Goethe Institut

Goethe Institut

At a discussion forum during an exhibition in Surabaya, East
Java, I had the strong impression that the artists there had a
great thirst for exchanging ideas with artists and art observers
from outside Surabaya, learning from each other. I was therefore
sad and shocked to learn that the Goethe Institut would be closed
down.

After its cultural role had been terminated, its role now
limited to functioning as an agent to develop the German
language, the Goethe Institut will no longer be operating in
Surabaya. In addition, the Goethe Institut in Medan has been
closed down, and it was said that the Goethe Institut in Bandung,
West Java will follow suit.

With German technology and industrial products increasingly
gaining ground in Indonesia, Goethe, Schubert, Schopenhauer,
Caspar David Friedrich, Murnau and others are continuously fading
away. H.B. Yassin, Chairil Anwar and Iwan Simatupang discovered
their "intellectual colleague" when reading works by Nietzsche.
Other artists, such as Semsar Siahaan, greatly admired Kaethe
Kollwitz's work. It would have been difficult for me to visualize
myself if I had not read works written by Thomas Mann and
Gruenewald.

By closing down the Goethe Institut in Surabaya, what facet
would Germany occupy in Indonesia?

SATYA GRAHA

Jakarta