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Jakarta’s first international photo festival showcases identity
People walked in rows of three while holding some of the best works of Indonesia’s street photographers along Jl
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span>People walked in rows of three while holding some of the best works of Indonesia’s street photographers along Jl. MH Thamrin in Central Jakarta during Car Free Day on Sunday, kicking off the city’s first international photo festival.
The capital is hosting the 2019 Jakarta International Photo Festival (JIP Fest), featuring more than 80 photographers from the host country Indonesia, Netherlands, India, Brazil, Poland, Germany with the Pannafoto Institute as the event’s sole organizer.
International organizations such as World Press Photo and the Magnum Foundation have also contributed to the festival by providing photographs to exhibit.
Program director Ng Swan Ti told The Jakarta Post that the festival was the realization of a dream she had shared with friends, which was to educate people about photography.
“As a result, the committee and volunteers of the event comprise people from various backgrounds, such as theater students and office workers,” Ng said.
Carrying the theme “Identity”, the festival curated photographic works from around the world. The theme was chosen as it was considered to be especially relevant to Indonesia as one of the most diverse countries in the world.
Ng explained that identity should not be reduced to just race and culture.
“Indonesian wildlife is also part of Indonesia’s identity,” she said.
With an opening solo exhibition, Riza Marlon, an Indonesian pioneer in wildlife photography, showcased one of his projects entitled “Wallace’s Living Legacy: True Indonesian Wildlife” at the French Institute in Indonesia (IFI).
In his opening speech, Riza explained that his project aimed to inform people about the existence of exotic animals indigenous to the Wallace region of Indonesia. He referred to British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace, who drew the Wallace Line in 1859, a faunal boundary line that runs between Borneo and Sulawesi and through the Lombok Strait between Bali and Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara.
With various programs from photo exhibitions to portfolio reviews, Ng expressed hope that the festival could benefit people from various backgrounds. By holding photo exhibitions, the festival provides a space for professional photographers to showcase their works to the public, while educating people about photography.
Portfolio reviews by photography curators from all around the globe also allows photographers to improve their work.
Sasa Kralj, founder of Živi Atelje DK. Zagreb and portfolio reviewer of JIP Fest 2019, also expressed his excitement about the event. Kralj said it was fascinating to see photographers from around the globe, with their different styles and genres, gathered in an international event.
Having seen numerous photography portfolios that had been submitted since February, Kralj said he was amazed and felt empowered by the works of Indonesian photographers.
“Documentary photographers in Indonesia have improved exponentially,” he told the Post. With a photography community such as this, Kralj said Indonesia could teach the world about photography.
The program will run from June 25 to July 9 in various parts of Jakarta, as part of the capital’s anniversary celebrations.
— The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post
