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Civis Vol. 2, No. 3, Dec 2010
In the middle of 2010, the statue of “The Three Girls” by I Nyoman Nuarta located at the intersection of the gate of a housing complex in Bekasi (West Java) was taken down by the City of Bekasi. This is due to protests from community organizations who regarded the statue as a symbol of the Trinity as well as a depiction of the Virgin Mary. This is besides the fact that the 15 meters tall statue had been in place for almost 2 years.
During his interview with ANTARA News, Nyoman Nuarta stated the accusation of Christianization was simply not true. “The statue is the image of Priangan ladies wearing traditional kemben clothing, and is not a picture of Mother Mary who wears headscarf,” he said. He deplored the action and considered it a bad precedent for the future of arts and culture in Indonesia.
Grace Emilia from the Leimena Institute had a dialogue with the Bali-born artist, which has created a variety of monumental works (among others, the statue “Garuda Wisnu Kencana” in Bali, the monument” Jalesveva Jayamahe “in Surabaya,” Arjuna Wiwaha “on Jl. Medan Merdeka Jakarta , etc.), at the Nu Art Sculpture Park which is also his working studio in Bandung – West Java.
As an artist, what is your take on the demolition of the statue of “Three Traditional Girls”in relation to the diversity of Indonesia?
That it is a manifestation of excessive fear. If the matter is truly religious, does God need to be defended? Is God like a government official or mayor who needs to be defended? If it’s true of God, then the one who could eliminate it is God. So indeed there is a problem here: that we are not ready to be different. And it’s against human nature. Immediately when he was born, each person is different, and then divergently chooses their own path later in life. How come now there are people who want to resist the will of God in regards to this basic design of individual differences.
Basically, the artist in fact strives to be different, not wanting to be the same. People who want to blend-in lack courage. As an artist, when I have to choose between walking into a dark or a well-lit tunnel, I would choose the dark. In the lit tunnel, what we already know its contents. But with the dark, there could be a tiger, a snake, or gold. So there is opportunity. Just take a flashlight and see what is inside. That is, we must dare to face the challenges of this life and also dare to be different.
Does the state need to create policies that govern the freedom of the people in being different?
We talk of democracy in a context where 50% of our population is still ignorant. A Democracy that is not just of “follow-the-crowd” variety needs to have the intellect first, if not it will like it is today. Anyone can be president as long as he has many voters. This is dangerous. We can not be liberals like this. Even American is not like this. So a policy is clearly necessary to regulate, so the government does not only serve merely from ignorance. Today many people consider themselves religious role-models, but are talking non-sensical arguments. This should be more organized.
To what extent is the freedom of an artist in expressing himself?
I do not think artists are different from other men. Artists also have to obey the law. Our philosophy is Pancasila, but we like to break it. That’s why it is so unorganized today. An artist must be himself, but on the other hand we also cannot be out-of-control because we do live in a society. The problem is, there are people who do not understand the history and culture of the nation, but then accuse us of being un-cultured. For example, the sculpture “Three Traditional Girls” features the ethnic kemben clothing. That is the original clothing of the Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese, but then they say it does not fit with the culture. So what culture does it have then?
In your observation, has the issue of primordialism been raised to serve certain interests in the midst of our nation today?
Yes, primordialism has become a tool because this tool could shape a political clout for some to be used vocationally. In Indonesia, politics are used to “get something to eat”. If it cannot compete anymore intellectually, brute force will be used. Especially now in the public there appears the image that it is very comfortable being a government official, where one can make a lot of money and be respected, although the source of the money can be questionable. This is the kind of image of that does this country harm.
Are Intolerant attitudes is a legacy of the New Order?
Not really, it is more because of ignorance. So far, the Pancasila is only memorized but not deeply understood. Every part is merely memorized. We never learn why we became independent in 1945, for example. I can never fully recite the content of Pancasila. But the point is, in my opinion, is how we can truly know the meaning. So the one thing that should be changed is the system, because the teaching methods in school now are not logical. Anyone can become a Doctor as long as he meets the target, and at the end he commits corruption.
Also, nowadays money seems to be everything. Try to see our rich friends. They are proud of their money and really sit at money ‘s beck and call. What use is that much money? My pride is these green leaves (Nuarta then pointed at the leafy trees that surround the area of his Sculpture Park). The land in this area costs 6 million rupiah per meter, but I gave up three acres for green plants. For me, this is called heaven. **
Author
I Nyoman Nuarta