رادين صالح (Jawi) | Raden Saleh Sjarif Boestaman (Born into a noble Javanese family; Grandson of Terboyo Sayyid Alwi bin Alwi bin Ahmad bin Yahya)(c. 1811–1880) is widely considered the pioneer of modern Indonesian art. He was the first Indonesian artist to be trained in Europe, where he mastered the techniques of Western painting and successfully blended them with the cultural narratives of his homeland. His work is a hallmark of the Romanticism movement, characterized by dramatic emotion, dynamic movement, and the sublime power of nature.

Born into an aristocratic Arab-Javanese family, his artistic journey began under the tutelage of Belgian painter Antoine Payen. Recognizing his extraordinary talent, the Dutch colonial government sent him to the Netherlands in 1829. There, he studied under masters like Cornelis Kruseman and Andreas Schelfhout. He spent over 20 years in Europe, traveling to Paris, Dresden, and Gotha, where he became a celebrated figure in royal courts and was deeply influenced by the emotional intensity of Eugène Delacroix.

Saleh is most famous for his large-scale paintings of dramatic animal hunts and wild landscapes, such as Deer Hunt (1846). However, his most politically significant masterpiece is The Arrest of Pangeran Diponegoro (1857). This history painting was a direct response to a version by Dutch artist Nicolaas Pieneman; Saleh’s version is seen as a subtle act of resistance, depicting the Javanese leader with dignity and defiance rather than submission.

After returning to Java in 1852, he served as a conservator for the colonial government’s art collection and continued to paint portraits of local nobility. His legacy as the “father of modern Indonesian painting” remains undisputed, as he proved that an artist from the colonies could not only master but also innovate within the highest traditions of European art.

Active in others filds : Architecture (designed his own neo-Gothic mansion in Cikini), Archaeology, Paleontology (collected fossils in Central Java).