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Ketut Widen

"My name is Ketut Widen. I was born in Ubud, Bali in 1960, in a village of artists, particularly of woodcarvers of animal figures. I learned woodcarving when I was just a child, together with the other children in the village. Most artists in the village carve animal images. Some have even been overseas for art exhibitions, and most of them have their own studio.

"I am inspired to transform the animal world into wooden art that looks like reality. In Bali we have pets and other animals bred by farmers, like cows and roosters. I work together with my brother, who is also a woodcarver, and with five other carvers. We have completed hundreds of woodcarvings collected by national and international art lovers.

"Woodcarving is one of the most important art works in Bali. There are so many kinds of art in Bali. However, woodcarving is my art. We work mostly on suar and ebony wood."