CushCush Gallery

Indonesia Design Week 2026 has come to a close. But you may still discover our gorgeous ADIR collectible design pieces at Townhall, Indonesia Design District at PIK2! Among them, the Lele cabinet from our first ever ADIR collection, Marta Bakowski’s “Fragments: impressions of Bali”.
A true invitation to travel, the Fragments collection is conceived as a travel diary and borrows from the cabinet of curiosities concept. Lele is one in a series of three cabinets, each like a tableau encapsulating a core memory for the designer during her residency in Bali.
Marta was inspired by everyday life in Bali, from colorful night markets and traditional fishing boats featured on her Lele cabinet, to daily offerings to the gods celebrated on her Lamak cabinet or the graceful kites hovering in the sky gorgeously decorating her Bali Night Sky cabinet. The structure of all three pieces is directly inspired by the gerobak, the traditional food carts found on Indonesian street markets and their movable compartments revealing and concealing other inner spaces. Marta’s encounter with the undagi (traditional Balinese architect) pak Man Rai further influenced their external skeleton, as traditional architecture in Bali features impressive constructions made with clever joinery. All pieces also feature an intricate work of lontar marquetry, elevating this natural material usually used to make offerings or various daily confections and construction elements.
Fragments celebrates the high quality of Balinese craftsmanship and traditional arts. All cabinets feature gorgeous decorative elements sculpted by the expert hands of master mask maker Cokorda Raka Sedana, from delicately sculpted flowers to an expressive bestiary of mythical creatures and fish. The collection also pays homage to Kamasan painting, one of Bali’s iconic traditional arts. Beautifully chiseled cloud patterns characteristic of this style adorn the Bali night sky cabinet. All decorative details sculpted in relief were deftly hand painted by master Kamasan painter I Made Sesangka Puja Laksana.

The Tell Me Tales book was proof that even the pandemic couldn’t stop the children from creating unforgettable stories and inspire others. This story book consists of 12 stories that were the result of LagiLagi’s Charcoal For Children creative workshops from 6 public schools and communities in villages across Bali: Marga Ole in Tabanan, Batuan in Gianyar, Panglipuran in Bangli, Serangan in Denpasar, Candikusuma in Jembrana, and lastly, Bayung Gede in Kintamani. Through the minds of the children, and with the help of our talented artists: Juli Sastrawan, ‘Jong’ Santiasa Putra, and Irene Febry, their stories come to life. The workshop includes collaborative story writing with a playful approach to feel inspired, such as using an illustrated dice to gather the key points, visualize their imagination with LagiLagi DIY charcoal, and explore various out-of-the box art materials using ordinary resources within their neighborhood and surroundings.

With titles such as “A Ball from the Coconut Shell”, “A Little Children Who Befriended A Dragon”, and many others, the Tell Me Tales book was officially launched in July 2023, where warm conversations take place and the festive Kacak Kicak Puppet Theatre performed one of the story from the book, titled “Begol” in CushCush Gallery. The night continues with a book discussion with the Tell Me Tales book writers and artist, alongside Debby Lukito and Opie Wadhani as editors of the book.

This labour of love aims to encourage children’s creativity while also raising awareness about the environment together with our creative community. We hope our fun memories of creating these stories can be grasped through these captured moments and stories in the Tell Me Tales book.

Check out our Youtube to find more wonderful memories of the creative workshops across Bali here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNrGCbdw9w

Product info:
Tell Me Tales by Juli Sastrawan & Jong Santiasa Putra, with collage artwork by Irene Febry
2023

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In mid-September, CushCush Gallery was one of the community screening partners for Minikino Film Week 12 (MFW12), where we screened two package programs: "Bittersweet" (September 14th) and "Familiar Stranger" (September 15th).

Over the two nights, visitors gathered in our space to watch a curation of short films across various topics, genres, and nationalities, immersing in various authentic human experiences through the medium of short movies.

The MFW12 screening at CushCush Gallery was set against the backdrop of "The Forest Amongst Us" exhibition, which runs until 16 October 2026.

Besides watching the short films, visitors got to discover the Artist Designer In Residence (ADIR) closing exhibition that presents initial explorations of designer residents Clara Riviere and Cokorda Suryanata, as well as photography presentation produced as part of the program.

The two nights were filled with laughter, emotion, and moments of reflection on the relationships between humans, culture, and nature.

Our ADIR Java roadshow ended in Jakarta with a bang, as CushCush Gallery, CushCush, Arcade - Design à la campagne and ADIR 2026-27 resident designers Clara Rivière and Cokorda G.B. Suryanata attended the 2026 Indonesia Design Week (IDW). During the opening ceremony officiated by IDW's CEO pak Ipeng Widjojo, the French Ambassador H.E. Fabien Penone highlighted our ADIR cross-residency and its contribution to the creative dialogue between France and Indonesia.

We were honored to receive his visit at our ADIR showcase alongside pak Ipeng Widjojo, the Indonesian Vice-Minister of Creative Industries Irene Umar, the Italian Ambassador to Indonesia H.E. Roberto Colamine, the Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia H.E. Marc Gerritsen, the editor in chief of Indonesia Design ibu Lina Gan, the president of Salone del Mobile Maria Porro and Marva Griffin, the legendary founder of SaloneSatellite in Milan. All could admire the wonderful pieces born from the collaboration between our former residents Marta Bakowski, Pierre Charrié and Studio Marcel Poulain with Balinese artists and artisans. We were proud to introduce our current residents Cokorda and Clara, as well as Marine Hunot representing our new cross-residency partner Arcade-Design à la campagne.

The designers then had the opportunity to visit various showrooms to get a glimpse of the local design scene. They visited Bika Living, MM Galeri and notably met Alvin T, one of Indonesia's leading designers, who has gained recognition for his work with rattan. He shared with them about how he strives to reconnect urban Indonesians with nature through his work with natural materials and collaborations with artisans across the archipelago.

We finally made it to the last stop on our Java roadshow, Indonesia’s sprawling capital Jakarta. We first headed to Bina Nusantara University (Binus) where Clara and Tjok delivered their last design talk for students not only on site, but also from other Binus campuses across the country attending online. While Tjok pointed out the challenge of reconciling craftsmanship and mass production in the context of Indonesia in terms of production, Clara emphasized on the need for designers to highlight the ecosystem behind the making of an object in terms of the resources and skills it involves.
The designers then had the chance to visit Omah Library, a one-of-a-kind space dedicated to architectural literacy in Indonesia. The brainchild of Indonesian architect Realrich Sjarief, the library features a wide range of books on architecture and design and especially strives to promote the work of Indonesian architects. The building itself is an experiment, paying homage to various architects in its style as it continues to evolve and grow.
Clara and Tjok then made their way to MACAN, the leading private contemporary art museum in Indonesia. There they could get a glimpse of the local artistic scene as they discovered several ongoing exhibitions featuring Indonesian and Southeast Asian artists.

After a scenic train ride, we arrived in bustling Bandung. Tjok and Clara first headed to Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), the first university in Indonesia to offer a curriculum in product design. In their exchange with students, both highlighted the need for designers to take into account the place they design in and the potential issues the product they create can generate as part of their creative process.
The designers then headed towards the hills of Bandung to visit renowned Indonesian designer Adhi Nugraha’s studio. Also a researcher and teacher at ITB, pak Adhi uses traditional techniques and materials to create sustainable contemporary designs. The designers could admire the studio’s impressive bamboo buildings filled with pak Adhi’s creations.
They were given a tour of the studio’s Cowka project, which develops design objects made of cow dung. The project was initiated to respond to cow dung becoming an environmental issue in the nearby village due to dairy farming, and is successful while involving and benefiting the local community.
We started our last day in Bandung by visiting the new studio of Syaiful Garibaldi, a talented artist who applies his background in environmental science into his work. His passion for micro living organisms and their symbolism of decay finds its full expression in his impressive installations and paintings. He shared with Clara and Tjok about his experimentation with mycelium and algae and how he considers them as collaborators in his creative process. As a result his art conveys a strong sense of the passage of time and of the cycle of life, as his installations evolve according to the organisms’ response to their environment.
Our stay in Bandung ended with a meaningful discussion at IFI. We were delighted to have Adhi Nugraha share his thoughts on the importance of design as a way to reconnect us with nature and mend our dissociation with our surrounding natural ecosystems. Tjok, Clara and Marine also pointed out that designers find themselves in a powerful position to address such complex issues as they can offer diverse and layered perspectives and convey important messages through their creations.

We kickstarted our roadshow in Yogyakarta in the heart of Java. Clara and Tjok first got a taste of the local artistic and design scene by visiting Edsu gallery's latest exhibition "deSINgn", which proposed a reflection on the potential issues design can generate.

The designers then made their way up the slopes of Merapi to Ruas Bambu Nusa and Suara Dewandaru, an eco-art space run by Widya Purwoko and his sons. A former sand mine, the space was revitalized by planting bamboo, which is an integral part of a sensory experience inspired by Javanese culture and taoism. The designers explored live bamboo art installations while enjoying relaxing tunes.

They later introduced their respective design practices and shared about their experience with ADIR for students of Universitas Kristen Duta Wacana (UKDW).
Our visit ended with an intimate and meaningful discussion at IFI Yogyakarta about how design residencies like ADIR are an opportunity for designers to question their own approach, especially their own use of natural resources. In the case of ADIR, Bali's spirituality is an entry point for the designers to explore the connection between their practice and the living world.

Thank you to all who joined us, especially to Mella Jaarsma and Nindityo Adipurnomo, co-founders of Cemeti Institute, who asked meaningful questions and shared their observations from their artist perspectives. Our deep thanks to the IFI Yogyakarta and UKDW teams for their warm welcome!

Next stop, Bandung!