Basuki Abdullah

Basuki Abdullah (25 January 1915 in Surakarta, Central Java – 5 November 1993 in Jakarta) was an Indonesian painter and a convert to Roman Catholicism from Islam. His work is characterized as realism and has been exhibited in the Indonesian National Gallery. He received formal training in The Hague. During the Japanese occupation of Indonesia he was an art teacher. After the war he became known internationally, winning an art contest on the occasion of the accession in the Netherlands of Queen Juliana. His status in Indonesia provided an opportunity to paint the official portrait of President Suharto. Abdullah was beaten to death by three assailants during a break-in at his Jakarta home.