Mella Jaarsma Netherlands, b. 1960

Mella Jaarsma (b. 1960, Emmeloord, Netherlands; lives and works in Yogyakarta,
Indonesia) has become known for her complex costume installations and her focus on
forms of cultural and racial diversity embedded within clothing, the body and food. She was born in the Netherlands in 1960 and studied visual art at Minerva Academy in
Groningen (1978–1984), after which she left the Netherlands to study at the Art Institute of Jakarta (1984) and at the Indonesian Institute of the Arts in Yogyakarta (1985–1986). She has lived and worked in Indonesia ever since. In 1988, she co- founded Cemeti Art House, now called Cemeti Institute for Art & Society with Nindityo Adipurnomo, one of the first spaces for contemporary art in Indonesia, which to this day remains an important platform for young artists and art workers in the country and region. Mella Jaarsma’s works have been presented widely in exhibitions and art events in Indonesia and abroad. Her work is part of the collection of the Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, National Gallery of Australia and the Singapore Art Museum, amongst others.