A. D. Pirous

Abdul Djalil Pirous was born in Meulaboh, March 11, 1932. He graduated from the Department of Fine Arts, Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), 1964. Continued his studies on printmaking and graphic design at the Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester NY, United States (1969), and upon his return to his homeland, pioneered graphic design education at the Fine Arts of ITB and founded the art and design studio "Decenta" (1973). Subsequently, he served as the first Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Design ITB (1984-1990) and was confirmed as an ITB Professor since 1994. Then built a private gallery with the name Serambi Pirous (1992).

Pirous's career as a painter and graphic designer has been carried out for a long time since 1960. His works have been exhibited in hundreds of exhibitions on a national and international scale. His solo exhibition has been held five times, including Retrospective I for works 1960-1985, in TIM (1985) and Retrospective II for works 1985-2002, at Galeri Nasional, Jakarta (2002), Ja'u Timu at Selasar Sunaryo Art Space (2012), and Verses of the Universe in Kuala Lumpur (2015). In addition, several times, he was appointed as head of delegations, members of the jury, and curator of international art exhibitions, representing Indonesia.

Pirous has received many awards for his achievements as an artist and humanist, including: the Art Award by the Minister of Education and Culture (1985), the Cultural Satyalancana by the President of the Republic of Indonesia (2002), and the Habibie Award (2015). A complete description of him, along with his works, can be read in the book A.D. Pirous: Vision, Faith, and a Journey in Indonesian Art, 1955-2002 (by Kenneth M. George and Mamannoor; Bilingual: English-Indonesian; Yayasan Serambi Pirous, 2002) and in the book Painting Islam; Charity and Ethics of Islamic Art in Indonesia (by Kenneth M. George, Mizan, 2012).