A book about Art and Cultural History in Bali

To celebrate its first year anniversary and to align with the mission from Préférence Hotels to be culturally driven, Maison Aurelia proudly introduced a book about art and cultural history of Bali; “Sanur, Gateway to Inspiration”. The book is an embodiment of Préférence’s mission to share the essence of the hotel’s soul to friends and guests about the timeless beauty of art and cultural history of Bali.

“Sanur, Gateway to Inspiration” tells the history of how Sanur became the entrance for foreigners, including the artists. With its mysterious magnetic pull, Bali’s culture and tradition have been inspirations to the foreign artists living on the island, resulting many wonderful artistic creations. The visual expressions created by these master painters depict mystical landscapes and beautiful locals living harmoniously between nature and the gods. In a way, Sanur became the starting point where the beauty of Bali’s art and culture were discovered by the world. Sanur became the gateway to inspiration to the artists.

“This book is an invitation for our guests to learn more about the culture and the heart of Sanur and Maison Aurelia. We want the journey of our guests to continue even outside the hotel. We would like to enlighten them and inspire them about  Balinese culture which speaks its personality from the heart. We want to leave footprints in our guests’ journey. One that is thoughtful, memorable and inspirational,” said Sophie Marivin, Hotel Manager of Maison Aurelia.

Curated by Dr Jean Couteau, a renowned art historian who truly has unique insights into life on the magical island of Bali, and Alistair Speirs, Founder of Phoenix Communication, the book features paintings and biographies of  prominent artists heavily influenced by Bali namely Walter Spies, Rudolf Bonnet, Miguel Covarrubias, Le Mayeur, Theo Meier, Emilio Ambron, William Hofker, Antonio Blanco, Arie Smit, Donald Friend and Geneviéve Couteau that brought a new, feminine look to Bali’s art.

The late Geneviève Couteau was inspired by Balinese femininity since she first came to the island in 1968. She saw something beyond the physical form of femininity and she painted that to show her peculiar perspective to the world. Geneviève Couteau’s works are exhibited in Agung Rai Museum of Art and as a part of the book launching event, her works are also exhibited at Maison Aurelia.

In addition to paintings and painters, the book also shares the  array of Art Museums in Bali, including Puri Lukisan Museum, Le Mayeur Museum, Neka Art Museum, Rudana Museum, Agung Rai Museum of Art, The Blanco Renaissance Museum and Museum Pasifika. The objective of sharing these gems are to enable  Maison Aurelia’s friends and guests to learn about the history and to be in touch more of with the paintings exhibited exclusively in these museums.

The book launching was celebrated with a humble concept of event, started with welcome speech from Marc Steinmeyer, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tauzia Hotel Management and Anthony Prabowo Susilo, Chief Operating Officer of PT Indonesian Paradise Property Tbk, the event then continued with an enthralling talk show about the book with guest speakers  Dr Jean Couteau, Art Historian who wrote and curated the book; Alistair Speirs, Founder of Phoenix Communications who co-wrote the book; and last but not least, Fretty Carolina Hutapea, Brand Manager of Préférence Hotels who shared the concept of Préférence and Maison Aurelia.

Around 50 invitees from media, artists, writers, and Bali’s art influencers after the talk-show ushered to an  afternoon cocktail accompanied by Gamelan and Balinese dancers entertainment, as they are then brought into relaxing and calm atmosphere of Maison Aurelia.

Discover more about Maison Aurelia by Préférence and “Sanur, Gateway to Inspiration” at www.maisonaureliasanur.com & follow @maisonaurelia on social media.