This dramatic photo from a Balinese cremation ceremony comes from BALIwww.com’s photostream.

This image of an unusual kite in Bali, Indonesia, comes from sektordua’s photostream.

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Lately I’ve been thinking a bit about Bali, so let’s remain there for a while. This fellow comes to us from Beat’s photostream.

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The other day I commented on Deb Clearwaters’s new blog on Bali. Subsequently, I found this collection of paintings by the Russian-born German painter Walter Spies. Spies, who was born in 1895, moved to Bali in 1927. His painting swings between mannerist and expressionist tendencies, but often with overtones of the primitivism of someone like Dounier Rousseau. With decent connections to the international art community, Spies helped to popularize the notion of Bali as an idyllic and exotic Shangri-La. This painting dates from 1929.

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This photo of a rice farmer in Bali comes from wYnand!’s photostream.

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Deborah Clearwaters has begun a blog that will present “musings about the Balinese arts of music, dance, sculpture, painting, and the ephemeral arts of offering making.” This is sure to be a good resource for anyone interested in this topic. Visit Bali Art Blog here.

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flower bowl

This photo of a flower bowl in Bali is from _tris_’s photostream.

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AP released this great photo of performers watching the opening ceremony of the 5th Indonesia Art Festival in Sanur, Bali, Indonesia.

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