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Ni Wayan MerdiBorn : December 13,1971"Crafting a piece is not just an exercise or challenge for me, but an extreme passion calling upon both my artistic and imaginative skills. The use of one's creativity and imagination is just as important for an artist, if not more important, than an artist's ability and slight of hand. When an artist constantly exercises the imagination, then she is constantly able to reinvent herself and her work throughout her career." Wayan was born in Sakah Ubud into a family with long traditions in Balinese artistic community. Upon finishing school where she had studied traditional artistic styles and technique, Wayan married and became a mother shortly thereafter. She and her husband had three children, two girls and one boy, and Wayan became a full-time homemaker. However, when her children became old enough and were at school most days, Wayan rekindled her passion for carving by taking a part-time apprenticeship in Ubud. She now spends most days working full-time and recently opened up her first gallery in Ubud with a friend and fellow artist. Wayan recently began an after-school program at her son's school where she teaches carving, sculpting, and painting to young aspiring Balinese artists. |