Jakarta’s Dutch cultural center Erasmus Huis, the only such institution in the world, is celebrating its 45th anniversary of establishment this year.

In the historic Kota Tua area in West Jakarta on Sunday afternoon, a flash mob suddenly invaded Fatahillah Square, stealing the attention of visitors and costumed characters.

The 140 participants danced enthusiastically to upbeat music, wowing the audience and attracting statue-like performers imitating independence fighters to move and join the crowd.

After 10 minutes of dancing, the participants took off their shirts and jackets and threw them into the air while showing off their orange T-shirts reading “Erasmus Huis 45”.

“This is the first time we celebrate our anniversary through a flash mob. We choose it because we want more young people to participate,” said Erasmus Huis director Michael Rauner.

The participants, mostly youngsters, comprised members of the Eksotika Karmawibhangga Indonesia (EKI) dance company and staff of Erasmus Huis and the Dutch Embassy, he said, adding that they had practiced at the embassy every Friday since June.

Rauner said that at the age of 45, Erasmus Huis was still young, and the flash mob reflected its commitment to absorb and implement the aspirations of the young generation to develop cultural understanding between the Netherlands and Indonesia, a country that is rich in ethnicities, religions and languages.

“We have to listen to the voice of young people, as they are the future of a country,” he said.

Mutual understanding, he said, was the foundation of tolerance, as had been emphasized by Desiderius Erasmus, the 15th-century Dutch philosopher in whose honor the cultural center was named.

“There are no other Erasmus Huis [cultural centers] in the world,” said Rauner.

The Dutch government, he said, established the cultural center only in Indonesia, because the two countries had a special and strong relationship with more than 350 years of shared history.

The strong ties, he said, were reflected in the many Indonesian words that originate from the Dutch language. According to European Loanwords in Indonesian, published in 1983 by the Indonesian Etymological Project, 5,400 words in Indonesian are of Dutch origin.

“You use Dutch words in Indonesian, but we don’t know each other. That’s why we [Erasmus] are here to connect us deeper,” Rauner said.

Calvin Jeremy - A Kurniawan Ulung

To that aim, Erasmus Huis has held regular exhibitions, music concerts, dance performances, seminars and film screenings at its headquarters on Jl. HR Rasuna Said in Kuningan, South Jakarta, since Prince Bernhard first opened it in 1970. Before 1981, it was located at Jl. Menteng Raya No. 25 in Central Jakarta.

Over the last 10 years, the center has welcomed approximately 360,000 visitors and enrolled 16,000 students in Dutch language courses, in addition to hosting some 40 discussions, 80 exhibitions and 100 concerts.

Despite different cultures, says Rauner, the two countries have much in common, such as a high level of curiosity and friendliness, as foreign tourists find out soon after they arrive.

Therefore, Rauner never gets tired of luring more Dutch artists to Indonesia and helping Indonesian artists go to the Netherlands, in the expectation that they could understand and learn from each other.

For example, Erasmus Huis facilitated efforts by young singer Calvin Jeremy to collaborate with Dutch pop star Wouter Hamel and then took him to the Netherlands in August 2014 to create a video clip for his single, Ada Untukmu (Be There for You).

“Erasmus has played an important role in my music career,” said Calvin.

Rauner said that like the Netherlands, Indonesia was home to talented artists, such as curators Eddy Soetriyono and Efix Mulyadi, who amazed him with their watercolor exhibition LovE@rth, held at the National Gallery in Central Jakarta from Sept. 3 to 14.

“We hope more Indonesian artists go to the Netherlands and vice versa, not only to show their talents, but also to collaborate,” he said.

From October to December, at least four writers and five artists from the Netherlands will come to Indonesia, such as curator and lecturer Roel Arkesteijn, who will hold a lecture on social engagement in art on Nov. 7, and singer Berget Lewis, who will perform on Dec. 5.

Erasmus Huis director Michael Rauner (left to right ) speaks while young singer Calvin Jeremy, vice director Emma Kay and moderator Chorie Arland look on during a discussion on the cultural center’s upcoming events.(A Kurniawan Ulung)

Rauner has tied cooperation with music schools and universities, such as the Jakarta Arts Institute (IKJ), the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), and the Indonesian Arts Institute (ISI) of Yogyakarta, since he started to lead Erasmus in September.

Before leading Erasmus Huis, Rauner served as deputy chief of protocol at the Dutch Foreign Ministry for three years. He became interested in working in Indonesia after working with Indonesia’s former ambassador to the Netherlands, Retno L.P. Marsudi, now Indonesia’s foreign minister.

He was amazed with the performance of Retno’s team in handling the tragedy of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, which had claimed the lives of 283 passengers, including 12 Indonesians, when the plane crashed in Ukraine in a suspected missile attack on July 17, 2014.

“There are more than 150 Dutch ambassadors in the world, but there is only one director of Erasmus Huis and that is in Indonesia. It is a good and nice position. That is another reason I came,” said Rauner, who has worked at the ministry for 13 years.

He said that working as Erasmus Huis director was challenging, because arts and culture related to feelings, while in protocol, his tasks were formal and technical.

For 45 years, Erasmus Huis has fostered Indonesian-Dutch relations, and Rauner pledged to deepen that connection in upcoming years through cultural programs focused on the young generation.

“The Netherlands is famous for modern dances, but we never show them here. We will introduce them soon. We hope people will be more curious with what we will do in the future,” he said.

Jakarta'€™s Dutch cultural center Erasmus Huis, the only such institution in the world, is celebrating its 45th anniversary of establishment this year.

In the historic Kota Tua area in West Jakarta on Sunday afternoon, a flash mob suddenly invaded Fatahillah Square, stealing the attention of visitors and costumed characters.

The 140 participants danced enthusiastically to upbeat music, wowing the audience and attracting statue-like performers imitating independence fighters to move and join the crowd.

After 10 minutes of dancing, the participants took off their shirts and jackets and threw them into the air while showing off their orange T-shirts reading '€œErasmus Huis 45'€.

'€œThis is the first time we celebrate our anniversary through a flash mob. We choose it because we want more young people to participate,'€ said Erasmus Huis director Michael Rauner.

The participants, mostly youngsters, comprised members of the Eksotika Karmawibhangga Indonesia (EKI) dance company and staff of Erasmus Huis and the Dutch Embassy, he said, adding that they had practiced at the embassy every Friday since June.

Rauner said that at the age of 45, Erasmus Huis was still young, and the flash mob reflected its commitment to absorb and implement the aspirations of the young generation to develop cultural understanding between the Netherlands and Indonesia, a country that is rich in ethnicities, religions and languages.

'€œWe have to listen to the voice of young people, as they are the future of a country,'€ he said.

Mutual understanding, he said, was the foundation of tolerance, as had been emphasized by Desiderius Erasmus, the 15th-century Dutch philosopher in whose honor the cultural center was named.

'€œThere are no other Erasmus Huis [cultural centers] in the world,'€ said Rauner.

The Dutch government, he said, established the cultural center only in Indonesia, because the two countries had a special and strong relationship with more than 350 years of shared history.

The strong ties, he said, were reflected in the many Indonesian words that originate from the Dutch language. According to European Loanwords in Indonesian, published in 1983 by the Indonesian Etymological Project, 5,400 words in Indonesian are of Dutch origin.

'€œYou use Dutch words in Indonesian, but we don'€™t know each other. That'€™s why we [Erasmus] are here to connect us deeper,'€ Rauner said.