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'The street is a blank canvas': Street artists brighten up local communities in Jakarta
"The street is a blank 'canvas' on which anyone can freely inscribe meaning. However, freedom is not without cost - there is an ongoing negotiation or even confrontation in the public space. Laymen and artists can create visual objects on the streets, but the government can erase them while corporations relentlessly pursue advertising space," wrote Andang Kelana, the director of Visual Jalanan, on his website andangkelana.com.
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Residents take photos with a mural in the Kendal tunnel in Dukuh Atas, Central Jakarta, as the background on Dec. 12, 2019. (JP/P.J. Leo)
N
estled under a busy road in Central Jakarta, giant and vibrant murals greet passersby at the Kendal tunnel near the Dukuh Atas MRT station.
Anyone walking through the tunnel can enjoy a mural painting of a black and white “squid” monster figure with bulging eyes and teeth-like tentacles alongside an orange-blue majestic roaring lion on the walls.
Created in July 2019 and initiated by the Jakarta administration, the mural was created by a Indonesian street artist who goes by the nickname Darbotz and Snyder, a German street to represent the 25 years of friendship between sister cities Berlin and Jakarta.
The 39-square-meter wall at the tunnel is also painted with other murals that pay homage to old-school public transportation services in Jakarta, such as the three-wheeler bajaj (motorized pedicab) and the medium-sized Metro Mini bus, the popularity of which has started to diminish.
The exuberant murals and the special space to showcase show that authorities and business players have started to embrace and hire street artists professionally, as the art form grows in popularity.
Starting his mural-painting illegally on the street, Darbotz is considered one of the most successful street artists in the country, having been involved in commercial partnerships with global brands such as DC shoes in 2017 and G-shock, a line of watches produced by Japanese watchmaker, Casio.
Street art has come along way with respect to its previous association with vandalism.
