Old building to be reborn as arts, cultural center

Old building to be reborn as arts, cultural center

Reita Malaon, Contributor, Jakarta

The sorry fate of Candra Naya, once the grandest example of Chinese architecture in old Batavia, speaks volumes about the unthinking policies of the Jakarta administration in "protecting" historical buildings.

It's back section and left and right wings were demolished to make way for the construction of a hotel, apartment and shopping complex several years ago.

What remains of the 19th century building is dwarfed by a multistory complex.

Jakarta has seen too many irreplaceable historical landmarks bulldozed in the name of economic growth and development.

But in some corners of North, Central and West Jakarta, old, dilapidated buildings hang on to existence.

One only has to stroll along the historic Menteng area of Central Jakarta, the first planned community in the city, to see the damage that is being done through disregarding the historical perspective.

Residences dating back to the Dutch colonial era have been updated into chaotic architectural jumbles. Unsightly pseudo- Roman pillars dominate nearly every corner of the street.

To counter the prevailing view that money can buy anything in the name of profit and strategic business plans, a group of young people have joined together to try to save one of the last extant heritage buildings.

The project is for an abandoned building located in Kali Besar area, behind the Wayang Museum in West Jakarta. The group plans to renovate the building as an arts and cultural center.

The idea to renovate the building came from building owner Ela Ubaidi, who inherited the building, in her family since the colonial era, in the mid-1990s.

She dreams of seeing it return to its former splendor, when it was known as Gedung Kota Bawah, a loose translation from the Dutch Beneden Stad or downtown area.

In its backyard is a small cemetery plot and it is said that onetime Dutch East Indies Governor General Jan Piterzoon Coen is among those buried there.

But it has seen better days: The building's magnificent teak floor and window panes have been stripped, giving it a gutted appearance.

Huge kapok trees grow inside the building, their roots creeping up the walls and making it look like the eerie set for a horror movie.

Architect Yori Antar, long noted for his concern about historical buildings, and painter Enrico Sukarno are among the members of Lembaga Warga Peduli Bangunan Tua, which has as its main objective the raising of public awareness about heritage buildings.

For the project, Yori uses the concept of "revitalization" -- preserving what is already in place to rejuvenate the site -- to substitute for the usual restoration methods.

"Rejuvenating the historical Jakarta Kota area in West Jakarta has long been an idealistic goal for the local administration. In reality it seems to be just an utopian dream. The main excuse is always the lack of funding to run their projects," he said.

"It is true that in any restoration project you need a vast amount of funding and data to bring back the building to its former glory. But we can't just sit still and and let that be an unmovable obstacle -- we have to try to find a way out."

He added that his method would be to preserve as much of the building in its present state, including traces of history, such as the cracks in the wall and the trees growing inside.

Yori and his architectural team will use the construction of steel frame columns to support the main building. This means that there will not be additional foundation work, which would imperil the old foundation.

A new protective roof crafted from steel will be added on, but it will be separate from the existing roof structure.

There will be no major change to the entire outer fagade of the building, but the heavily damaged interior walls will be laminated by polycarbonate sheets. The transparent material was chosen for its dual function of reducing humidity while maintaining an open view of the walls.

The end result is expected to be juxtaposition of high-tech and the legacy of the past.

The group recently held an open-house gathering at the building, which included a photography exhibition by Firman Ichsan and Yori, a show of paintings by Enrico and a performance by harpist Heidi Awuy.

"We envision this place to be a center for art and cultural performances. We also would like to have regular workshops, including ones for children so that they will have experiences beyond the shopping malls. But we are now still in the process of finding a suitable sponsor or donor to realize this mission" Yori said.

For Jakarta's neglected and abused historical buildings, it was a small step in the right direction.