Alexander Sebastianus Hartanto was born in 1995 in Java, Indonesia, and currently lives and works in Bali and Jakarta. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts with Departmental Honors in Fiber Arts from Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston in 2018. Alexander Sebastianus Hartanto uses experiential ethnographic re/search as a prominent intertwining mode of existence. Hartanto's works explores the decontextualization of material cultures and how it is perceived, understood and ritualized in practice. For Hartanto, decolonizing the ontologies of ˈaɾt/kunst, is to reclaim Sani, a way of living which involves offering, service and search of the unknown. A recreation of pilgrimages, sacred spaces and woven cloths are products of this practice, et al. The works and experiences of Sani may or may not be archived, documented or shared. What's left are remnants and evidence of materials that takes place in Sani.
His awards and honors include the William Daley Award for Excellence in Art History and a Craft Field (2017) and the Departmental Honors in Fiber Arts from MassArt (2018). He has had several solo exhibitions, including Mbaka Satitik: Ritualization of Froms (2024) at John Hardy Gallery in Bali, Titik Dari: Constellations of From (2024) at YIRI ARTS in Taipei, DARI (2023) at ISA Art Gallery in Jakarta, and ABDI ALAM pt. I (2021) at Omah Budoyo in Jogjakarta. His work has also been featured in group exhibitions and international art fairs, such as ARTJOG 2026: Ars Longa - Generatio at Jogjakarta National Museum in Jogjakarta (2026), Sedulur Watu ꦺꦱꦢꦸꦭꦸ ꦂ ꦮꦠꦸ at Omah Budoyo Gallery in Jogjakarta (2026), and MATASSA with Córtex Frontal at Centro de Arqueologia e Artes de Beja in Alentejo, Portugal (2026). His residencies and fellowships include the Manang Artist Residency at Annapurna Sanctuary in Ngawal Village, Nepal (2026), Hypertextile 2025 with Córtex Frontal in Mértola, Portugal (2025), and the 'Carving Connections' Fellowship at The Alternative Art School in the USA (2025).