Exploring Ubud Through Seniwati Gallery Art And Pura Taman Saraswati

Ubud has long been known as the “village of painters”. In the 1930s, the encouragement of the puri (royal family) attracted foreign artists and intellectuals seeking the “real Bali”, and so the village’s international reputation was born. A peaceful hamlet until the 1980s, Ubud developed rapidly into a village of “cultural tourism”. Now it is a small town, packed with galleries, craft-shops, restaurants, bars and hotels. However, Ubud spends much of its new prosperity on ritual ceremonies and conservation of traditional art forms.

The Ubud Tourist Information Centre is a reliable source of information about tours, transport, dance performances, and current cultural events. It provides information about local ceremonies and encourages foreigners to observe dress etiquette when visiting temples or rituals. There is Seniwati Gallery Art by Women. This is the only gallery exhibiting women’s art in Asia. They work with 72 mostly Balinese artists, who paint in modern and traditional styles. Their library and bookshop, Pondok Pekak Library and Learning Centre, offer language and arts classes.

In other side, there is also Pura Taman Saraswati. This temple was built in the 1950s by I Gusti Nyoman Lempad at the command of Ubud’s prince, in honour of Saraswati, the deity of learning and the arts. It is set in a water garden, with a lotus pond as the centrepiece. The temple has fine carvings by Lempad: a 3-m (10-ft) statue of the demon Jero Gede Mecaling; and the padma – sana shrine in the northeast corner, dedicated to the Supreme God. The temple is normally closed, but admission may be gained via the adjacent Café Lotus.

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