Old times revisited in Yogya's graphic exhibition

Old times revisited in Yogya's graphic exhibition

By Tjahjono Ep

YOGYAKARTA (JP): For many, digging up old memories is an
absorbingly fascinating activity which brings back to the present
all sorts of memories, be they pleasing or not.

Only a few people realize that daily items, generally
considered trivial, may record life's various events. A product's
trademark label, for example, can tell a lot about how a group of
people lived when the trademark represented a particular
industry.

In the context of collecting the "remnants" of old memories
from seemingly trivial items, the unique Exhibition of a Hand
Label, First Generation, is now under way at Bentara Budaya
Yogyakarta, Jl. Surono No. 2, Yogyakarta. The exhibition, which
began on Sept. 18 and runs to Sept. 29, displays hundreds of
trademark labels from various products generally considered to be
daily necessities, as well as other items, such as advertisements
dating back to before 1950.

When opening the exhibition, Sindhunata, an observer of
Javanese culture, said most of these items were the property of
Bentara Budaya. Most of the exhibited advertisements are handmade
in the sense that they were made without paper plate or zinc
plate techniques, let alone offset printing.

The oldest item exhibited, dating back to 1888, is The Queen
the Lady newspaper, which was published in London. The paper
carried an advertisement for Paers soap. Made with a handpress,
the newspaper shows the technology of yesterday could produce
results equal to today's computer-aided print technology.

Also on exhibit is the March 27, 1933 edition of the
Indonesian newspaper Sedio-Tomo and some other print media
publications from the 1930s, including an edition of Sinpo
magazine.

Of all the product exhibited, the most interesting is a label
from a cigarette called Roko Prijaji. The label depicts a
Javanese nobleman in his regal dress, complete with a crown,
holding a lit cigarette. The name of the cigarette is also
inscribed on the label in large letters. The exhibition also
displays the foreign labels for Sfelendo Cigarettes and Mascot
cigarettes in striking colors.

Also featured in the exhibition are advertisements for Biskuit
Verkade (1920), Lampoe Philips, Band Dunlop, Colgates' tandpasta,
Pentjak cigarettes, Orong-orong, Uget-uget and some other
products.

Most of these advertisements are in Javanese and in some cases
contain Dutch words, as in this advertisement for shoes:
Koenjooengilah Toko dan Schoenmakerij ... (Visit ... Shoe Shops
and Shoemakers). Javanese words are used in an advertisement for
Colgate toothpaste.

The words and expressions used in these advertisements may
sound simple or naive to our modern ears. Observe this
advertisement for M Djojotaroeno shoemaker: Pekerdjaan tjepat dan
rapi. Diharap toean2 djadi lengganan (Quick and neat work. Hope
you will be our patron).

A number of the advertisements were produced on enamel and
metal sheets. Some of the advertisements made on enamel sheets
are for Roko Prijaji cigarettes, Simplex bicycles and Sunlight
dish soap. Reportedly an advertisement made on enamel or metal
required a flame of above 1,000 degrees Celsius. Although the
technology used was simple, the color of the advertisements made
on enamel sheets lasted an extraordinarily long time, as seen by
the clarity of the letters and the brightness of the colors of
these old advertisements.

One of the product labels made on a metal sheets was Tjap
Tangan (the Hand Label). Generally, advertisements made on metal
sheets were hung on beams or the walls of shops.

Other old items displayed at the exhibition are telephones,
teapots, seals, abacuses, ceramic tea sets, typewriters and
sewing machines. According to Sindhunata, of all the items
exhibited, advertisements on enamel sheets were the most
difficult to find because they are rare and very expensive.

After the official opening, the exhibition was crowded with
visitors who, oblivious to their surroundings, were absorbed in
the displayed items. Some of them could not hide their surprise
upon learning that some of the products we still use today were
available so long ago.

Some of the visitors looked amused by the words used in the
advertisements, which sounded strange to their ears. Meanwhile,
some older visitors, taken away by fond memories, became involved
in a discussion about their experiences with a cigarette which
used to be a market leader in quality.