Bali, Indonesia – Sixty years ago, I Ketut Soki was the delighted recipient of his first painting kit – and since that day, he has rarely put his brushes down.
“I still have the spirit to paint. I still have a lot of ideas,” he told Al Jazeera.
“I paint to maintain the Balinese culture. I want to show people abroad about Bali. I paint the island … harvesting, paddy fields, cultivating.”
The 72-year-old was one of the pioneers of the painting style known as Young Artist, known for its lively and colourful depictions of Balinese life.
But the art scene on the island is different now and many artists in the once-thriving cultural centre are struggling. Bali’s borders are closed to foreign tourists – and in their absence, the prospects for sales are limited.