Decorative Features of the Temple Complex Pura Beji (Sangsit, the Island of Bali)

Abstract

The author examines the sculptural decoration of the Pura Beji temple – a vivid representative of the style of sacred architecture and decorative plasticity of northern Bali. This temple complex is the sanctuary of the subak irrigation association. It is unique with a peculiar vocabulary of decor, rich texture of stone carvings, masterfully executed in a “pink” paras. The purpose of the article is to use the example of analysis of the decorations of temple buildings (Candi Bentar gates, Candi Kurung, Candi Laras altars, Apit Lawang) and samples of round sculpture to identify the characteristic features of the decorative desing of Pura Beji, to reveal the features of the iconographic reading of individual motifs and images, their spatial configuration. The work is based on empirical material from field studies conducted in April 2019 (Desa Sangsit, kabupaten Buleleng). The study of the temple decor was carried out using the methods of full-scale research, non-standardized interviews; comparative analysis; iconographic, compositional, artistic analysis of images. For the first time, the diverse repertoire of Pura Beji's plastics was analyzed through the prism of the leading iconographic program related to the cult of fertility and the specifics of Balinese Hinduism (with its rich mythopoetics, metamorphoses of the divine and demonic worlds). This predetermined the abundance of floral ornaments and chimerical, fantastic images in the decoration of the temple, their organic fusion. The role of active contacts of the northern coast of Bali with the cultures of Eastern civilizations and Western Europe in the formation of the original style of carving by Sangsit masters is also taken into account. The author comes to the conclusion that the decorative design of Pura Beji is characterized by: rethinking the codified patterns of decor, the use of original motifs and borrowed replicas; compositional freedom of ornamental constructions; continuous filling of the wall surface with sculptural decoration in relief, the applicative manner of applying the ornament. Also noteworthy is the hyperbolized way of articulating decorative elements, manifested in the reception of emphasized grotesque in the interpretation of zoomorphic images and the dominance of a large pattern of leaves and flowers.