Most of you readers might ask: What does this headline mean? Is Jakarta getting a fancy, full-blown renovation? Are we getting a new mega-sized mall? Does it have anything to do with Jakarta’s 483rd anniversary? Actually, Dynamic Jakarta has nothing to do with building new sites; nor does it have anything to do with celebrating the city’s recent birthday.
Far from it, actually. It’s a project started by a handful of students from the British International School of Jakarta. Students from year 12 and year 13 worked together to produce a poster depicting the scene in Jakarta today in a cartoon-like, multicolored style.
The name was chosen because Jakarta’s name was once spelled using ‘Dj’ – Djakarta in olden days. ‘Dynamic’, according to the students, is a good word as Jakarta is lively in the poster. “It’s dynamic, modern and fast moving,” one student said .
Year 13 students came up with the design. They are the oldest in the student body who have just graduated this year. They worked on the design so that each student sketched out one section of the poster. The sections were combined to create the final design, which was then refined by Zarki. The original design goes way back to the 1980s. The Java St. Andrews Society however proposed the idea to update the old design, which has now been completely renamed and updated in the new Dynamic Jakarta poster.
Only five people are still around from the graduating class to work on the poster: Natasha Adhihusada, Tatiana Djaya Putri, Karolina Leo, Ayley Wilson, and Kennie Angesty. However, once they get through their exams, the other classes will, hopefully, take over the project.
Their idea came out of a CAS project — Creativity, Action, and Service — which gives to the community beyond the British International School. Another project was the Kampung School, in which students taught English to children living in a kampong. Volunteers worked on the poster design during their CAS hours, once a fortnight every Wednesday, for about an hour. They also worked on the poster in their spare time.
“It was challenging but a good experience,” Tatiana said. “It’s a good opportunity to give something to the community.”
The project went beyond just redesigning a nice poster. Students then raised funds with them. You’re probably thinking, what’s the point of producing posters? Since in Jakarta it is hard to access medical care, the Dynamic Jakarta project is not only providing some lively art, but all donations to the project also go to a medical care scheme.
The poster can serve as a souvenir for expatriates. “That way they can remind themselves that this is Jakarta.” Instead of selling the poster, the students decided that, with a minimum donation of Rp 50,000, people could have one free. This means that those willing to contribute more can get the poster for more than the minimum. They’re also going to have other spin-off items, such as mugs, but for now they are concentrating on the poster.
The poster is currently available at the school shop and the British Women’s Association House. The students participating plan to put them in other schools as well as in the BWA Bazaar. Their next plan is to launch the poster sometime in September with the Mandarin Oriental Hotel as a sponsor. Additional sponsors include CC Amatil Indonesia, Bluebird Group and Allied Pickfords.
“It’s a very positive thing for Jakarta. We want to show that Jakarta is a nice place,” said Tatiana.
Patricia Amanda Kowara
Mandy is in her eleventh year, at the British International School Jakarta.
She completed a one-week internship at youthspeak.
