Sukarno collection on display

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's first president Sukarno was widely known as a fine arts maniac. He collected many paintings and was also known to be a good painter himself.

But who knew that Sukarno, Indonesia's founding father, also created batik designs? Or composed songs? Perhaps, those were just some of the many talents he possessed.

Well, part of his collection, starting with paintings, batik, statues, China ceramics, keris (traditional Javanese daggers), photographs of Sukarno at various events and even drafts of his orations, will all be displayed in an exhibition at Gedung Pola on Jl. Proklamasi 56, Central Jakarta.

The building's location was once where Sukarno's former residence stood, the place from where he declared the country's independence on Aug. 17, 1945.

The exhibition, staged by the Bung Karno Foundation, will run for one month.

Guruh Sukarno Putra, the foundation chairman and son of Sukarno, said the six-story Gedung Pola building can only accommodate 10 percent of Sukarno's collection.

In conjunction with the exhibition, Guruh will also stage a concert commemorating his father on Aug. 15 at the Assembly Hall of the Jakarta Convention Center in Senayan, Central Jakarta.

Guruh said that the foundation -- whose membership is comprised of his brothers and sisters Guntur, Megawati, Rachmawati, Sukmawati, Bayu, Kartika Sari and formerly the late Taufan -- has decided to establish the Sukarno Center.

The center, which is planned to be built on a 10-hectare site close to the capital, will not only accommodate Sukarno's complete collection, but will also have facilities for a museum, library, multipurpose hall, an archive and research center. The complex is expected to be completed in 2004. (yan)