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Lives of the living statues of ‘Kota Tua’
Strike a pose: Visitors pose with a human statue of Indonesia’s independence hero General Soedirman in the Kota Tua historical area, West Jakarta, on Monday
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span class="inline inline-center">Strike a pose: Visitors pose with a human statue of Indonesia’s independence hero General Soedirman in the Kota Tua historical area, West Jakarta, on Monday. The many street artists posing as statues of well-known Indonesian figures have become one of the attractions of the area.(JP/Sha)
The scorching sun beating down on Jakarta was unable to budge Idris from his stock-still pose.
Costumed as a statue of Sutomo aka Bung Tomo, a national hero, 40-year-old Idris sat stationery on a bicycle in the historical Kota Tua area of West Jakarta on Monday, while people took turns taking pictures with him.
Idris is one of a host of living statues, also known as “stone men”, in Kota Tua, playing a part in drawing visitors to the area.
Being a street artist in the area has been his main job for more than four years, since an alternative-medicine clinic he worked for went out of business in 2012.
“I can earn money here if I am able to serve as an attractive photo object, as I often see so many people take photos,” he said.
He said that he really enjoyed his profession as a street artist.
“I do love this job because I can entertain visitors here. When I can stand up still under the glaring sun, they give a thumbs-up and say that I’m great,” he said.
He revealed that he could pocket Rp 200,000 (US$15.26) per day on weekdays, while on holidays he could earn about Rp 500,000.
“It depends on visitors numbers. I don’t charge a specific fee [to take a photo with me],” he said.
During the Idul Fitri holiday, Kota Tua management recorded that up to 13,000 people visited the area a day, a three-fold increase from last year’s holiday.
“At first, I tried a lot of different characters, but on August 17, 2012, I found the right character for me: Bung Tomo. I have never changed my character since that point,” he said.
He claimed that he could keep standing for four hours non-stop when he was in prime condition.
“I consume honey everyday and think positively to keep me healthy,” he said, adding that he worked from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the afternoon on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays.
Fellow street artist Doyok, meanwhile, was imitating a statue of independence hero General Sudirman.
A native of Rangkasbitung, Banten, Doyok said that performing as a statue of a national hero could earn him between Rp 200,000 and Rp 400,000 a day.
He said that the income was enough to meet his family’s needs.
To maintain his health, he takes a break every half an hour, he explained.
One of the visitors, Zida Malinda, 16, who rushed to have her picture taken with Doyok, said that she had come to Kota Tua specifically to see and take photos with the “stone men”.
“This is my first time coming here out of curiosity to see [the living statues] after seeing them on TV,” she said.
Besides Idris and Doyok, other street artists costume themselves as other heroes, including legendary figure Fatahillah, who gives his name to Kota Tua’s main square and Jakarta history museum that stands on it, and Princess Ong Tien, the wife of Sunan Gunung Jati, one of the nine Wali Songo (Islamic saints) who spread Islam throughout Java in the 15th century. (Sha)
