Art festival mixes traditional and modern culture

By Putu Wirata

TIRTAGANGGA, Bali (JP): The Milleniart Festival held in Bali from Sept. 9 to Sept. 14, 1999, aimed to celebrate and respect cultural diversity. In addition, the event focused on ways to help individuals realize that it is not necessary for them to subject themselves to the domination of globalization, which may lead to an inferiority complex in local cultures.

Rites and traditional art forms from various regions were on display, including: the Batak uning-uning from Sumatra; bissu dance from Pangkep (Sulawesi); berassi dance from Lamaojang (Flores); the pepaosan from Lombok; gandrung from Banyuwangi; and the wayang wong, genjek and joged pingitan from Java. All the cultural exhibits displayed how tradition born as a collective creation should be appreciated and respected.

The contributions of the Balinese artists illustrated the continuity between traditional and contemporary creative works. It could be seen in their work how traditional art has become a source of inspiration when composing contemporary works.

Two works in particular surprised viewers, Pembelaan Dirah (Dirah's Defense) by Cokorda Istri Sawitri and Ritus Seni (Art Ritual) by Nyoman Erawan. Both artists were born and raised within a traditional environment, and their works reflect an evolutionary change from traditional culture. Indeed, it is not possible for a contemporary culture to develop in a sociocultural vacuum.

'Pembelaan Dirah'

Cok Sawitri, is a local poet and dramatist, who presented her Pembelaan Dirah in the form of a monolog.

It reversed a subconscious belief within the Balinese community, imbued for centuries through myths, that Dirah, a widow with one child in the Kediri kingdom, was an evil widow and practitioner of black magic.

She was allegedly the cause of a large-scale epidemic in Kediri and was killed only after Mpu Bahula discovered the secret of her supernatural powers. This belief has endured for approximately four centuries and has become a sacred myth in Bali.

Sawitri questioned this myth: Was Dirah the scapegoat of political power-mongers? Is it possible that a woman leading a small monastery in a remote village dared to defy the powerful authorities and soldiers? With its spirited words, and within the context of Indonesia's sociopolitical environment throughout the past 30 years, the monolog Pembelaan Dirah reflected reality.

Sawitri's performance was an attractive one, with its endeavor to reverse the community's subconscious acceptance of the official interpretation of the myth. Black-clad gendang (drum) and seruling (flute) musicians shared the stage with dancers whose faces were smeared with paint.

The accompanying music consisted of only kendang (small drum) beats that penetrated the gloomy ambience. These represented Dirah's feelings of hurt at being made a scapegoat. Perhaps victims of an authority's political engineering suffer the same fate; they spend the rest of their lives with an empty heart.

'Ritus Seni'

Using a pool measuring 30 meters by 50 meters as a performance space, Erawan created a setting which reminding us of one of Bali's festive ritual ceremonies. The pool contained cloths of many colors and gongs hung in a circle, representing the Balinese concept of cosmology and the nine directions of the universe.

The repeated sounds of the bleganjur and the kidung malat in which a number of women sing a kidung (hymn) of death, were followed by eight young men jumping in the pool with a black or white duck -- images closely associated with Balinese traditional cultural symbolism.

Erawan, a graduate of Yogyakarta's Indonesian Arts Institute, depicted the nawasanga Hindu cosmology philosophy in his work. The Tirtagangga water tower became the lingga (Siva's phallus) symbolizing the solidity of the divine pillar in establishing the world.

According to critic Jim Supangkat, Erawan's art demolishes the framework of fine arts. It is unequivocally clear that it tells us about Balinese culture with its emphasizes on rites and collectivity.

Erawan also presented an installation, dance, tembang (sung poetry) and a piece of music combined as one. "I just roll on to do my art work," he said categorically. He lives and is immersed in both the Balinese tradition and also an urban modern one. Erawan creates art which reflects this.

He has not neglected traditional art, and as such he does not want to see it stagnate. Therefore, his works include both traditional iconic symbols such as warna poleng (checkered patterns), sobekan (torn pieces), spears, krises and antique cloths, in addition to modern media such as dolls, electronic equipment and slide projectors.

He has reinterpreted Balinese traditions with fine art in recent performances including Cak Seni Rupa Latta Mahosadi, Ritus Seni Nyoman Erawan, Ruwatan I 1997 (Art Ritual by Nyoman Erawan, Exorcism I 1997) and Pralayamatra 1998.

In the latter, Erawan used dolls and electronic equipment to create blood bubbles in his work. Erawan's work is very interesting due to its portrayal of the evolution and development of traditional culture by a post-traditional artist who is in touch with a new culture.

Erawan believes the extraordinarily beautiful traditions, which are the heritage of the Balinese community, formerly derive from a dialog with a pre-traditional culture.

Balinese traditions are an assimilation of Hindu Majapahit culture with earlier cultural developments.

Now, assimilation is taking place on a wider scale with modern culture arriving from various parts of the world, especially considering Bali's status as a popular tourist destination.