Rama Surya's photographs speak for themselves
Rama Surya's photographs speak for themselves
By Yenni Kwok
JAKARTA (JP): The strength of Rama Surya's photo exhibition, Yang Kuat Yang Kalah (The Strong, The Beaten) lies not only in the pictures but also in the stories behind them.
Who are the strong and who are the beaten? They may be giant Sumatran elephants captured to help humans work, losing their freedom. Or they are our fellow humans: Pajangan fishermen who have to get up before the sun rises, Ijen sulfur miners who have to carry heavy loads and breathe intoxicating sulfurous air or Bengkulu gold miners who have to go into the belly of the earth.
"They are strong and tough people, but they get very little money or recognition," Rama said.
Yang Kuat Yang Kalah is Rama's first solo photography exhibition. It will run until Oct. 26 in Galeri Foto Jurnalistik Antara, Pasar Baru, sponsored by Foto Media, a photography magazine Rama works for, and The Jakarta Post.
The 75 black-and-white photos consist of five photo series and nine single photos. The photo series feature essays on the background information, and each of the photo has a caption and a brief explanation.
The captions were written by the 26-year-old photographer himself. When he traveled to various remote parts of Java and Sumatra, he did more than merely taking pictures. He took time to follow certain people and listen to their stories.
Message
Rama makes the best use of both written words and photographic images to convey his message. The Ijen Crater series is a good example.
In his own essay for the series, Rama writes that the sulfur miner only gets Rp 100 for every kilo of sulfur. We cannot help but feel sorry for the miners, especially when we look at the photographs. In Kehidupan Santoyo (Santoyo's Life), Santoyo looks up at us, the viewers, who enjoy much more comfortable life than he does.
The caption tells us how a miner starts his day, how he has to bear 60 to 90 kilos of sulfur down the rocky hill. Kaki (Feet) shows a pair of feet in socks and a pair of worn-out sandals. Looking at the sandals, I could not help wondering what the feet look like underneath the rugged socks.
Cynicism hits hard in Wajah Impian (Dream Face). A round- faced, hard-looking miner stands in front of a small mirror and a photo of a beautiful woman from a shampoo advertisement, pasted on the wall. The ad says: "1 sachet Rp 100." How ironic. We know that Rp 100 is what the miner gets for one kilo of sulfur.
Besides the Ijen Crater series, there are 4 other series in the exhibition, a series on the slaughter house of Bukittinggi, West Sumatra (Rama's hometown), one on a fishing community in Pajangan, West Java, one on Sumatran elephants and one on gold miners in Ulu Ketenong, Bengkulu.
While the series are helped by written words to tell the stories, the single pictures, without captions or titles, manage to speak for themselves.
School
One of the single pictures is an inside view of a class in a state-run elementary school building. The building is falling apart. Its wooden walls already have holes, the paint is faded, but a cleaning schedule for students is still hanging on the wall, and the students are cleaning their classrooms in the dark.
Despite the absence of captions and emotional faces, this school picture manages to deliver an irony and a criticism. It shows how much the students love their rugged school. But no matter how hard they try to clean their classroom, it is never going to be clean and neat.
The most striking image among the exhibited pictures is a fire scene in a traditional market in Bukittinggi. Holding their belongings, the crowd of people stare at us while the smoke rises into the sky on their back. It seems they are asking a whole host of questions: why this happened, what will happen.
The exhibited work starts with his earliest photos from 1991. The earliest ones are actually a series, Dialog Musim Hujan (Rainy Season Dialog). But they are presented as single photos in the exhibition.
In fact, Rama splits the series. There is a picture of an umbrella boy, handing his umbrella to a lady who is just getting off the bus. It is a very smart choice; after all, the rainy season is just starting, and we may witness the scene ourselves.
The main character of this series is Dani, the umbrella boy. And it is he and his family who wrap up the exhibition with a traditional, feel-good family photo. Despite being poor (symbolized by the fact that the pictures are taken from a high angle), they are still able to laugh and smile together, listening to the grandfather's story.