Walk through the village lanes of Kamasan, where sacred teachings, courtly stories, and knowledge from the past take form in painting. Passed from one generation to the next, this living tradition continues in the work of Kamasan artists today.

In Kamasan, a village about 43 kilometers east of Denpasar, a visual language emerged and has endured for centuries. Kamasan painting flourished during the Gelgel kingdom in the 16th century and continued to develop under the patronage of courts in Klungkung. Artists transformed stories from the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Sutasoma, Panji, and Tantri into paintings. In doing so, they followed the inherited conventions of Kamasan wayang painting, including the depiction of figures (wong-wongan), gestures, and ornament. The colors were produced from minerals, plants, and soot.

Kamasan is a close-knit community where many painters live and work as neighbors. Knowledge passes from parent to child, master to apprentice, and religious leader to artist. Recognized as Indonesian Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2015, the tradition continues through families, teachers, sanggar, and banjar communities. Learning Kamasan painting means earning the community’s trust while mastering and sustaining its techniques.

This visual language and classical painting style continue to evolve. Techniques once used to depict gods and epics now engage with contemporary life, including polluted seas, the COVID-19 pandemic, women entering new professions, and Indonesian history retold from a Balinese perspective.

The exhibition brings together 34 works by 17 artists and contributors. See a nine-meter ider-ider depicting the heroic story of the Bharatayuddha. Once hung along the edge of a temple roof, it surrounded worshippers with messages of virtue and courage. Encounter langsé, ritual curtains once used to screen sacred objects and conceal performers before they entered ceremonial spaces. Kamasan works remain part of ritual life while also developing through museums, galleries, and the practices of artists whose names are becoming increasingly recognized. This expansion into new contexts opens space for a younger generation to explore Kamasan’s visual language through different materials, forms, and subjects.

Look closely at I Nyoman Mandra’s Rahwana Merusak Kailasa, in which the demon king Rahwana tries to lift Siwa’s sacred mountain and is trapped beneath it. Discover Mangku Mura’s Gugur Bisma, depicting the fall of one of the Mahabharata’s most revered elders. See how Mangku Muriati applies Kamasan’s classical language to the lives of working women, the wail of ambulance sirens, threats of environmental damage, and colonial history.

Meet also a new generation of artists. One uses vivid neon colors and markers on lengths of raw cotton hung like ritual curtains. Another maps the human body as a microcosm filled with sacred script. A third works in charcoal on bark paper to honor a master painter from an earlier generation. Created largely within the past five years, these works inherit the tradition while opening new creative possibilities.

Learning spaces throughout the exhibition invite visitors to explore Kamasan painting more deeply. Trace a thousand years of Balinese art on a historical timeline, from an 11th-century inscription to artists working today. Learn to read Kamasan’s visual system: how facial features identify characters, gestures move the story forward, and pedum karang divides the painting into fields that carry different meanings. Discover the nuances of Kamasan’s warm earth-toned palette, then follow the stories that continue to live through its images.

Visit SAKA Museum and experience Kamasan painting across generations, from works created for ritual spaces to the explorations of artists today.

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Balinese tradition states all existence consists of five elements. Four of these– Earth, Water, Fire and Air – are like those recognized in European tradition from early Greek times. However, the Balinese add a mysterious fifth element known as Akasa. This is often referred to as Ether but the term akasa is also sometimes translated as ‘nothingness’, ‘zero’ or ‘space’. Akasa is otherworldly in origin, immutable and uncorruptible, unlike the first four elements which manifest in our impermanent physical realm.

The concept of the five elements permeates every aspect of Balinese religion, culture, art, philosophy, ritual and occult science. Each element presides over its own realm and has unique characteristics associated with the micro- and macro-cosmos (buwana alit, buwana agung) as well as the daily cycle of life. The five elements are also connected with the solar and lunar calendars, planets, places, directions of the compass, and the gods, both in their benign and wrathful manifestations.

Find how the cosmic and the everyday come together in harmony at the Panca Maha Bhuta exhibition.

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Subaks are self-governing, democratic organizations of Balinese farmers who manage the island's famous rice terraces. 

Ancient inscriptions issued by Balinese kings mention subak as early as the eleventh century AD. The foundation of the subak system is the belief that the waters in Balinese lakes, rivers and springs are the gift of a benevolent goddess, "who makes the waters flow." Farmers who share irrigation water belong to subaks, which manage the water and ensure that it is fairly divided. Rooted in the ancient philosophy of Tri Hita Karana, subaks strive to harmonize the realms of nature (palemahan), the human world (pawongan), and spirit (parhyangan).

Explore Subak: The Ancient Order of Bali to experience this ancient wisdom come to life, and discover the enduring value of indigenous knowledge in our modern world.

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Kasanga, the ninth month in the Balinese calendar, marks a period of renewal and transformation for the Balinese. Falling in March, it is when Bali observes Nyepi, the Day of Silence, which marks the beginning of the Saka New Year. This period invites deep spiritual reflection, purification, and the restoration of balance between humans, nature, and the divine.

The Kasanga rites unfold in a series of sacred rituals. Melasti is a cleansing procession to the sea, where sacred objects are purified. Tawur Kasanga follows, with large-scale offerings to maintain cosmic harmony. On Pengrupukan, the island erupts in a vibrant night of ogoh-ogoh processions, symbolizing the banishment of negative forces. This leads into Nyepi, a full day of silence, reflection, and meditation. The cycle concludes with Ngembak Geni, a time of renewal, forgiveness, and reconnection. These rituals embody the principles of somya (balance), sunya (silence), and ramya (joy).

This exhibition reimagines Kasanga’s traditions through contemporary artistic expressions. Blending historical documents with modern art, it features works by Balinese artists and cultural custodians. Curators Wayan Seriyoga Parta, Made Susanta Dwitanaya, Dewa Ayu Eka Savitri Sastrawan, Dewa Gede Purwita (Gurat Institute), and Marlowe Bandem (SAKA Museum) invite you to explore the interplay of festivity and stillness in Balinese culture.