Made Aswino Aji (b. Gianyar 1977) is a visual artist and art director from Silakarang, Bali, with a long-standing career as a collective initiator and designer of progressive art spaces in Indonesia. A graduate of the Indonesian Institute of the Arts (ISI) Yogyakarta (c. 1996), Aji began organizing small but meaningful exhibitions during his student years under the name Ruang Peruang—with two editions in Yogyakarta and a third in Jakarta—creating alternative platforms for young artists to express themselves, exchange ideas, and grow their creative networks.
His collaborative spirit later scaled up into larger projects, most notably through his involvement in the Soundrenaline music festival in 2018 and 2019. In 2018, he brought together younger students from ISI Yogyakarta to co-create a bamboo Penari Baris sculpture, which he envisioned and sketched out himself from start to finish. He also presented Invansion Ego, a hand-carved wooden gate that stood as a bold, personal artistic statement. In 2019, Aji turned two massive stages into his artistic medium—designing and building the entire structure from the ground up. For this ambitious project at Creators Park and the Amphitheatre Stage, he collaborated with younger ISI artists, the art collective Ruang Rupa, and also involved his local banjar community from his hometown of Silakarang, known as the Silakarang Art Crew. Together, they also created a kinetic Penari Baris installation, blending tradition with contemporary creativity.
Aji is also one of the co-founders of Art Bali, an International contemporary art exhibition launched in Nusa Dua in 2018 alongside his university peer. The initiative opened up new ground for Indonesian contemporary art—grounded in thoughtful curation, cross-disciplinary practice, and global dialogue.
Following the passing of his father, Balinese art maestro I Wayan Sika, Aji took over the legacy of Sika Gallery—one of Bali’s oldest contemporary art galleries. Under his leadership, the gallery has been revitalized into a vibrant space for artists, designers, and creatives from all fields, with fresh programs that encourage experimentation, exchange, and regeneration within Bali’s art scene.
Bahasa Indonesia
Made Aswino Aji (lahir di Gianyar, 1977) adalah seniman visual dan art director asal Silakarang, Bali, yang telah lama berkarya sebagai penggagas berbagai kolektif serta perancang ruang-ruang seni progresif di Indonesia. Ia merupakan lulusan Institut Seni Indonesia (ISI) Yogyakarta sekitar tahun 1996. Semasa menjadi mahasiswa, Aji mulai menginisiasi pameran-pameran kecil namun bermakna melalui Ruang Peruang—dengan dua edisi di Yogyakarta dan edisi ketiga di Jakarta. Inisiatif ini menjadi ruang alternatif bagi seniman muda untuk berekspresi, bertukar gagasan, dan membangun jejaring kreatif.
Semangat kolaborasinya kemudian berkembang melalui berbagai proyek berskala lebih besar, salah satunya keterlibatannya dalam festival musik Soundrenaline pada 2018 dan 2019. Pada 2018, ia mengajak sejumlah mahasiswa muda ISI Yogyakarta untuk bersama-sama membuat patung bambu Penari Baris, yang ia konsep dan sketsa sendiri dari awal hingga akhir. Ia juga menghadirkan Invansion Ego, sebuah gerbang kayu yang diukir dengan tangan dan menjadi pernyataan artistik yang kuat dan personal.
Pada 2019, Aji menjadikan dua panggung berukuran besar sebagai medium artistiknya. Ia merancang dan membangun keseluruhan struktur panggung dari awal. Dalam proyek ambisius di Creators Park dan Amphitheatre Stage ini, ia berkolaborasi dengan seniman muda ISI, kolektif seni Ruang Rupa, serta melibatkan komunitas banjar dari kampung halamannya di Silakarang, yang dikenal sebagai Silakarang Art Crew. Bersama-sama, mereka juga menciptakan instalasi kinetik Penari Baris, memadukan tradisi dengan kreativitas kontemporer.
Aji juga merupakan salah satu pendiri Art Bali, sebuah pameran seni kontemporer internasional yang diluncurkan di Nusa Dua pada 2018 bersama rekan sesama alumnus universitas. Inisiatif ini membuka ruang baru bagi seni kontemporer Indonesia melalui kurasi yang kuat, praktik lintas disiplin, dan dialog global.
Setelah wafatnya sang ayah, maestro seni rupa Bali I Wayan Sika, Aji meneruskan warisan Sika Gallery, salah satu galeri seni kontemporer tertua di Bali. Di bawah kepemimpinannya, galeri tersebut kembali dihidupkan sebagai ruang yang dinamis bagi seniman, desainer, dan kreator dari berbagai bidang, dengan program-program baru yang mendorong eksperimentasi, pertukaran gagasan, dan regenerasi dalam ekosistem seni Bali.
