Archive Exhibition

Taman Budaya Yogyakarta
6 October – 14 November 2021, 10:00 – 17:00 WIB

GAME OF THE ARCHIVE

ONE DECADE OF THE BIENNALE JOGJA EQUATOR

Commencing Biennale Jogja Equator Series in 2011, the series eventually reached its 10 year organization in 2021. A decade is a relatively long period of time that provides abundant lessons through different encounters and journeys taken by Yayasan Biennale Yogyakarta (YBY) in six editions of Biennale, starting from India, Arab regions, Nigeria, Brazil, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. Through examinations and interpretations of those encounters, the commissioned researchers tried to learn how the equatorial countries have specific histories and cultures as part of the world’s diverse culture. Moreover, YBY also built cooperation with partnering countries straddling the equator, to expand investigations and conversations on diverse aspects of life and socio-political contexts, including natural landscapes, climate, or development of democracy.

Archive Exhibition Biennale Jogja Equator is designed to connect the formerly seemed separated narratives of each episode of Biennale Jogja Equator Series in order to present them in a more coherent mode. Exhibiting archives also means presenting post-event stories which were barely made public during the actual exhibitions’ organization. This is meant to help the audience comprehend how the ideas are continuously nurtured even outside the exhibition period. A number of archives being re-exhibited went through some modifications pertaining to two keywords, namely ‘medium conversion’ and ‘playground’.

In addition to presenting visually-engineered archives and documents, the exhibition gives emphasis on the speculative method of reading history, considering that there is direct connection between the past and the future. Program curators invited a number of artists with different backgrounds to create artworks related to a broad spectrum of the exhibition theme, including examination and re-definition of the notion of maps and of speech scripts, imagination on borders and migration, or a fictitious world in virtual realm. By employing the idea of playground, we would like to see this exhibition as a platform to demonstrate the mimicry and simulation of power contestation in the world today—between the north and the south, the local and the global, the traditional and the modern—in a joyous and lively atmosphere, which is also the typical characteristic and vibe of the southern communities.

Komunitas Sakatoya
Komunitas Sakatoya is an art collective that works in the area of ​​art production management and theatrical production. Since 2018, Sakatoya’s theater works have focused on ecological issues based on the dramaturgy of audience involvement. Theatrical works that have been staged include: Octagon Syndrome (2018, PKKH UGM Art Grant), The Last Carnival (2018/2019), Cosmicpollutant (2018, Puppet Party #6 / 2019, ARTJOG MMXIX), Egg of Damselflies (2020, PUPA Puppet Lab), The Happy Family (2018, FKY #30/2019; FTRN, ISI Yogyakarta/2021, Helateater, Komunitas Salihara). Another work is MEMINDAI (Interactive Installation) & Pretending Radio #1 which was featured at the Asana Bina Seni Exhibition: “Your Connection Was Interrupted”, Yogyakarta Biennale Foundation (2020). In 2021, Sakatoya also conducts a virtual collaboration with the British theater group Zoo Co with the title Care Crisis, which is one of the selected projects for the British Council 20/21 “Connecting through Culture” Grant program. In the managerial area, Sakatoya manages 2 programs, namely the “Partnership Program” and the “In-house Program”. Through these two programs, Sakatoya is active in doing production works with artists/groups from any art field, both local and international.

Alia Swastika
Alia Swastika is a curator, writer and art researcher. She was the Director Program of the Ark Galerie from 2008 – 2018. Currently working as Director of the Yogyakarta Biennale Foundation. Now she is in-charge as the Director of Yogyakarta Biennale Foundation. In 2011 Alia became the Curator of the Biennale Jogja XI with Suman Gopinath (India) and in 2012 she became one of the Co-Curators of the Gwangju Biennale in South Korea. In 2017, she was appointed as the Curator for Contemporary Indonesian Art at the Europalia Arts Festival and organized exhibitions in four museums in Belgium and the Netherlands. In 2019, she became one of the Curatorial Consultants for the Contemporary Worlds: Indonesija exhibition, at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. In Biennale Jogja 2021, Alia Swastika worked for several complementary programs such as the Equator Archive Exhibition and Bilik Negara.

Karen Hardini
Born in Kebumen, December 15, 1996. Yogyakarta State University awarded her a bachelor’s degree in art education in 2019. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree at the Graduate School of Gajah Mada University’s Study Program in Performing Arts and Fine Arts, as well as a master’s degree in Art Education at Yogyakarta State University. He is a teacher of children’s art and actively publishes essays on fine art journalism, art-based academic journals, traditions, and children’s art education. Actively involved in the management of the Indonesian Watercolor Community’s Yogyakarta Chapter. The Ministry of Education and Culture’s Center for Curriculum and Books is currently working on a textbook for teachers.

Gladhys Elliona
Gladhys Elliona (born in 1994) is an actor, writer, and researcher. Currently enrolled at Gadjah Mada University’s School of Performing and Fine Arts.

Duls Rumbawa
Is actively contributing in the areas of literature and curatorial art in his artistic activity: with the curation canteen, both individually and collectively.

Tomi Firdaus
Have an interest in art writing and curatorial studies practices, individually or together with the Kantin Kurasi collective. Another field that he is engaged in is art archiving. He is actively helping at the Dicti Art Laboratory since from undergraduate.

Arlingga Hari Nugroho
Grew up in Bali. Art and writing are two of his interests. Angle Kantin Project is an alternative media project which he is now organizing.

Ripase Nostanta Br. Purba
Born on August 17, 1994, graduated in Painting Studies at ISI Yogyakarta Batch 2020, is a teacher, art activist, writer, MC, and has participated in various campus exhibitions.

Riyan Kresnandi
Riyan Kresnandi was born in Sleman, July 1991. Starting from his introduction with visuals through the local music scene in Yogyakarta, afterward solidified his steps to studied Visual Communication Design majoring in college. Currently, Riyan is an active teaching staff at Eko Nugroho Art Class and a freelance designer. The encounter of 3 scenes (Local Music Scene, Visual Design Industry, and Fine Arts) are what makes Riyan not put media restrictions on each of his artworks, starting from merchandise, photos, videos, and recently has a tendency to choose new media art as a medium. Recently he participated in exhibition organized by Biennale Jogja for young artists, “Your Connection is Interrupted” at Taman Budaya Yogyakarta (November 2020), and other virtual exhibition like a “Quantum Land MAG 20”, new media art virtual exhibition organized by Media Art Globale.

Mivubi Team
Mivubi Team was a result of collaboration between Mineversa Team and Unibuild Indonesian to participate in virtual museum project in order to engage with arts and creative communities. Mineversa Team was established in 2017 by some people who shared common interest in introducing Minecraft and to manage the activities of Minecraft Indonesia (MinecraftID) and UniBuild Indonesia Community.

<xhabarabot>
<xhabarabot> is a digital personality created by Rully Shabara in 2021 to investigate and carry specific mission: to imagine a new form of habitat that is emerging to be another reality dimension in the future, which is the digital world. <xhabarabot> is not an alterego or anonymous avatar, it is a personality that needs to be nurtured, taught, learned from, so it can grow to become bigger than a personality itself. Along with rapid advancement of technology, it should eventually develop as well into, if nurtured right, something that is not only a reflection of how the future humans see themselves but also what are things that future humans should rethink or redefine.

Syahrizal Pahlevi
Syahrizal Pahlevi was born on October 14, 1965, in Palembang, South Sumatra. Pahlevi studied at the Faculty of Letters at the University of Indonesia in 1984-1985. Then in 1985-1986, Pahlevi continued his education at the Department of Visual Design at the Indonesian Art Institute, Yogyakarta. In 1986-1994, Pahlevi continued his education at the Department of Painting at the Indonesian Art Institute, Yogyakarta. Pahlevi also participated in several residencies, including: at Nagasawa Art Park (NAP) in Awaji City, Hyogo, Japan (2009); “Artist in Residence” at Vermont Studio Center, America (2011); “Short Residence” at the Embun Art House, Medan (2012). Finalist of Philip Morris Indonesian Art Awards (1995, 1996, 1997); Finalist of Indonesia Print Triennale (2003,2006, 2009); “Winner of 17th Freeman Asian Artist Fellowships” in America (2010); “Top 40 Indonesian Art Awards” in Jakarta (2013). Pahlevi’s works include paintings, digital printing, installations, and art-performances. Since 2013, Pahlevi has been managing Miracle Art Print in Yogyakarta and the International Biennale of Mini Print as a platform for the development of graphic arts discourse in Indonesia.

Awanda Brima Destia
Awanda Brima Destia was born in Yogyakarta, December 9, 1992. She studied at Communication Studies, Muhammadiyah University of Yogyakarta. Her encounter in arts led her to be involved with SURVIVE!Garage in initiating exhibitions, discussions and other activities. Wanda focuses on craft and crafting; one of them is to produce hand-made soap. Later, she started to use embroidery to make works, such as “Lets Make Conversation with your Own Body”.