Abstract

The exploration of female artists’ engagement with esoteric symbols concerning spirituality and socio-cultural critique is a subject of unique perspective and intrigue. This article aims to address the deficiencies in prior research that overlooked the interpretations of religious themes in art, from a female standpoint. It further seeks to elucidate the interpretation of religious concepts within contemporary Indonesia through the unique lens of female artist Arahmaiani. The data is obtained from online sources, especially the collection of Arahmaiani’s works entitled Shadow of the Past and other works. The data collection method employed netnography to investigate pertinent online content. The gathered data is analyzed through the philosophy of religion, focusing on social hermeneutics to uncover spiritual values in esoteric art. Findings indicate that esoteric values manifest through three elements: the employment of religious symbols, their role as social critique, and the interplay of exoticism within religious contexts. This study contributes by broadening the discourse to encompass female artists’ perspectives, analyzing beauty alongside spirituality and esotericism. Consequently, it lays the groundwork for future critical investigations into other esoteric artworks.