Gunny sacks, trash displayed in effort to 'cleanse' Earth<\/p>\n
By Sori Siregar<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Earth cleansing activities held in several towns
\nthroughout April coincided with the commemoration of Earth Day on
\nApril 22. The organizers said the earth cleansing activities,
\ncalled Ruwatan Bumi, referred to rituals and prayers to ward off
\nmisfortune as well as an alms-giving to the earth.<\/p>\n
But the activities were not limited to religious services. It
\nwas opened to any sort of program, including greening house
\nyards, giving free medicine to poor families, painting
\nexhibitions, dialogs, music and theater performances and poetry
\nreading.<\/p>\n
At Lontar Gallery, Jl. Utan Kayu in East Jakarta, an
\nimpressive display presented 16 gunny sack sketches, seven
\ninstallations and 12 photographs from April 26 to April 30.<\/p>\n
An installation by Tita Sathorie called Missing & Silent
\ndepicted a grave made of layers of red bricks laid out on the
\nfloor. It was covered with a white cloth where photos of several
\nmissing children and two adults were shown.<\/p>\n
The two adults are Andi Arief and Haryanto Taslam (both have
\nnow been found after missing for quite a long time). What made
\nthe installation more horrifying was that more than 100 "fetuses"
\nwere hanging over the grave in plastic bags filled with water.<\/p>\n
Her great concern for human life and the appalling lack of
\nrespect for it was deeply felt through this installation.<\/p>\n
Other installations mostly related to trash. Nina Y. Mansur
\ntidily wrapped her detergent bottles, soft drink cans and other
\nwaste with a piece of transparent plastic, so that it looked like
\na gift placed on a child-size plastic chair.<\/p>\n
A gift for whom? Her answer was: You.<\/p>\n
Another interesting trash heap on the floor was made by Agus
\nHartono and Iwan Gendut. They made a frame out of red paper
\naround a trash heap, indicating trash should only be thrown
\nwithin the frame. An apt response was made by a cleaner in the
\ngallery who piled waste paper within the frame as he passed
\nthrough.<\/p>\n
One of the installations, gunny sacks, was created by Yudiana
\nAtmaja. She cut the sacks into T-forms, then made a hole in the
\nmiddle. The hole was then filled with a red and white flag.
\nDozens of leaves were glued to the T-form installations.<\/p>\n
A written appeal accompanying the sacks urged us not to let
\nthe leaves -- representing the young generation -- "fall" because
\nof no availability of milk or rice and because of other pricey
\nbasic needs.<\/p>\n
Selected photographs included ones by Rama Surya and Erik
\nPrasetya. The Kalimantan forest fires, and suffering brought
\nabout by the drought, were among the subjects.<\/p>\n
A "Plastic Globe" held by man symbolized hopes for a better
\nearth and improved life.<\/p>\n
Earth cleansing, the organizers wrote, aims to resist all the
\nmisfortunes we are now shouldering. The activities were an effort
\nto recover social cohesion, to enable the opening of individual
\nand collective creative energy.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gunny-sacks-trash-displayed-in-effort-to-cleanse-earth-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}