OOO (Object-Oriented Ontology) is a term used to define a concern of agency, being and reality with regards to object (non-human) entities. In Immaterialism, Graham Harman, considered to be one of the founders of this idea, refers to objects simply as those things that “cannot be reduced either downwards to their pieces or upwards to their effects.” Invariably, then, the range of sufficient conditions for something to be considered an object becomes very expansive to say the least. Things as minute as unicellular organisms, as enormous as the universe, as simple as a sandwich, or as complex as a nuclear power plant are all considered to be equal in status as objects. OOO runs in contrast to common phenomenological theories that base the relation of objects in relation to human experience and relations to said objects, instead, OOO makes the double-assertion that objects both lie beyond human thought/experience, and that the very nature of objects exist beyond human understanding. In a way, OOO may be considered to be “post-human”.
The basic assumptions held by proponents of OOO result in interesting repercussions with regards to artworks, artmaking itself, and how an audience then interprets them ‘properly’. The viewer for one, has no reason to understand works based on the artist’s intentions, or even works in relation to historical art context. What then becomes imperative, on the other hand, is the “charisma” an artwork discharges (Timothy Morton), or how an artwork acts/pulls upon its audience.
Faisal Habibi explores a component of OOO that he finds fascinating: assuming human-object and/or object- object interdependency is unessential in determining an object’s “charisma”, to what extent does the object in relation to the extent of, or lack thereof, negative space around it alters its fundamental nature? It may be said, as a metaphorical instance, that a galaxy is not the sum of the stars and planets it is composed of, assuming that OOO theory is able to firmly hold its epistemological grounds, but what of the distance between said stars and planets? Is there something to be said, if not for the material constituents of the galaxy, then the empty spaces that reinforce the idea of what a galaxy is. It is within this narrow corridor of interest that Habibi conducts an ‘immaterial’ articulation of ideas expressed through a number of experimental visual permutations that question the nature of not only the value of objects, but also its relationship to its surrounding negative spaces, as well as the nature of these negative spaces in and of itself. And in doing so, he questions the artificial distinctions between sculpture, paintings — and of art "objects" itself.
Artist
Born 1984, Jakarta, Indonesia
Lives and works in Bandung, Indonesia
Since the start of his career, Faisal Habibi has been concerned with material culture; to interrogate its culture by playfully yet critically positing and creating alterations of familiar everyday objects, thus enticing the viewers to reignite conversation with the objects.
Habibi received his Bachelor’s Degree from Bandung Institute of Technology in 2008 with concentration in sculpture. He has exhibited his works in Bandung, Jakarta, Yogyakarta and also abroad in Singapore, Berlin, Germany and Australia. Habibi's first solo exhibition, This is not an apple… was held at ROH Projects in 2015. His most recent solo exhibitions include Stretch & Fold at Jarmuschek+Partner gallery, Berlin, Germany (2021), fillet at Sullivan+Strumpf, Singapore (2018) and nonsuch at Art Basel Hong Kong with ROH, Hong Kong (2018). His works have also been included in major group exhibitions, with the recent ones being at Art Cologne with Jarmuschek+Partner gallery (2022), Identität Nicht Nachgewiesen (Identity Not Proven) at Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn, Germany (2022); Contemporary Worlds: Indonesia at National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, Australia (2019); as well as group shows both online and offline, including Art Jakarta with ROH, Jakarta, Indonesia (2022); Art Basel Hong Kong OVR with ROH (2021); AORA:III (2021); Art Basel Online Viewing Room with ROH (2020); Papers: Position at Brandshof Hamburg, Berlin, Germany (2021); Art Jakarta with ROH Projects, Jakarta, Indonesia (2019); ARTJOG 10: Changing Perspective at Jogja National Museum, Yogyakarta, Indonesia and Biennale Jogja XIV Equator #4 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2017). Faisal’s works have been featured in many art awards, including Kompetisi Karya Trimatra Salihara (first prize winner), Indonesia Art Award (juror’s choice), and Bandung Contemporary Art Awards (special mention). He was awarded a three-month residency program at the Zentrum für Kunst und Urbanistic (ZKU – Center for Art and Urbanism) in Berlin. Faisal's work is a part of the Contemporary Art Collection of the Federal Republic of Germany.
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Courtesy of The Artist and ROH