Matahari di Atas Danau Anak Laut or The Sun over Lake Anak Laut by Affandi (1977)

Collection of Ibrahim Abdullah's family

Ibrahim Abdullah (1932-2015) was an Acehnese born in Sigli (in The Greater Aceh District). He studied industrial engineering — earning a bachelor's degree from New York University and a master's degree from the University of the Philippines. Since 1960 he joined the State Electricity Company and later the Ministry of Industry. He later became a member of a government's team called the Komando Pembangunan Proyek Pelabuhan Bebas Sabang (Sabang Free Port Development Project Command) formed in 1964. When Sabang (on Weh Island, in the province of Aceh) began to be realized as a free port and free trade zone, Ibrahim Abdullah became Head of the Sabang Free Port Development Authority during 1967-1980. In his later years he became a lecturer in political science and political economy at the National University (Jakarta) until his death.

During his role in developing the Sabang free port, Ibrahim Abdullah intended to place an art and cultural dimension into the economic and infrastructure development of Sabang and Pulau Weh. With a variety of efforts, he invited various national artists to take part in activities in the western tip of Indonesia, including playwright W.S Rendra (with his group Bengkel Theater, Yogyakarta) and painter Affandi. In March 1977 Affandi came to Sabang at the invitation of Ibrahim Abdullah; the painter was accompanied by his wife, Maryati, and painter Lian Sahar (Ibrahim's friend, also an Acehnese who had lived in Yogyakarta). For about a week, Affandi toured Pulau Weh. The painting of The Sun over Lake Anak Laut is a result of the event. He painted directly on location, precisely at Cot Ba ‘U (literally: Hill of Coconut Trees) in the afternoon before sundown; as is usual, Affandi painted using paints from their tubes directly on to the canvas, sometimes also using his fingers. In the painting, the visible bright sun lights up; in the foreground below, with an elongated oblong shape, is Lake Anak Laut; and on the right side to the center, is Sabang Bay. (Lake Anak Laut is, of course, a freshwater lake; when viewed from Cot Ba 'U, the lake is indeed like a fraction of the Sabang Bay sea.) The painter then gave final touch to the painting in the place where he stayed, Sabang Hill Guesthouse (also owned by the Sabang Free Port Development Authority).

The painting of The Sun over Lake Anak Laut was bought by Ibrahim Abdullah. When he and his family moved to Jakarta in 1980, the painting was brought along and is well preserved to this day — until the painting left the house for the first time, to appear at Sidharta Auctioneer’s Fine Art Auction.