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Colonial roots: Visitors ponder 'Long Hanging Fruits’ by Elia Nurvista, an installation reflecting on the exploitative legacy of oil palm trees, introduced to Indonesia by the Dutch in 1848.
JP/Sylviana Hamdani
Colonial roots: Visitors ponder 'Long Hanging Fruits’ by Elia Nurvista, an installation reflecting on the exploitative legacy of oil palm trees, introduced to Indonesia by the Dutch in 1848. JP/Sylviana Hamdani
Art & Culture premium

‘Beyond Unsettled Past’: Revisiting Indonesia’s colonial legacies

The exhibition, held at in Erasmus Huis in Jakarta, reexamines colonial legacies through a distinctly Indonesian lens. Curated by historian Sadiah Boonstra and artist Sukiato Khurniawan, the show features powerful works by six artists that confront the lingering imprints of colonialism on society.

1 week ago
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Dancing in harmony: 75 Years of Indonesia-Thailand diplomacy

From the graceful Thai Blessing Dance to the vibrant Indonesian Puspa Mekar, the performance blended traditional melodies and symbolism, captivating the audience with a shared spirit of peace and unity.

1 week ago
Art & Culture premium

Diponegoro lives on, two centuries after the fact

Although the Java War started two centuries ago, the story of Diponegoro's heroism remains fresh to Indonesians today thanks to many serious scholarly works as well as the products of pop culture which advertise his trials and tribulations. The following is a non-exhaustive list of scholarly works and popular retellings of Diponegoro's life.

1 week ago

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Art & Culture

In Hong Kong, designers try out new assistant: AI fashion maven AiDA

At the Fashion X AI show in Hong Kong, attendees noticed a certain "alien" quality about the new clothes modelled on the event's narrow catwalk - and the designs were, in fact, not entirely human.

2 years ago
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New York artist turns tiny hip-hop street scenes into profitable business

But what began as a hobby has since brought him fame in the rap community and profitable sales even at Sotheby's prestigious auction house.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Five cutting-edge Indonesian NFT artists in 2022

Indonesia’s NFT scene is seeking to weather the collapse of cryptocurrency markets, as a number of artists have kept the country front and center in the medium’s global scene.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Record year for auction houses Christie’s and Sotheby’s

Auction house Christie's on Monday announced record sales of US$8.4 billion in 2022, outshining its rival Sotheby's, which also posted its best-ever result at $8 billion for the year.

2 years ago
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Dutch photographer Ted van der Hulst’s homage to an Indonesian dwarf community

A unique exhibition and book titled Aristocrat, featuring outcasts of society, radiates light on the potency of the human spirit.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Watercolors highlight Indonesia’s eclecticism

A watercolor painting exhibition at the National Gallery of Indonesia, Central Jakarta, shows the viability of this old-school medium in an art scene dominated by NFT images, digital media and video collages.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

'Constellations: Global Reflections' highlights the Balinese life philosophy

Bali’s art exhibition addresses environmental and social issues that were discussed in this year’s G20.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

French comics world torn over author accused of promoting incest

Debate raged in France Tuesday over whether a star graphic novelist should be feted at a top comics festival despite work accused of evoking paedophilia and incest.

2 years ago
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Reconnecting with earth at Leuwigoèng

Selasar Sunaryo Art Space’s "Pulang Pada Tanah" exhibition explores the experiences of eight artists in rediscovering their connection with the earth and the quintessence of life.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Japan picks 'war' as kanji character of the year

Japan chose the kanji character for war on Monday as the symbol for 2022 after a year marked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the assassination of former leader Shinzo Abe.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Twenties: 20 recommendations for museum dates in Indonesia

Here are 20 local museums and art galleries in Indonesia to go on museum dates.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Naufal Abshar new solo exhibition seeks audience interaction

Renowned for his social commentary artworks, Naufal Abshar’s new exhibition pushes the social aspect further with a focus on visitor participation.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Ancient ritual shows the kris’ lasting place in the nation’s psyche

To keep the iconic Indonesian dagger relevant today, kris experts carried out the age-old puja rahayu ningrat ceremony at Jakarta’s Bentara Budaya cultural center.

2 years ago
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Part II: Artist-activist Mumtaz Khan Chopan’s tale of fleeing Afghanistan for Indonesia

An Afghan-born Yogyakarta artist escaped death and destruction in his homeland before settling in Indonesia. Today, he uses art to help free others like him from marginalization and oppression. This is part two of a two-part story. Part one was published yesterday.

2 years ago
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Part I: Artist-activist Mumtaz Khan Chopan’s tale of fleeing Afghanistan for Indonesia

An Afghanistan-born Yogyakarta artist escaped from the death and destruction of his homeland before settling in Indonesia. Today, he uses art to free others like him from the consistent terror of marginalization.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Chronicling Indonesia through its coffee

In a new book, British journalist Mark Eveleigh recounts his caffeine-fueled travels through Indonesia and the multifaceted insights he gained along the way.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Artists Invite Artists exhibition highlights Indonesia’s rising creators

The 2madison café and gallery bring contemporary Indonesian from their art hub in South Jakarta’s hip Kemang district onto the wider world.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Chile ceramics, Colombian wisdom get UNESCO heritage status

Two social traditions from South America were honored Tuesday as UNESCO recognized the rapidly disappearing skill required to make black pottery in Chile and the ancient knowledge of Colombian Indigenous groups as intangible cultural heritage practices. 

2 years ago
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How film and TV can help the climate change battle

Fictional films and TV have immense power to shift attitudes on political issues, yet they remain little-used in debates over climate change.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

'More to offer' than war: Ukraine works on display at Madrid museum

Dozens of modern artworks removed from Kyiv to protect them from Russian strikes that have already done huge damage to Ukraine's cultural heritage will go on display at a Madrid museum on Tuesday.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Pentimento merges classical western painting with contemporary methods

Dutch artist Noella Roos exhibits an authoritative body of works painted over 10 years in Bali. Pentimento invites the audience to learn about Western painting by exploring the human form.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Animal bones, ancient Romans' snack food found in Colosseum

Other discoveries include more than 50 bronze coins from the late Roman period as well as a silver coin from around 170-171 AD to commemorate 10 years of rule of the emperor Marcus Aurelius. 

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Rethinking the past and present to reassess the future

Indonesian contemporary artists scrutinize the country's present and future through their work in the Fragmenting Today, Reshaping Tomorrow exhibition.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Art or torture? France debates banning bullfighting

Corrida in which the animal usually ends up killed by a sword thrust by a matador in shining costume, is for supporters an age-old tradition to be preserved, for critics a cruel ritual that has no place in modern society.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Will Indonesian ethnic music survive modern times?

The government, ethnic music groups and other stakeholders join in to promote Indonesian ethnic music. 

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Mexico weaves fashion policy to help indigenous communities

Clothing designers inspired by traditional Mexican motifs, embroidery and colors are exhibiting their work at a fashion fair in Mexico City promoted by the government to support marginalized indigenous communities.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Warhol nephew to auction two works by pop artist

Andy Warhol's nephew will put two works by his late pop artist uncle on the market for the first time Tuesday in New York.

2 years ago
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Exhibition marks Indonesian literary giant Chairil Anwar’s centennial

Famed Indonesian poet Chairil Anwar continues to loom large in the country’s literary scene, as seen in a centennial exhibition at South Jakarta’s Salihara Arts Center, which celebrated his life and work.

2 years ago
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Banned from education, ‘idle’ Afghan girls are married off

Under Taliban rule, teenage girls in Afghanistan are banned from schools, prompting parents to marry them off to much older men.

2 years ago
Art & Culture

Activists try to glue themselves to Munch’s ‘Stream’

Climate activists tried to glue themselves to Edvard Munch's masterpiece The Scream in Oslo on Friday to protest against Norway's oil industry, but guards intervened and the artwork was undamaged, police said.

2 years ago