How did Young Guns get on your radar?

A friend of mine, Ardhira Putra, told me about Young Guns — and I was so close to turning 30 that he told me to hurry, because it was my last chance. I still can’t believe I went this far.

How did you end up in the creative field?

When I was a kid, I loved drawing, but as I grew older, I lost my passion for it. For some reason, around 2012, it came around again, and I started to learn to draw from scratch — but seriously this time.

I had a dream to be an animator and went to college, but because of financial reasons it wasn’t viable. My grandmother worked as a French translator and had contacts with publishers in Indonesia, so I started to email-blast them my portfolio, just hoping something would stick. And it did. I was called by Elex Media to illustrate a children’s book. That’s how it all started.

Congrats on the win. Why did you decide to enter this year?

Yes — and until now I still ask, why did I win? I genuinely didn’t think it would happen, because the contestants are just godly. As to why I entered: both “why not” and yes, I was about to enter my 30s — truly a now-or-never moment. And absurdly I got a win, so thank you so much. Until now I’m still processing it all.

You only get to submit six projects. How did you decide what made the cut?

Many of them are works of passion and luck. For some reason, getting to work with The Line Studio felt like a scratch on my dream of becoming an animator — although I only provided concept work. Working with basically gods feels humbling and really gave me the need to up my game.

My works for Ehipassiko Foundation are precious. I learned so much from their founder, delving (still shallowly) into Buddhist cosmologies — but it rooted enough for me to keep influencing me going forward, especially in my personal project.

Mutja is a hope I have. If we ever reached a utopian civilization — what then? I love series such as One Piece, Star Wars (especially Andor), and Lord of the Rings. I wonder: when all the fights are done, when the revolution is a success, where will those stories go? When all our fights today are won, when everyone is free, what will happen? What will we seek next? Mutja is a start for me to process all of that.

“When all our fights today are won, when everyone is free, what will happen? What will we seek next?”

What was your reaction when you found out you won?

I went silent. Until now I still don’t know how to process this, if I’m being honest. Many of my works felt like a failure — and somehow I won? What now? What will tomorrow give? I’m curious, excited, trying to temper myself not to go too far imagining things.

I celebrated by going to sleep — one of the best sleeps I ever had.

In what ways does where you’re living right now inspire your creativity?

All of the above. My biggest influence is always the wood carvings of Jepara, and I always draw something I never see or have in my possession, but always want. It feels funny now I can just buy a gebyok if I want to — I can see and feel it, not only in my drawings.

When I was a child I played with toy dinosaurs. It was morning — the sun was at such an angle that the shadows gave long streaks across the floor. The dinos tried to eat each other, creating these weird, beautiful forms of shade on the bright floor. I always try to capture that feeling in my work.

My grandma is a translator of Asterix, so she’s the breadwinner of our house. My late grandpa was just the best — always kind, always patient. He had a stroke late in his life, and I felt like I had to take his position: to try to be that person for others. My partner gives me pride too — she makes collectives for marginalized people. These are core, intrinsic factors under the surface of my work.

Visually, I always run to Leon Bakst, Virginia Frances Sterrett, Nyoman Gunarsa, and Gustav Klimt.

Now that you’re part of the Young Guns community, are there any past winners you admire?

Princess Hidir, Young Guns 20 — IG: @princesshidir.

Their work is just insane, right? The forms, the colors — how can they think up something like that? Roger Dean but more mushrooms.

If you could create a new Young Guns tradition, what would you want it to be — and why?

Ticket for flight and hotel, hehe.

Honestly I’m still quite blind on this spot. If it’s possible, I’d like to know more before I can add anything.

If it’s by my own: what I really want is something that speaks more to creative workers anywhere — their rights, their price, and how to navigate this absurd world of ours, especially on the side of design and art. I’ve gone so far and honestly I’m still guessing in the dark.

Name a dream project you’d love to make next. Who would you collaborate with?

If I can design scarves for Hermès — or make a feature film of Mutja in 2D animation with either DreamWorks or Disney, calling in James Baxter to animate the whole film, hahah — I’m really going odd if you ask this. But who knows.