landscapes that he painted using watercolors during his trips out to the
countryside.

Eventually Dini came to visit Rusli, who took her to Kaliurang to choose
sceneries that he would paint. Upon her return to Semarang, they continued their
correspondence. Rusli would send her postcards illustrated with more sceneries that he
painted along with memos to Dini. Three of the postcards are featured as lot # in this
auction.

While in her Sekayu memoirs, Dini claimed that Rusli never indicated if he
enjoyed meeting her, in the first postcard in this lot, dated 15 February 1953, Rusli wrote
about how happy he was having received Dini’s letter, and how he read them over and
over again. In his third post card dated 17 June 1953, that seems to have been written
after he paid a reciprocal visit to Semarang, he conveyed his happiness having met her
and her family and through the words: “a breeze of emptiness has started to be felt” and
“must the dearth of tomorrow await me?” he more than implied his thoughts that he has
started to be missing his new young friend.

Through the words and gestures of the painter it seemed that he had become
enamored with the young writer. Yet, it seemed that he was reluctant to pursue an
amorous relationship any further, perhaps particularly because Dini was still a young girl
at the time. However, they continued to be friends and Rusli visited her and her family
regularly in Semarang, where he would paint his many paintings of the harbor.
“Rusli always told his artist friends that he was the one that discovered Nh Dini,
but that is not true because I was the one who wrote him first,” claimed the writer. Yet,
she takes pride in the fact that the painter is modest enough to admit that. Perhaps it could
be said that Dini and Rusli found in each other true and immortal friendship.


Tiga kartu pos dari Rusli kepada Nh. Dini tahun 1953 [ditranskripsikan oleh Henri Chambert-loir]

A) Lukisan yang ditandatangani
Rusli, Kaliurang, Jogja, 15/2/53

                                           Untuk
                                           Saudara N. Dini
                                           Sekaju 348
                                           Semarang

                           Jogja 15 - 2 - "53

Saudara Dini,
Sebagai saja harapkan surat Dini tiba pada
saja Kamis lalu dan kegembiraan meringan-
kan langkah saja, terutama mengulang-ulangi
membatjanja. Sesungguhnja terkadang saja
mulai dengan jang pertama, atau kedua, atau
ketiga, begitulah, semua terkadang. Waktu
jang lalu, saja tidak mendengarkan kuntjup seri
sajang. Saja nantikan sadjalah suara Dini, baik
bukan? Tadi pagi saja ke Kaliurang pula me-
lukis. Udara tjemerlang sekali, dan kilauan
warna bumi menjahut keangkasa. Lalu
lukisan ini untuk Dini. Esok pagi saja
ke Magelang melukis, dan lusa pula dan
keesokannja. Tiga hari pulang-balik.
Dan bila matahari tidak ditabiri awan
hitam akan sedap djuga berpanas-panasan
disana, terlepas dari tempurung Jogja.
Dikala saja menulis ini, saja chajalkan
Dini tentu sedang bersiul-siul dan berden-
dang dihati, hidup dialam djiwa Dini.
Memang demikianlah hendaknja.
Dini sampai disinilah dahulu dan
terima pulalah salam saja ini,

                             Kawanmu
                             (tdt)
                             Jogja
                            15/2/53

          Rusli
          aloon2 Utara 7
          Jogja


             * * * *

B) Lukisan yang ditandatangani
Rusli, 29/3/53

                                  Untuk
                                  Saudara N. Dini
                                  Sekaju 348
                                  Semarang

Dini,
Terimalah salam
saja ini
        Kawanmu
        (tdt)
        Rusli
        aloon2 Utara 7
        Jogja


         * * * *

c) Lukisan yang ditandatangani
Rusli, 29/3/53

                               untuk
                               Saudara N. Dini
                               Sekaju 348
                               Semarang
                               dari
                               Rusli

     17 - 6 - '53
Saudara Dini,
Hari tadi telah membawa saja kembali
ke sanggar dan kekosongan pun mulai me-
niup-niup. Dini, keluarga Sekaju sangat
baik terhadap saja; ibu jang selalu berusaha
mengembirakan, Nugroho jang suka membi-
tjarakan kesenian; kakak Dini jang selalu
tertawa sadja; Teguh jang selalu mengorbankan
waktunja menunjukkan kota, Bambang jang
menjenangkan itu dan Dini jang selalu
ada, selalu duduk disudut memegang
madjalah, tenang, selalu tertawa dari sudut.
Dini, kegembiraan jang saja bawa pulang ini, kokoh
sebagai garis langit jang tenang itu, tiada tertum-
bangkan badai ataupun gelombang gegilaan
dunia dengan segala dengki dan siasat-me-
njiasatinja jang hanja ingin menghantjur-
kan daja kemadjuan. Dini, dalam waktu
dan djangka menarik kita lepas dari detik
kegembiraan itu, ingin kita mengulurkan
lengan kembali untuk menggenggam
erat detik itu dan melepaskan diri
dari detik dan djangka. Mesti pulakah
ketandusan pagi esok menanti?
Baiklah.
Lalu bagaimana per-
                     Rusli
                     aloon2 Utara 7
                     Jogja

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