"Iwan Effendi — Clenched

Clenched explores the tension between what is felt and what is deliberately concealed. The work emerges from a process of holding back expression—of containing an emotion rather than allowing it to surface directly. Instead of presenting feeling in an immediate or transparent manner, the artist redirects and projects it onto a character, allowing the act of performance to become a space through which emotion can be experienced indirectly.

This relationship between concealment and expression is closely connected to Iwan Effendi’s practice with puppetry. The puppet becomes more than an object or a character to be animated; it becomes a vessel through which the performer can negotiate presence and absence. In bringing the puppet to life, the performer simultaneously reveals something of themselves while attempting to disappear behind the character. The boundary between the person, the role being played, and the puppet therefore becomes increasingly fluid.

The work suggests that expression does not always require openness. At times, it is precisely through restraint that an emotion becomes more visible. To clench is to hold, to contain, and to resist release. Within this tension, Clenched considers the paradox of performance: the performer must give life to another character while gradually making their own presence less visible.

The work ultimately reflects on the possibility of becoming lesap—to dissolve oneself into the act of performing, so that the character and the puppet can emerge as extensions of an otherwise withheld emotional experience."