$Unique_ID{bob00250} $Pretitle{} $Title{Indonesia Arts and Culture} $Subtitle{} $Author{Department of Information Republic of Indonesia} $Affiliation{Embassy of Indonesia, Washington DC} $Subject{asmat life java found indonesia own wood indonesian museum village} $Date{1990} $Log{} Title: Indonesia Book: Indonesia 1990 an Official Handbook Author: Department of Information Republic of Indonesia Affiliation: Embassy of Indonesia, Washington DC Date: 1990 Arts and Culture ARTS The Guidelines of State Policy directs that art should be nurtured and improved in efforts to preserve and improve the Indonesian nation's cultural diversity. Art forms in Indonesia are not only based on folklore, but many were developed in the courts of former kingdoms and as in Bali they form a part of religious ceremonies. The famous dance dramas of Java and Bali are derived from Hindu mythology and often feature fragments from the Ramayana and Mahabharata Hindu epics. The puppets of the "Wayang Kulit" shadow play are made of intricately carved and colorful painted leather, the "Wayang Golek", however, uses colorfully dressed wooden puppets. The puppets are manipulated by a puppeteer, the "Dalang", who narrates the story and sings, using a different voice for each character for a show. Meanwhile, dances differ from region to region and so do the musical instruments. The tinkling sounds of the bamboo "angklung" of West Java and the "kolintang" of North Sulawesi are well-known. The Bataks of North Sumatra and the Ambonese of Maluku are best known for their singing accompanied mainly by guitars. With regard to painting, both in oil and water colors, there are different schools. The best known are in Bali, Yogyakarta, Bandung and Jakarta, all of which have Fine Arts Institutes. Batik is another form of painting and one of the oldest traditional arts of Java. It comprises drawings on cloth waxing and dyeing. Traditional centers of batik industries are Solo and Pekalongan (Central Java), Yogyakarta, Cirebon and Tasikmalaya (both in West Java) and Madura (East Java). Indonesian woodcarving can be highly refined and ornate like those found in Java, Bali or primitive as those in Kalimantan (Dayak), Irian Jaya (especially Asmat) and Nias Island (North Sumatra). Weaving is a folk art found all over the country, with motifs and in the colors characteristic to each region. The potter's craft is known throughout the Indonesian Archipelago and springs from the daily needs of the people. In contrast, a highly-developed art is the silverwork produced in Yogyakarta and Bali, and to a lesser degree in West Sumatra, South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi. Plaiting of bamboo, a widely available material, into highly utilitarian and decorative object is commonplace. Pandanus leaves are also dried and made into baskets and mats. CULTURE Whilst unity has been a result of history, differing cultures are based on many different ethnic groups found throughout the country who have maintained their traditions, languages and dialects. Protected by "adat" (customary law) which differs from area to area, modernization is only a superficial veneer covering the daily life even in the cities. Ultimately, "adat" is the man's tie to his family and to his community and is applied to his way of life. The cultures of the people originated from its agricultural beginnings and have been partly influenced by waves of traders from India, China, Arabia, and Europe bringing along their religions. Western influence arrived with the Portuguese who came in search of spices in the early 16th century and later with the British and the Dutch merchants. The Hindu heritage is much found in this archipelago and is still prevalent, while the Ramayana and Mahabharata Hindu epics play an important role in culture and much of it has been adapted and absorbed and regarded as a pure Indonesian legacy. Traditional customs have merged with religion, resulting in colorful ceremonies and festivities which vary from area to area. GOTONG ROYONG (MUTUAL ASSISTANCE) One of the most important traits of the people of Indonesia is "gotong royong" or mutual assistance as it is practiced in the Indonesian social life. From time immemorial the harvesting of rice in villages is done in a "gotong royong" fashion by all the village community, in which they assist each other. This also applies to almost all social activities and has been handled down for centuries from ancestors to posterity as a cultural legacy, as an "adat" or tradition. Various expressions of "adat" have later adapted with the "adat" law or customary law of Indonesia which during the colonial period has been kept intact by the Dutch colonial rulers. Certain provision of the "adat" law vary indeed in the different regions of the country according to local traditions and cultural patterns. It stands to reason therefore, that Indonesia's Coat of Arms is inscribed with the motto "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika", meaning unity in diversity. MUSYAWARAH AND MUFAKAT (DELIBERATION AND CONSENSUS) The process of decision-making in Indonesia traditionally goes through a "musyawarah" (deliberation) and "mufakat" (consensus) which is in fact sessions of deliberations to reach a consensus. Throughout the national history, decisions in villages regarding land ownership, exploitation of water resources and forest produce, the construction of village roads and the like are decided by village heads through "musyawarah" to reach "mufakat". Every member of a village community is entitled to participate in such deliberation for the common interest of the village community, to consider the best solutions in cases of conflicts. The spirit of conciliation, called "rukun" in Indonesia is another apparent trait of Indonesian culture. The application of "rukun" in all matters of controversies are sought without resentments or grudges of either parties involved. Equal rights for women have always been upheld in the community. CANDI "Candi" is an Indonesian word, it is pronounced "chandy' with the "a" pronounced as in "father". It indicates the many stone monuments from Indonesia's classical period, of which the remains are still found today, particularly in Java, Sumatra and Bali. Statues of Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu, Agasty, Dhurga and replicas of the gold head in the Hindu religion placed in the candis are, most likely the duplicates of the heads of the former rulers, placed on the bodies of the godhead statues. In some cases the historical identity of the ruler is inscribed on a stone of the "candi". In contrast, Buddhist sanctuaries were built as an act of faith and in order to gain merit. It is worth noting that Buddhism displayed on the monuments of Central Java is the Mahayana Buddhism. This denomination is largely embraced by the Indonesian Buddhists today, in contrast with the Hinayana Buddhism worshipped in Burma and Thailand. The great Buddhist edifices of Java are all connected with the names of Shailendra kings, whose history is still imperfectly known. MUSEUMS The many museums, large and small, found throughout this country present virtually together the whole spectrum of Indonesian life, in thought and history beginning from the time of its earliest inhabitation and even before, up to the present. The best known, and also the oldest in existence, of the museums of art, culture and history is the Central Museum in Jakarta. Claimed as one of the finest in Southeast Asia and founded in 1778, it still has the world's most complete collection of Indonesian artifacts. Museum of natural history are found in Bogor and Bandung. Of equal scientific interest, though small, is the Sangiran Museum of paleontology and anthropology in Central Java. It displays prehistoric fossils found in the area, including the "Java Man", or pithecanthropus erectus, and "Solo Man" or Homo Soloensis. PRESERVATION OF HISTORICAL ANCIENT MONUMENTS AND RELICS Other important museums are Taman Fatahillah Museum, Maritime Museum, Armed Forces Museum, Museum Indonesia in the Indonesia in Miniature Park, which are located in Jakarta, and Sono Budoyo Museum in Yogyakarta as well as Radjapustaka Museum in Solo, Central Java. In addition, many provincial capitals or towns have museums of local culture and history. Attention has also been given to the preservation of historical monuments and relics, archaeological remains and historical and ancient buildings. During the last five years efforts have been done to restore "candis" or temples in 24 sites, old cemeteries in 73 sites, prehistoric gardens in 8 sites, 12 fortresses, 10 Balinese Hindu temples, 16 palaces, 8 different traditional houses, and 1,594 historical relics. In addition, archaeological feasibility-studies have been conducted in 27 locations and technical studies in 13 locations. Restoration work of archaeological relics in the 27 provinces in fiscal year 1988/89 included two mosques, 3 churches, 5 palaces, 4 museums, 5 cemeteries, 4 fortresses, 5 megalithic complexes, one Balinese Hindu temple and 2 historical buildings. THE ASMAT The term "asmat" is applied to both the people and the land where they live. Covering an area of about 26,725 square kilometers, the Asmat territory lies along the southwestern coast of Irian Jaya, at 140 degrees to 137 degrees east longitude and from 4 degrees to 7 degrees south latitude. Its climate is hot and humid. The rainfall is quite high, ranging from 4000 to 7000 mm per annum and falling throughout the year or 200 raindays annually. Temperatures vary from 27 degrees to 35C during the day and below 21C at night. The region possesses many unique physical characteristics. Most of the territory consists of low-lying marshland, and the coast is fringed with mangrove swamps. The soil is brackish and alluvial; it is peat soil with core alluvial sediments and core rocks, the result of thousand years of erosion from the Central Mountains. The alluvial swamp is wide, crossed by a great number of large and small rivers and a still larger number of interconnecting waterways. Meanwhile the tides fluctuate widely from 4000 to 7000 meters. Only in southeastern Asmat, on the Casuarinen Coast are there sections of sandy shores. Its forest is rich in varieties of mangrove, other rishophores and softwooded trees, nibung, nipah, pandanus, sago palm, ironwood, bamboo, orchids, epiphytic ferns, all linked and woven together by lianas, vines, creepers, and an assortment of rattan then mesh into one solid impenetrable mass close to the river banks. In the interior the forest is more open. There are no large animals and no primates. Wild pigs, marsupials such as cuscus and tree kangaroos, small mammals, snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and cassowaries are relatively common in Asmat. The beds of the streams and rivers are rich in crustaceans, including crabs and crawfish, while the waters themselves are full of shrimp, catfish, turtle, and fish whose species vary with the varying salt content of the water and the distance from the sea. Housing about 60,000 inhabitants belonging to the Melanesian race, the Asmat region is divided into 52 villages and into four subdistricts, and part of the Merauke District. SOCIAL SETTINGS The Asmat people live intimately with their natural surroundings. In fact, they call themselves As-Asmat, meaning "We, Tree People". They identify themselves with trees, and since their environment is brackish marshland continually being flooded by tidal waters, they can make no tools other than those of wood and of the bones of animals living around them. Therefore, wood is very critical to their very existence. The Asmat people living in coastal areas are hunters and gatherers and have no gardens. The keeping of domestic animals is also unknown to them except for the dogs they keep for hunting. However, as the hunters and gatherers, they often leave their villages and make a living temporarily in the forests around two or three months in houses called bivaks (transitory houses). While the Asmat of the foothills own few pigs and do not have them on the scale of the mountain people. They plant gardens of taro, sugar cane, bananas, tobacco, like their neighbors in the mountains. Sago does not grow wild here, it must be planted. Family houses or "cem" are usually inhabited by several families, including their kinsfolk. Each family has its own stove of fireplace within the "cem" The men's long-house, the "jew", located usually along riverside, is the cultural center of the village. In the past the "jew" had a strong religious significance and was of a great ritual importance in the Asmat community, serving as centers of everyday life and of special ceremonies including preparations for war, peace, or even headhunting raids. Now the said long-house "jew" functions principally as a workshop where the men work on their arts and handicrafts, or educate their juniors the values of courage and strength, knowledge and skills in order to become self-reliant adults. In the meantime, the number of stoves or "joses" within such a "jew" may indicate the number of clans living in the village. Only on special and rare occasions are the women allowed to enter the "jew". However, both sexes in the life of Asmat have their special or expected duties. Each helps the other without anyone wanting to change roles. No one feels restrained. The women go fishing with nets while the men build traps and spear large fish. The men watch carefully in the sago grounds over the safety of the women while they prepare the sago. The women take care for the upbringing of the children, they watch over the girls until they marry and over the boys until they move to the "jew". The village life of the Asmat underlines the hierarchy of its chiefs, who must be looked upon as "prismus inter pares". It is only through their own forceful personalities, their intelligence, and their performance in all areas of life that they rise to a high rank and have great influence. All men in Asmat carve to some extent. Everyone learns to make his own bows and arrows, his own paddles, canoes, sago pounders, and simple types of spears. However, every village has good carvers and these men are highly respected. They have the status equal to that of great warriors. THE TRUE-BRED For the Asmats, self-reliance is a life prerequisite. They, anywhere and at any time, many find themselves in the face of a challenging situation, and they must be able to overcome it with the aid of only the most simple implements at their disposal. Their style of self-reliance may be seen as individualistic, however it is just the contrary. The Asmat have indeed a strong sense of loyalty -- not only among member of their own group, but also towards other human beings in general. And this fact apparently is not widely known. The story that the Asmats in particular and the inland tribes of Irian Java in general are man-eaters or cannibals is absolutely untrue! "The Asmats are utterly friendly people, and they prefer peace above anything else", says Mr. Seiichi Okawa, a Japanese anthropologist, who lived in Irian Jaya, including in the Asmat region, for three years during the seventies. Okawa further informed how the Asmat - and the other tribes of Irian Jaya as well - could be the greatest teachers one can find on the meaning of life. "What we have lost, the Asmats still have strongly, namely, sympathy and kindness towards others. These two qualities they possess in greater measures and more profoundly than do we, members of a more advanced community", Mr. Okawa affirms. Mr. Okawa speaks from his own experience. One day he slipped and fell off a wooden bridge. Injured and slightly in pain he was soon surrounded by the Asmats who said in one voice, "Give your pain to us. You need not suffer it, let us bear the pain for you..." Besides, the Asmats who are famous for their impressive skill in wooden carving, not only possess extraordinary high humanistic feelings, more than that they have a philosophy of life which reflects their sense of fairness and civilization. Also, one of their notable traits is their sense of shame. This trait has been preserved for so many years from one generation to another, as it is reflected in their folklore. A famous one is the story of "Ufiripits". It is about a man who guilefully married his own to daughters. However, the moment they found out who their husband was, the two sisters were overcome with shame and agreed to put an end to the unseemly situation. The accursed father was lured into a trap. He drowned himself and was transformed into a sea giant (cesar pak), to dwell in the estuary of the Ayip river until the end of eternity, while his two daughters went and left their village, in search of another place to live. Another well-known legendary story is the tale of "Beorpit", a handsome young man. When his efforts to do good did not reach his standard of perfection, he was filled with shame and vanished forever. DANCE AND MUSIC Dancing has its ritual significance in the Asmat community. It forms the most important element in their communication with "Fumeripits", the Great Creator. The general name for Asmat dances is "ndi". It was originally a war dance. It came into existence as the expression of their joy as they had won a war. To celebrate the victory the Asmats would dance all night long, while singing songs and telling their experiences during the battle, to the accompaniment of the dynamic beating of the small, oblong-shaped drum "tifa" and long, shrill cries. The dance movements are basically simple but full of symbolism, and imitate the motions of animals, such as: butterfly (fot'ndi), where the legs make opening and closing motions; the cassowary (jiwin'ndi), where the feet, hands and hips move in rhythm; the sago-worm (to'faeton'ndi), where the body keeps coiling and twisting. Through dancing they get rid of things that burden their minds, and achieve a feeling of liberation in the true sense of the word. They believe that getting into a trance, unstained and free is the moment of perfect contact with their Great Creator, "Fumeripits". An important element in their daily life is singing or "so" in the local dialect. They sing for ritual ceremonies or for whiling away the time. They sing with or without the accompaniment of instruments. Their most favourite musical instrument is the "em", a kind of drum, which is sometimes joined by the "fu", an instrument made of wood or bamboo. In ceremonies where proas (cie) are used, such as the "cie pokmbu" or the launching of a new boat, and in welcoming festivities, they would beat their oars against the sides of the boat in the rhythm of their song. The distinction of songs rest in the rhythms created by the beat of the "em" and by their lyrics. Songs for ritual ceremonies are not interchangeable. This means that songs used for certain ceremonies may not be sung at any other ceremony because each occasion has its own collection of songs, and these have been preserved through generations. In contrasts to the ceremonial songs, the non-ceremonial ones are haphazard. The Asmat sing to raise their spirit, like when they start tiring from work, and when one person burst into a song, the others would spontaneously join him, if they share his actual feelings - which may be of sadness or of joy. WOOD CARVING Owing to the superior quality of fine woodcarving skills the Asmat people find acclaim throughout the whole world. Experts regard their work as a cultural gift of universal value, and therefore this woodcarving is given a good, appropriate place in most prominent museums in the United States of America, in the Netherlands, West Germany, France, etc. This similar appreciation also can be found in a number of books on the Asmat, containing the research findings of world-renowned anthropologists. The Asmat believe that carvings connect the life of this world with the world of the spirit. They are the medium through which the Asmat remain in contact with their ancestors. They are deeply influenced by their beliefs and cultural values on which they base their community life. Let us observe their most well-known myth: One day sitting alone in loneliness in his great feast hoyse in the jungle, Fumeripitsj, The Creator, decided to make carvings. He carved good figures, some were male and some female, and put them all inside in the feast house. He was pleased with his work but still feeling lonely. Fumeripitsj then began making a drum by hollowing out a section of log, putting a lizard skin over one end and tied it there with rattan and a mixture of his own blood and white lime. When it was ready, he beat on the drum. Soon the figures around him began to move, jerkily at first. The faster he beat the drum, the faster and more easily the figures moved. Gradually the figures came to life and, in this way, the first Asmat appeared. They are masterly in expressing their esthetic feelings in the wood carvings they create, using designs which are un-paralleled in this world - although the tools they use are very, very simple, such as sea shells, cassowary bones or stone chips. The main theme dominating the Asmat art of wood carving is Man, his power and valor. Like ourselves, the Asmats also like to mark their possessions with symbols indicating their status. The shield of a war commander, for instance, is exclusively ornamented with an image of the parying manits (the wenet wow), while the stork, or "pomar wow", is carved only on the shield of a war commander who excels in hunting down the enemy. All artifacts made for permanent use, such as shields, drums, bowls, horns, and spears, are carved with great skill and a keen, dramatic sense of balance and beauty. The figures are carved with deep knowledge and control and show an outstanding sense of harmony and a bent towards abstraction. Indeed, as a tradition, each piece of carved wood represents an inscription of the Asmats' observation of their environments. As mentioned earlier, all men in Asmat carve to some extent. Everyone learns to make his own bows and arrows, paddles and canoes, sago pounders as well as simple types of spears. It reminds us of the Western joke on the hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt: A man who cannot draw a picture, is an illiterate, because the ancient Egyptian alphabet consists of picture sequences. However, when something more elaborate is required, something demanding special skills, ordinary carvers turn to the best ones. Referred to by one or two names i.e. "wow ipitsj", literally "design men", and "tsjestsju ipitsj", "clever men", carvers in Asmat are greatly respected. Everywhere in Asmat there are particularly good carvings by particularly good carvers. The carvings of these men have special characteristics one can easily identify who made it: for instance the shape and the grouping of the figures, the general lines, the kind of motifs they have invented and developed. The Asmat artisans keep pouring their creative values assiduously into each piece of wood carving. Thus, not one piece they produce is solely ornamental and without meaning. To paint artifacts, the Asmat use three colors: white, red and black. White paint, called "mbi", is made from mussel shells, red paint, called "wasah" is ochre from foothills, and black paint named "sosok" is made from crushed charcoal. However, this excellence could hardly be upheld with the arrival of Westerners in the beginning of the 20th century, who came streaming in treating the Asmat wood carvings as mere souvenirs. Moreover, the Western tourists and antique dealers were ordering wood carvings for home decoration purposes. This flow of commercialism inevitably brought about a sad misrepresentation - not to say complete disappearance - of the Asmat art of wood carving. This is indeed the challenge demanding our serious attention: amidst the ever-increasing contact with the outside world, it would be wise to keep preserving the distinctive character of the Asmat culture, which now has become world renowned. THE ASMAT PROGRESS AND DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION Asmat is a name which finds acclaim throughout the whole world, due to the superior quality of their fine wood-carving skills. Meanwhile, it has to be admitted that the Asmat people's living conditions are fraught with great social problems. For this reason the "Asmat Progress and Development Foundation" feels itself called to help create better living conditions, which may enable the Asmat people to develop themselves more in line with present day progress and development. The foundation proved to have found good response. To achieve its noble aims, the Foundation, established in 1985 and legally confirmed as corporate body in late 1987, is now receiving much assistance and support from various sides. Within a relatively short time, as a non-profit organization the Foundation has been able to carry out various activities ranging from setting up the Asmat Center to exhibitions, It also supplies the Asmat Museum in the Indonesia in Miniature Park (TMII) with artifacts.