TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Archives exhibition showcases works of versatile Batak poet Sitor Situmorang
The exhibition to honor the centenary of the prominent Batak journalist and writer aims to capture Sitor Situmorang’s insights and pass them down to the next generation.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Centenary celebration: Visitors attend the opening of Sitor Situmorang's archival exhibition at the HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center in Taman Ismail Marzuki complex, Jakarta on Oct. 2, 2024. The event is being held to commemorate the poet's 100th anniversary until Nov. 2. (JP/Nur Janti)
A
portrait of prominent Batak writer Sitor Situmorang hangs in the middle of the HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center gallery, located within the Taman Ismail Marzuki complex in Central Jakarta, during an archival exhibition that runs for a month.
Behind the portrait, dozens of book covers of Sitor's literary works are lined up, including a collection of poems entitled Wajah Tak Bernama (Unnamed Face), first published in 1955.
The exhibition, titled after the book, runs from Oct. 2 to Nov. 2, to celebrate 100 years of Sitor, a journalist, politician and writer born in Harianboho, Samosir, North Sumatra, on Oct. 2, 1924.
"The title of this exhibition, ‘Unnamed Face’, invites us to see Sitor beyond his identity as an author," historian JJ Rizal, who curated the archives, said in his introduction, which is displayed in the gallery.
A detailed timeline of Sitor's life is displayed on a wall, alongside photos and his published works, showcasing the transformation of his creations over the years.
Another section of the exhibition displays literary critiques of Sitor's works from various media outlets and his articles published in newspapers.
The archives displayed during the exhibitions have been gleaned from collections of the HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center and the Sitor Situmorang Foundation.
