Table of Contents
Curatorial Introduction | Artwork Description & Artists’ Biography | Documentations
Exhibition & Public Discussion
BODY JOURNEY
Joseph Beuys’ 100-year Body Journey workshop presentation with 11 interdisciplinary participants.
- Opening: Sunday, December 5, 2021 | 7 PM
- Exhibition: 7-11 December 2021 | 10 AM – 5 PM
- Final presentation discussion: 11 December 2021 | 3 – 5 PM with Arahmaiani, Mella Jaarsma, und Wimo Ambala Bayang
- Participants:
- Exhibition Curator: Iwan Wijono
Curatorial Introduction
The “New Normal”—the safety measures of the pandemic—carries a message from the universe to humankind to be “more mindful” in understanding the context of self as part of society and nature. This includes spiritual cleansing, understanding life that is happening around us, and interpreting the post pandemic world. Most people want to return to pre-pandemic “normal” conditions immediately when it is over. Meanwhile, life is run with an exploitative market-mechanistic system, transactional relationships between humans that are destructive to nature, and disharmony with the universe.
Joseph Beuys said that everyone is an artist. Similarly, in classical Nusantara society art is ritual and essential to spiritual-cultural society. Beuys’ art is entwined in the socio-political life of society and environment, even in a supernatural sense. In the post-pandemic art-making process, a new consciousness is necessary to go beyond the physical body, to see the phenomenon of pure life in generating creative contextual ideas (Beuys’ anthroposophy is connected to ancient Asian culture through Rudolf Steiner).
The Body Journey workshop included 11 participants of various professions and backgrounds—graphic design, video/film, dance, digital art, anthropology, curation, performing arts, art management, and cross-discipline. Beauty does not lie in the nature of physical materiality. The contextuality presents the clarity of meaning and events—unified public thought and memory (data) of space and time where art is presented (online/offline) as Social Sculpture. The body of the artist is the creator, and the medium acts as a presentation in the exhibition room. Meanwhile, the media and techniques are not the artistic goals—they are presented as the extension of body and as the language of expression.
Iwan Wijono
Curator
*This exhibition is part of the celebration of 100 Years Beuys. Body Journey was initiated by Goethe-Institut Indonesien and co-managed with Cemeti-Institute for Art and Society.
Artwork Description and Artists’ Biography
it’s not over till it’s over
Candrani Yulis
2021
Installation; masks, soil, plants
In the past year, the government has recommended us to wear disposable medical masks as protection during COVID-19. This type of face mask has a bacterial filter and allows us to breathe properly. I followed this advice with a consideration that I should put my own safety first. On the other hand, a dilemma arises when I imagine.that for hundreds of years these masks made of polypropylene cannot be decomposed. I feel like I’m contributing to being one of the perpetrators of environmental destruction through the mask I wear. The dilemma has led me to an observation about the processing of mask waste in a laboratory of a state university in Yogyakarta. I came to know that the medical mask incineration process is not an easy task. In addition to the high cost of the machine to melt the masks, the handling that has been carried out so far has not been effective because it still produces pollution, and hard to be accessed by public. There are still very few people who focus on the rules for the waste of single-use masks. Only a few know that medical masks can be categorized as domestic waste because they are used by healthy people, not by patients or medical workers who provide health services. This means that the mask waste can be treated in the same way as domestic waste.
These experiences eventually gave rise to a seed of an idea for hacking information, and accessing knowledge related to the management of mask waste which has been limited to access by certain authorities. The mask upcycle is a trial version of an educational application that can be downloaded and compiled to solve the problem of mask waste independently on a domestic scale. This is an attempt to give new life by changing the shape of a mask into a seed bag, just as a mask keeps us alive. Another thing that is tested through this project is how far an individual movement or a group of people can negotiate for the right of knowledge.
About Candrayani Yulis:
Candrani Yulis graduated from the Department of Visual Communication Design at the Indonesian Arts Institute (ISI) Yogyakarta. She is actively involved in various fine arts activities, including the Seniman Terampil residency program at the Bagong Kussudiardja Arts Center, and was a finalist in the National Youth Painting Competition organized by the Indonesian Fine Arts Foundation (YSRI) in 2012 and 2013. The ones she has participated in include “Nandur Srawung, Peer to Peer”, Taman Budaya Yogyakarta (2019), “Sumonar Fest–Monument of Hope” Yogyakarta (2020), “Clothing As A Stage Of Power”, Incubator Initiative–Cemeti-Institute for Art and Society (2020), “Mantra”, Asana Bina Seni–Pre Biennale Jogja XVI Equator #6 (2021).
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Tanda Peristiwa
Dapeng Gembiras
2021
Performance art with archives, objects installations, and mural
I often travel back and forth from Malang to Yogyakarta on every weekend for the past months in the midst of pandemic, which has made me feel that the distance between my interactions with other people feels farther than the distance between cities I travel. I also chose to rest at stopping points away from the crowds. In such distance from other people, I have felt that my senses are more sensitive in seeing locations, spaces, and objects around me.
About Dapeng Gembiras:
Dapeng Gembiras is a performance artist who has been actively working since 2004. Apart from being an artist, Dapeng has managed the Idea Circuit Alternative Art Space and organized art events such as Kandang Kebo Art Festival Urban Boulevard, Romantisme Goodbye, and Tatto Lakon. Since 2010, Dapeng has been involved in organizing the annual Malang Performance Art Festival (PAMAFEST), and he is now actively involved in Gusar Daun Collective Studio, which focuses on urban spaces within the city.
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Impulsif Metafora
Deden Ardiansyah
2021
Video art and rattan-based sculpture
Perhaps we have seen the news of the “panic buying” phenomenon, or even experienced it ourselves before or during the pandemic. In general, “panic buying” occurs when a product is heavily discounted, or as often happens in this pandemic, people are fighting over products that are believed to be able to overcome the COVID-19 virus. The information provided by the media in the form of news about COVID-19 sometimes actually creates panic, which moves people to choose shortcuts to overcome them, including trusting information about the efficacy of certain products that cannot be confirmed. After observing this phenomenon with different contexts of events, I see that basically there are similarities between the patterns; it is called compulsive transaction action. Basically an item that has become a commodity can be doubled in value by the price and the myths that surround it. The “panic buyers” get the pleasure from the urge to seek and satisfaction that comes when they get it, as if there is an image of beauty when they see and touch the commodity. I tagged “panic buying” that occurs over and over again in the context of locations and events driven by a variety of different emotions, some are seen as efforts to multiply pride, for example prestige items such as works of art. There are also encouragements from fear such as products that are considered to guarantee a sense of safety from COVID-19.
Through this work, I use a satirical parody approach by playing the visual form of products that have been targeted by “panic buyers” and the visual character of works of art that I think have commodity value. By choosing a presentation strategy in the form of a photo video collage with a one-way viewing technique, I want to exchange visual characters, break down the commodity category barriers, and frame them on a single screen accessible to the audience.
About Deden Ardiansyah:
Deden Ardiansyah is a motion graphic artist and video artist who graduated from the Film and Television Study Program, Faculty of Media Arts Record, Indonesian Arts Institute (ISI) Yogyakarta.
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rekalindung
Eka Wahyuni
2021
Performance art
“Rekalindung” wants to see how rules and informations are received, internalized, and embodied by the recipient of the message. Without ignoring the principle of common safety, I explored the choreographic modalities of health protocols in adjusting the body, and the abundance of information about safety referrals (which I collected during the pandemic) that intervened in the body. This new design of information choreography embodied in the form of a health protocol framework offers an experience to review how rules and information are competing and choreographing our bodies.
About Eka Wahyuni:
Eka Wahyuni is a choreographer whose work focuses on memory archives and phenomena. She has attended residencies at the Bagong Kussudiardja Arts Center, IKKON Tanjungpinang, Flores Writers Festival, and Asian Performing Arts Camp; and participated in the Indonesian Dance Festival (Kampana 2020 and Potential Young Choreographers 2019); and Helatari Salihara 2021 who presented a project that she has initiated since 2016, “The Enchantment of Tari Gong”. Apart from producing works, she is involved in art management at LINGKARAN | choreography, Paradance, Jejak Tabi Exchange and documenTARI. She also initiated two small movements, Portaleka (Yogyakarta) and Tepian Collective (Berau), which focuses on performing arts and archiving.
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What Should We Do, Then?
Faida Rachma
2021
Outfit installation with pins and barcodes
A typical phenomenon that occurs during the COVID-19 pandemic, unlike in previous pandemics, is the production and consumption of information that takes place in a matter of seconds. This includes recommendations for prevention, various ways to be cured, the most updated information about health care facilities, and so on.
Then, the information that can be accessed by the public is assembled in such a way as to be a form of protection that is believed to be able to protect human from the virus. This tug of war between fate and belief in the human body is presented through the work “What Should We Do, Then?”
About Faida Rachma:
Faida Rachma is a graphic designer who has an interest in the practice of consuming content on the internet and archiving digital footprints. Currently, Faida is working on a personal project entitled Day to Day Codegram, where she curates and archives digital content that is consumed every day. This practice is related to the idea of “datacracy” as a possible future socio-political governance.
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Mahmud
Ignatius Suluh
2021
Performance art with game
What if a habit that takes place in everyday spaces is moved into a presentation room (e.g. a gallery)? Through this work I have completed the performance of playing games during the exhibition to examine the experiences that arise when habits in everyday spaces move into the gallery. With such a move, I also intended to test how the body responds to things beyond its control, such as an unstable internet, a new space, through negotiating with other people who share space, or other surprising details throughout the performance. The expressions or facial expressions of the video gamers that are rarely watched are now shown through the screen as the main spectacle.
About Ignatius Suluh:
Ignatius Suluh is an artist with an interest in contemporary art and curatorial works. He is currently pursuing a zine project as well as working as a freelance graphic designer. Previously, Ignatius has also curated Bram Christian’s solo exhibition “Grayscale Volume 1: These Kinds of Local Bands that I be Very Fond of” at C2O Library and Collabtive, Surabaya (2017); involved in the Gudskul collective study, Jakarta (2018); volunteered at Biennale Jogja 15 (2019); and as part of the Indisczinepartij collective, he was involved in a program “Asana Bina Seni: Your Connection was Interrupted” Taman Budaya Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta (2020). Ignatius is a member of the Indisczinepartij collective and the EDISI performance group.
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Suatu Hari di Kaki Merapi
Lutfi Retno Wahyudyanti
2021
Mural and photography archive
Since last year, I have lived in Argomulyo village which is 12 kilometers from the peak of Mount Merapi. I often share pictures of rice fields, mountains, and rivers around me through Instagram posts and WhatsApp stories. These posts often invite various comments from my colleagues who are stuck living in the city to earn a living. The amount of news in the media and social media about the romance of living in a village makes city dwellers often assume that living in a village is peaceful, close to nature, and fun.
Living in the village as a settler, made me a part of the village as well as created a gap between me and the natives. The distance from the village to Jakarta—where I previously lived—also made me gain new things and at the same time lose a lot of access to facilities and opportunities. I saw that the people in the village would not starve because they shared and took care of each other. On the other hand, the velocity of money in this place is limited. People have to work hard to earn a small amount of money. For the villagers who are mostly farmers, hard work is a fate they have to live with. In fact, they are also aware that electricity bills, motorcycle loans, building a house, and many other things that offer convenience must be paid with money. This makes them try to send their children to school. Farmers often borrow money from banks with collateral such as land certificates or proof of vehicle ownership. They call this activity “schooling” because it is not uncommon for the certificate to be deposited to pay for their children’s school tuitions. In the future their children are expected to be able to work outside the farm or in the office like the city people who now see the village as a dream place to live.
About Lutfi Retno Wahyudyanti:
Lutfi Retno Wahyudyanti is a graduate of the Masters in Anthropology at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) Yogyakarta who works as a writer and video maker focusing on environmental, cultural, and educational issues. Prior to the pandemic, she often traveled to various regions in Indonesia to write articles, books, and create various audio-visual works, one of which was when she directed a documentary for a broadcast program of a private television station in 2017-2019. Lutfi Retno currently resides at the foot of Mount Merapi to raise dozens of rabbits.
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Marhobas
Maria C. Silalahi
2021
Performance art with kitchenware
Domestic objects tell stories that are close to the daily life of a household. In certain highly patriarchal societies, these stories are more attached to women in terms of highlighting domestic injustice. In a way of playing the composition of domestic objects on the white walls of the Cemeti Gallery, I tried to deconstruct the meaning, change the shape of the story, as well as damage the public perception of these objects. I propose to raise a new narrative about household appliances by communicating my body, thoughts, and reflections to the objects, while borrowing the context of the Batak indigenous people in terms of banquets by saying declarative speeches.
About Maria C. Silalahi:
Maria Silalahi is an artist and filmmaker based in Yogyakarta. Her practice focuses on deconstructive efforts towards the establishment of systems and values that work in everyday human social and cultural spheres, emphasizing criticism of social institutions, local narratives (and their correlation with ambivalence between domestic and public issues), fragmented mini histories and body deformations, through lyrical and skeptical threads. While she is developing her creative process, Maria usually gets involved in several community empowerment projects and management of alternative media.
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Manusia Silver; Sebuah Pengantar
Nisa Ramadani
2021
Event-based art; situation art
This work came when I observed the increasing phenomenon of “silver men” in various cities in Indonesia, such as in Jakarta, Bandung, Surabaya, and Yogyakarta during the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence of “silver men” can be seen as a survival strategy for those who are in a gray area, pros and cons, a dilemma. When we talk about the issue of silver men, it cannot be separated from the complexity of the social, political, economic, cultural, and health aspects that surround it. By placing the silver men as an artist who realizes his body as both a performance space and a display space, this work has tried to expand the dialogue to find a sharper observation from the discussion in the open meeting room, where the silver men have spoken for themselves. There, artists and the public have also participated in a conversation and mutual response to jointly map out a common interpretation of the silver men phenomenon.
About Nisa Ramadani:
Nisa Ramadani is an actor, dancer, performer, and writer who completed her Psychology studies at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) Yogyakarta. She was involved as an actor in several performances, including “Kekwa! Alami Mimpimu” (2015), “What Makes You Who You Are?” by Caglar Kimyoncu (British Council & Bagong Kussudiardja Arts Center, 2017), “Mautopia” (Indonesia Dramatic Reading Festival, 2019), “Jalan Keluar” (Potluck Teater, 2020), and as a performer in Eka Wahyuni’s work for the Asian Performing Arts Farm (2021), and “Sakuntala” by Gunawan Maryanto (Teater Garasi, 2018). Not to mention, several of her writings have been published in an anthology of essays by Radio Buku and Indonesian Visual Art Archive.
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Nguping
Pinka Oktafia
2021
Video performance
Prior to the pandemic, students directly experience the physical classroom along with the unwritten rules that condition the focus on studying activities. Then the pandemic situation caused students to have to adapt to the new situation of virtual classrooms. The feel in the virtual classroom becomes looser, and allows students to indulge in other activities they usually do in a boarding house or rented house, such as eating, doing other assignments, listening to music, or even watching YouTube. I also experienced the event, the feeling as if the physical space and the virtual space occupied by the body at the same time blended seamlessly. Through this video, I intend to highlight the physical experience of students from a unified physical and virtual space, by presenting sound coils of objects and sound sources that are closely tied to student life.
About Pinka Oktavia:
Pinka Oktafia is a freelancer who is currently involved in various art events in Yogyakarta. Apart from working on the managerial side, she has keen interest in curatorial work, artistic practice, and other fields of knowledge. Currently she is an intern at F.X. Harsono studio while working on her final assignment as an undergraduate student at Arts Management ISI Yogyakarta, a thesis based on curatorial in “Proyek Mustahil” from Cemeti-Institute for Art and Society. Her last project was to make a showcase together with the EDISI Project at the Cemeti-Institute for Art and Society.
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Delirian
Wildan Iltizam
2021
Video performance; performance art
Digital communication technology is growing rapidly and has become deeply embedded in every aspect of our lives. People’s perception of reality, about what is important and what is not, now depends heavily on what is on or displayed on the screen. Experiences in using these media have taken part in shaping our identities, perceptions, tastes, and behaviors in daily activities, even such as eating.
“Delirian?” is an experiment that measures the power of digital screen display visual images in influencing our perception of objects. This was tested through cooking performances, and serving warm banana fritters to the audience who were sitting there eating them while watching a video containing a series of performance arts and information collected from the internet. Banana fritters were chosen because they are easy to find and commonly enjoyed as an everyday snack. While the content of the videos displayed is deliberately selected from unusual and disturbing images. What will be discussed at the dining table is the sensation that comes from the experience of two kinds of senses working simultaneously on these two different things.
About Wildan Iltizam:
Wildan Iltizam is a performer who has lived in Yogyakarta since 2011. Self-taught in art, Wildan has developed his practice through painting, performative and participatory art, when he explores issues around the environment, human relations, gender equality, and alternatives way of life. For Wildan, art is an intermediary medium between his body and other bodies, a medium that can develop the knowledge of his life and bring him to know his own body better. The experience of recognizing the body is important to him because the disclosure of taboos on the human body is believed to be one of the first steps against the hegemony of patriarchalism and capitalism in order to find answers to the question, “What, where, and how are these free bodies?”
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Documentations
Exhibition View
Exhibition Opening
Daily Visits
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