Yogyakarta Festival's art market gets attention<\/p>\n
Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
When the Yogyakarta Arts Festival's art market first opened 14-
\nyears ago, only 20 participants joined in and few visitors came
\nto look at the offered products in the then week-long event held
\nin the front yard of the city's Vredeburg Museum.<\/p>\n
This year, however, more than 250 participants are taking part
\nin the month-long art market. The organizer even had to turn down
\nabout 30 proposals due to limited space or because the products
\nto be sold were not handmade handicraft items as required.<\/p>\n
\"We have considered that such restrictions were necessary
\notherwise the art market would be just like other ordinary
\nmarkets,\" said Andree Suryaman, chairman of the art market
\ndivision of the 2002 Yogyakarta Arts Festival (FKY).<\/p>\n
According to Andree, who had been in charge of the FKY's art
\nmarket since 1999 and taken part as a participant since it was
\nfirst launched, not only Yogyakartan artists and handmade crafts
\nproducers participated in the arts market. In fact, 40 percent of
\nthem came from outside the province, including from West Java,
\nCentral Java, East Java, Jakarta, and even West Nusa Tenggara.<\/p>\n
\"Through the art market, we want to create a place where both
\nproducers and buyers can meet. Hopefully, it will play as a place
\nto introduce new products, where prospective buyers can look for
\nmore competitive and innovative merchandise,\" said Andree, who
\nowns a handicraft production house himself.<\/p>\n
Some 4,000 visitors, according to Andree, visited the art
\nmarket everyday, making it an effective place for promotion. Last
\nyear, for example, the organizing committee recorded total sales
\nworth Rp 800 million during the month-long event, excluding a
\nnumber of orders made during the event.<\/p>\n
And it seems like the organizing committee has made their
\npoint clear to the traders. The traders understand that joining
\nthe art market is part of the promotion activity.<\/p>\n
\"Sometimes a day even passes without any single visitor buying
\nour product. But we have made a total sale of up to Rp 3 million
\na day so far,\" said Tawondas' who sells various handicrafts made
\nout of seashells from Situbondo, East Java.<\/p>\n
Hendra Sucipto of Api Fauna Centra of Garut, West Java, once
\nmade a total sale of Rp 2 million in one day thanks to a Dutch
\nbuyer who bought samples of his products, which included various
\nkinds of accessories like ties, brooches, hair clips, earrings
\nand wall decorations made of bird's fur.<\/p>\n
\"We have also received orders from Malaysian, Australian, and
\nJapanese buyers,\" said Hendra, who has been taking part in the
\nevent for several years.<\/p>\n
The organizing committee itself, Andree said, did not charge
\nanything for any sales or orders made during the art market,
\nwhich opened June 7 and will close this Sunday. The traders are
\nonly required to pay between Rp 500,000 and Rp 750,000 to rent
\nspace of around nine-square meters each.<\/p>\n
And so far, the art market is the only event in the festival
\nwhich can contribute some Rp 25 million to the low-budget
\nfestival's organizing committee.<\/p>\n
And the festival's deputy chairman Mahyar planned to make the
\nart festival a permanent one, like Bali's Sukawati arts market or
\nJakarta's Ancol art market.<\/p>\n
\"In this case, the festival's annual art market becomes the
\nplace to select traders wanting to join the permanent art
\nmarket,\" said Mahyar, who was chairman of the festival's art
\nmarket division from 1995 to 1998.<\/p>\n
By selecting traders through the festival's art market, every
\nyear the permanent art market would have new kinds of crafts, he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Actually, the Yogyakarta Art Festival's art market was not the
\nfirst of its kind. In fact, it was inspired by the first art
\nmarket organized by the Bandung Institute of Technology in 1974
\nby holding a day long art market along Jl. Ganesha street,
\nBandung. Then, the art market involved lecturers and students of
\nthe institute's school of fine art.<\/p>",
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