Local kite makers still favor bamboo frames

Local kite makers still favor bamboo frames

JAKARTA (JP): What makes Indonesian kites different from their
foreign counterparts? Their frames. While most kite makers from
overseas have started using fiberglass, Indonesian kite makers
still favor bamboo.

The result is Indonesian kites aren't as strong. When the wind
blows hard, not many survive.

Some Indonesian kites flown at the International Kite Festival
1995 in Ancol, North Jakarta snapped in 18 kilometer per hour
winds.

The Ancol park was one of six sites the International Kite
Festival will visit before it ends on July 15. The festival will
also take place in Lampung, South Sumatra; Pangandaran beach,
West Java; Parangtritis beach, Central Java; and Mount Bromo in
East Java.

In terms of creativity, Indonesian kite makers are quite
progressive. They create not only three-dimensional and stunt
kites with bamboo frames but also traditional kites made from
palm leaves.

A team from Muntilan, a small town in Central Java, produce
three-dimensional kites known as Baru Klinting, and have adopted
it as the name of their club. The kite enthusiasts design and
produce the difficult to make three-dimensional kite. In
Indonesia, the tradition to make three-dimensional kites is found
only around Jepara and Kudus, both in Central Java. Outside the
country, three-dimensional kites which have complicated frames
like Baru Klinting are hard to find.

The team was officially founded last year when Baru Klinting's
mascot dragon-shaped kite was created. In the same year the
dragon flew in a local kite festival held at Parangtritis beach
in Yogyakarta.

"Initially, it was Usman Dimyati who flew his kite in front of
his house. Watching him, we became interested in flying kites,
then we played together and later we founded this team," said
Irham Suharmono, one of Baru Klinting's members.

Currently, the team has 20 members from different backgrounds
but all are residents of Muntilan. Usman owns a garment factory,
another member is a tobacco trader, there is also a shop owner
and a master of ceremonies.

The group created an airplane-shaped kite in 1988. At that
time, however, they were not officially established and had
trouble producing good three-dimensional kites.

The team used to cover their kites' with paper but switched to
parachute silk because the paper kept ripping. To solve the
problem of transporting their 17-meter or longer Baru Klinting
kites, the team decided to make separate frames for the dragon's
head, body and tail. The framework is made from bamboo from
Purworejo, Central Java.

"We tried to use other bamboo once, but it broke when we
wanted to fold it," said Usman, adding that he doesn't know why
Purworejo's bamboo is more flexible.

The team has since created kites in various forms, including a
zebra and a bird. They also make many flat kites illustrated with
Javanese wayang puppet show characters.

Dragon kites are their trademark and the team always brings
one along, said Irham. The team has five dragons. The 17-meter
one they flew at the International Kite Festival 1995 early this
month in Jakarta is the smallest of the five.

Usman said it took a month to make the 17-meter dragon which
weighs approximately 100 kilograms. It takes four people to
launch it and two other people to fly it.

The team has never sold any of its three-dimensional kites.

"We made them because we love kites. We have never sold any,
although one day it may be possible. But for the time being,
instead of selling them we gave several of them to some people,"
said Irham.

The team sells their stunt kites with double-directing ropes
and bamboo frames for about Rp 50,000 (US$22.5) each.

The team has won several prizes for their creativity and
skill. The organizers of 1993 International Kite Festival in
Lampung, southern Sumatra, for example, presented the team with
the Most Unique Kite award for their dragon kite.

Making kites and preserving traditional culture are two
different things, but inhabitants of Muna regency in South East
Sulawesi can do both things at the same time. The Kaghati kites
of this area are made from dry leaves of a kind of cassava plant
locally known as ubi gadung (Dioscorea hispida), which is native
to the area. The handmade kite is also furnished with a bridle
and flying line made of pineapple fiber (Agave cantala).

To make the kite, a bamboo frame is shaped and covered with
netting made from pineapple fiber. Then ubi gadung leaves, which
have been dried under the sun or on a small fire, are sown
together with very fine bamboo fiber to cover the frames. It
takes a day to produce a one-by-one meter kite.

The khagati has a bow-like attachment locally known as kamuu,
which produces sound when wind blows through it. Kamuu's bow is
made from bamboo, while its string is made from either rattan or
leaves from palm leaves known as agel.

Khagati is usually flown during the dry season for fun and
competition. Factors considered during the competition are flying
time, neatness of the kite and the sound of the kamuu.

"Sometimes we keep a khagati airborne for a week by tying it
to a tree. If it is intact after one week, we release it as a
thanksgiving," said Lasjkar Koedoes from South East Sulawesi's
local authority's office.

Khagati kites will participate in the International Kite
Festival for the first time this year.

Lampung in southern Sumatra also produces a whistling kite.
The whistling bow, known as uli-uli, is also made from bamboo and
rattan. The difference is that uli-uli can produce three to seven
pitches, while the Sulawesi version is more like the sound of
wind.

Not all Lampung kites have uli-uli, only those made by the
Bugis, an ethnic group of South Sulawesi who immigrated to
Lampung.

"We consider uli-uli as part of Lampung's culture," said
Supratman Puasa, an uli-uli maker, adding that it takes three
hours to produce an uli-uli.

The Lampung uli-uli kite has participated in international
kite festivals in the United States, France and the Netherlands,
even though the frames are made of bamboo. (als)