Still-life photography at the intersection of art and fashion
By Sharrona Valezka

A&M's Fresh Faces is where we profile an emerging artist from the region every month and speak to them about how they kick-started their career, how they continue to sustain their practice and what drives them as artists. Read our profile on Yohan Liliyani here.

To start, could you share how you first started your artistic journey? What made you particularly interested in photography?

I grew up in a family that was not art-centric. When I went to Melbourne for my Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting and Finance at Monash University, my sister handed me her camera. This made me interested in joining the photography club on campus. I am intrigued with the idea of communicating a story within a rectangular frame, and also with creating things by experimenting with settings and lighting.

From my observation, your artistic training has mostly been non-formal and non-institutional. How has this shaped your practice? Who has been an important mentor or a significant influence to you?

It is definitely challenging and a slow process, but I think it drives me to be more curious and to draw inspiration from other artists, as well as my surroundings. It also allows me to be more instinctive with my method of creating art. Additionally, my friends in the creative industry have a lot of influence on my practice. I have supportive friends whom I can talk to and exchange thoughts with.

You started as a fashion photographer before starting your practice as an artist. How did this shift come about?

It started during the pandemic lockdown when I was not able to channel my creativity through my photography work like I usually did. Being stuck at home somehow made me see ordinary objects in a different light.

At the time, I made a still-life editorial piece, and I became hooked. I did not shift right away since the lockdown restrictions became looser and I was able to carry out work like usual. My main focus was doing what I was already familiar with. It was not until I met my good friend Alexander Sebastianus, who encouraged me to push my career further as an artist that I did so.

Yohan Liliyani, ‘Artifacts 2’, 2022, framed giclée print on 250gsm epson luster paper, 70 x 56cm. Image courtesy of the artist.

Recently, you showed ‘Artifacts’ (2022) in the ‘Under the Sun’ exhibition at Art Agenda. How did the opportunity come about, and could you talk about your first experience exhibiting with them?

‘Artifacts’ is indeed my first body of work that was exhibited. However, ‘Under the Sun’ by Art Agenda was the second time it was displayed. Prior to that, it was exhibited at ‘UNION’ (2020) by Rasasastra at Semesta’s Gallery in Jakarta. Stella Wenny, the gallery manager at Art Agenda came to the art festival and contacted me after she saw my work. It was exciting to experience working with a gallery for the first time.

What were the ideas you wanted to explore with ‘Artifacts’? And could you explain the process behind this series of works?

I wanted to explore the relationship that we have between ourselves and our objects. I am fascinated with archeology, and how archeologists would find objects of the past. These items might be ordinary to someone at the time, but they give us insights into their life. From this, it led me to wonder about the stories ours would tell. If you think about it, we are archeologists ourselves. We have things that we forget about and store somewhere in our house. One day, we will stumble upon it and it will remind us of past chapters of our lives.

Yohan Liliyani, ‘Middle Ground’, 2020, photograph. Image courtesy of the artist.

You often work with organic materials and objects in your still-life images. Is there a particular reason behind this? What is its significance to the key themes that your practice explores?

I think that organic materials bear a resemblance to us as human beings in the sense that there is growth and eventually death. I often use organic objects as a reference to symbolise the human experience.

How has your fashion photography work influenced your fine arts projects, and vice versa? Do you distinguish them as separate creative spaces, or actively seek to develop both areas simultaneously?

My background in fashion photography has influenced me to humanise the objects that I shoot and have fun with compositions and lighting. At the same time, my fine art practice allows me to be more conceptual with my fashion photography. I seek to develop both areas because they feed off of each other.

“My background in fashion photography has influenced me to humanise the objects that I shoot, and have fun with compositions and lighting. At the same time, my fine art practice allows me to be more conceptual with my fashion photography.”

Yohan Liliyani, ‘Assemblage: Adimas’, 2023, photograph. Image courtesy of the artist.

As an emerging artist in Indonesia, what are some of the key challenges you face and equally the opportunities that you seek? How do they differ from your experience as a fashion photographer?

The level of art appreciation in Indonesia has yet to grow compared to other countries. However, we are surrounded by craftsmen and we have easier access to a wide range of materials in Indonesia. This allows us to conduct more experimentations and explorations.

What do you hope to see in the contemporary art scene of Indonesia?

I hope that the contemporary art scene will continue to thrive and that there will be a supportive community, where artists are encouraged to be themselves, experiment with new ideas, and challenge conventional norms.