An exhibition aims to fuse the surging streams of art and science, showcasing works of art that represent scientific curiosity and artistic imagination by means of robotic play.

The '€œArbotics'€ exhibition, held at Dia.lo.gue Artspace in Kemang, South Jakarta until May 30, presents the work of five groups artists '€” Doni & Hafez, HONF, Indieguerillas, ThedeoMIXBLOOD and XXLABS '€” all based in Yogyakarta.

'€œArbotics'€ is part of the annual art and science program of Surya University'€™s Center for Art and Community Management (Arcolabs).

Jeong-ok Jeon, the exhibition'€™s head curator, said the participating artists examined imaginative stories and mysterious fantasies inherent to Indonesian culture and then work to represent them in the form of kinetic, interactive and robotic art installations.

'€œBy bridging art and science, we'€™d like to offer a new approach in interdisciplinary studies in discovering a new language and a new paradigm in art,'€ said Jeon, who is also the director of Arcolabs.

In her curatorial notes to the exhibition, Jeon said the exhibition covered three themes: life, future and alchemy.

'€œArt is connected to us and moves us. There is an emotional connection and interaction between art work and human being. The artists here pay attention to the deeper meaning of life on the philosophical level, with the science-driven and technology-aided works of art.

'€œThese art works are interactive and represent machines that are not only mere instruments but also as means of life and personality expression,'€ Jeon said.

In the marriage between contemporary art and cutting-edge media, she said the artists explore the relationship between humans and their future.

Adicarita: Adicarita installation by Doni & Hafez. (Courtesy of Arcolabs)
'€œAlso, the art works pay homage to the alchemists of the old days. These artists are combining and transforming everyday objects into fresh ideas and magical objects in the style of the medieval mysterious laboratory,'€ Jeon said.

Jeon said the selection of all-Yogyakarta artists was half-deliberate.

'€œWe were looking for artists who were already creating work on kinetic objects or those who are interested in learning and developing in new areas.

'€œWe went to Yogyakarta and found these five groups. It was deliberate in that with the same location it was logistically easier to hold workshops with them. We send the university'€™s experts on robotics and art and design to give them workshops prior to inviting them to make art,'€ Jeon said.

The Indieguerillas duo '€” Santi Ariestyowanti and Dyatmiko '€œMiko'€ Bawono '€” said they were glad to be able to participate in the project.

'€œWhen we first met Jeon, she was only offering to enroll us in workshops with Surya University. We were very interested with the robotic workshop because it was a really different area to work on,'€ Santi said.

The duo, both alumni of the Indonesian Institute of Arts (ISI) Yogyakarta, said they enjoyed the long process learning and coming up with their art installations.

'€œWhen we were doing the workshop, we were not told whether we would be invited to make artwork afterward. We really enjoy the process of doing new stuff, experimenting and trial and error,'€ Santi said.

Indieguerillas'€™ works are known as metaphors for their existence as a pair of young Javanese who live in the highly Western-influenced and globalized world.

'€œWe have always included Javanese cultural elements in our work. We had always wanted to put our wayang-inspired works into motion; we get to do that here,'€ Santi said.

The duo'€™s installation Edan Duit, Doyan Kredit (Money-crazed, Credit-loving), full of symbols satirizing consumerism, interactively responds to viewers as they get closer to scrutinize the piece.

Among the other Arbotics installations are ThedeoMIXBLOOD'€™s Invisible Line and XXLABS'€™ Facing the Future.

Invisible Line invites viewers to remotely control miniature vehicles passing through a portal guided only by sounds triggered by motion sensors while they are blindfolded. Facing the Future offers divination texts to those who step on a shrouded pedestal and look into an engineered water basin.