Java-Institute photos a reminder of the past
By Nuraini Razak
JAKARTA (JP): Jaap Erkelens holds to the saying that whoever forgets his own history will be destined to repeat it, with all the sorrow or happiness that it might entail.
Erkelens from the Jakarta representative office of the Dutch Department of Language, History and Culture (KILTV) repeated the expression several times during a press conference held at Erasmus Huis in South Jakarta last week for a new exhibition, The Java-Institute in Photographs.
The history of Java in the final years of colonialism and especially life in and around the Yogyakarta keraton (palace) are vividly presented in the images compiled by the institute, a body set up in 1919 in Surakarta for the promotion and preservation of the culture of Java, as well as that of Sunda (West Java), Madura and Bali.
In the following 30 years until it was dissolved, the institute was heavily involved in cultural activities, such as funding publications, holding performances and exhibitions and, in particular, the establishment of the Sonobudoyo Museum in Yogyakarta in 1935.
But it is the photographs which are, like Erkelens said, an important reminder of how life used to be for the nobility in Java in the 1930s. The project aims to introduce the rich photographic collection from Sonobudoyo to the public, to remind and regain the community's consciousness on how important it is to know the history of its country, to make communities aware about how important documentation is and to ensure that the palace's photographic heritage will be studied and enjoyed for many years to come.
"To date, Indonesia lacks a comprehensive nationwide publication focusing entirely on photographic exhibitions and resources of the history before Indonesia's independence," Erkelens said.
The 180 photographs (taken from the museum's collection of about 10,000) include rare works by figures such as R.M. Soetarto, later the founder of state-owned TV station TVRI, artist Rudolf Bonnet and Jaap Kunst. There are also several archival films recently restored by the Dutch Embassy and the National Archives.
The exhibition is presented in conjunction with the 150th anniversary of KILTV (Koninklijk Instittut voor Taal, Land-en Volkenkunde).
There are four parts to the exhibition, each of which presents a different aspect of life at the palace and evokes a different mood, underscoring the power of the medium.
The first, on life inside the palace, dominates the exhibition. It consists of the earliest known group of photographs from the palace, including the coronation of Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX, a series of photographs crafted by Isaac Goreneman, a doctor at the palace, and Kassian Cephas, a photography expert and a court servant, events and ceremonies, through to the funeral of Sri Susuhunan Paku Buwono X and Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono VIII in 1939.
The second part of the exhibition, the life of the community, includes a series of photographs of wedding ceremonies held at the palace.
Research activities, the next step on this photographic journey, documents different pursuits, such as the making of batik and various handicrafts, and Bonnet's pictures of dancers.
The last part, handicrafts and art creations, is a short record of Java-Institute's handicraft school.
The Java-Institute in Photographs was earlier exhibited at Sonobudoyo, in conjunction with Sukarno's 100th birthday anniversary celebration, and drew more than 6,000 visitors.
Selections from this unique collection can be viewed until July 28 at Erasmus Huis, Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said kav, S-3 Kuningan, South Jakarta. The exhibition is open to the public at no charge.