The paintings in Arma Museum have been selected from the collection of Agung Rai. as the owner of this museum. The collection as a whole, with works dating from the turn of the century to the present, gives the viewer a sense of the evolution of Balinese painting during the time, and of the range of modern Indonesian art.
Comprising works representative of all styles of Balinese painting, as well as works by Western artists who encouraged and supported Balinese painters, the collection also includes paintings by Indonesian and foreigners who found, or continue to find inspiration among the Balinese.
Agung Rai has selected the works in his collection based on what he describes as a spiritual connection he feels between a painting and himself if the painting has taksu. Taksu is a Balinese word for a power that can be sensed, that can not be intentionally sought or attained through study.
It can be termed divine inspiration, a gift, a kind of charisma what can be bestowed by God on an artist, dancer, musician, carver, writer, orator, or healer. Taksu is not constant, it does not necessarily remain with a person, rather it appears if the person is in an appropriate state of purity, or otherwise deemed suited for receiving a divine gift.
It is because of taksu that a novice painter can produce a work of surprising power and grace.
