Sibarani gives caricature political nuance

Sibarani gives caricature political nuance

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Pause and reflect, that is the response to Augustin Sibarani's
political caricatures at his solo exhibition at the Galeri
Milenium in South Jakarta.

Just take a look at Wasiat Baru, picturing President Megawati
Soekarnoputri and husband Taufik Kiemas bowing down to receive
wasiat Orde Baru (New Order legacy) from a khaki-clad Soeharto.
Not funny, just a grim reminder of what seems to be going on.

"Looking at Augustin Sibarani's work is like being in a dialog
with a political expert, who is analyzing the government's
deceptions," Galeri Milenium curator Yulianto Liestiono writes in
the exhibition catalog.

Sibarani, 77, has been part of the Indonesian arts scene since
the days of Sukarno, his sharp political caricatures often being
censored during the 32 years of Soeharto's reign.

Initially a portrait painter -- Sibarani was the painter
behind the reconstruction of the image of Sisingamangaraja XII,
who died in the early 20th century -- he began drawing
caricatures at the age of 25, and his earliest works were
published in the Merdeka daily.

Sibarani's cartoons were regularly published in the Bintang
Timur daily starting in 1957, until the paper shut down in 1965.
His work has also appeared in various other newspapers and
magazines at home and abroad, including Aneka magazine, The
Jakarta Post, Le Monde Diplomatique, Humanite, La
Lettrede and in Cornell University's Indonesia Journal.

A collection of his cartoons from Aneka was published under
the title Senyum, Kasih, Senyum (Smile, Love, Smile) in the
1950s, and more recently under the title Karikatur dan Politik
(Caricature and Politics) in 2001.

The exhibition at Galeri Milenium, Menafsir Kemerdekaan
(Interpreting Independence), showcases 43 of Sibarani's drawings
since 1997, all with the themes of corruption or George W. Bush's
war against terror.

In 1997's Penyakit terlalu parah (The illness is too serious),
Sibarani draws economists Saleh Afif, Sumitro Djojohadikusumo,
Mar'ie Muhammad and Sudradjat Djiwandono dressed as doctors,
trying to cure bandaged and bloody "patients" with names such as
Korupsi (corruption), Kolusi (collusion), Nepotisme (nepotism)
and Keserakahan (greed).

Yang lolos dan dibasmi (Those who escaped and eliminated)
shows plump figures in suits getting away with their bags of
money, while skinny chicken thieves are arrested by the police.

"In (Sibarani's) caricatures, we may feel like those who are
being laughed at, ridiculed and 'spit on' by Sibarani, because in
the cartoons we may feel akin to the characters being portrayed,"
Yulianto said.

We can recognize former Indonesian foreign minister Ali Alatas
and the bearded Uncle Sam fighting it out on a "HAM" (acronym for
human rights) chessboard in Diplomasi catur lawan Pak Jenggot
(Chess diplomacy with Mr. Beard), probably over the East Timor
issue.

Sibarani's view of U.S. President George W. Bush's war on
terror produced Jago-jago tembak sarang lebah (Aiming at a bee's
nest), which shows Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair in
warplanes firing at a bee's nest representing Afghanistan.

In Pembantaian Iraq (Iraq massacre), Bush is pictured mowing
down Iraqis with a machine gun, ignoring the Pope who is trying
to stop him.

Menafsir Kemerdekaan will run until Aug. 31 at Galeri Milenium,
Kompleks Pertokoan D'Best (Diamond Plaza), Blok B23, Jl. R.S.
Fatmawati No. 15, South Jakarta. The exhibition is open from 10
a.m. to 8 p.m. For more information call 021-7507828.