Jakarta. This week, I’m taking a break from consumerism — but that doesn’t mean I’m taking a break from celebrating Indonesian creatives.
In fact, I’m using this week’s column to emphatically tell you to go to the fantastic OK Video Festival at the National Gallery in Central Jakarta. It ends on Sunday so make sure you make time this weekend.
If you’ve been to this video art festival in past years or are into this medium at all, this year’s event is definitely a must-see. Building on the momentum of previous festivals and under a wide-ranging theme, the New Order, this year’s event is the best one yet.
One of my favorite things about OK Video is that the Indonesian and international works blend together almost seamlessly to create a cohesive and stellar event. It’s a great indicator of how new Indonesian art is earning its place on the world stage.
I also have to rave about the theme and the curated works. For the Indonesian pieces, everything is well-curated and deal with this complex topic and era in the nation’s history with the right touch of respect and critical thinking. It was a rare example of not using a topic as a gimmick — OK Video 2015 is the real deal.
For me, some of the can’t-miss Indonesian works include “Dunia Dalam Televisi” (“The World Inside a Television) by DIODORAN, an amazing installation where you literally screen TV news thanks to a pair of special glasses. It’s a fascinating method to present the serious subject of media control and what the public is exposed to.
Also worth checking out is The Secret Agents’ “Once Upon A Time in Indonesia 1966,” a work that mixes political and social events from 1966 with their own hip and humorous captions. It’s an alternative history of the pivotal year.
Another interesting work in the festival focuses on footage of the Balibo Five during the controversial conflict in East Timor in 1975. An installation that meshes a coining cure with interviews with people who lived during the New Order, the result is particularly haunting.
Between the Indonesian entries are complimentary works by artists from Asia and beyond. It’s easy to draw a connection between the New Order and footage from 1970s Philippines of a fake tribe. The Tasaday tribe was a hoax during the Marcos government to shift the global perception of the Philippines at the time.
You can also see the theme reflected in Francois Knoetze’s “Cape Mongo,” a fast mish-mash of footage spanning from news reports to cartoons, that on the surface seems schizophrenic but as you keep watching, the bigger picture starts to reveal itself. As a whole, it’s an amazing tapestry that sums up the serious issues facing Knoetze’s home country, South Africa, and the world at large.
Thanks to its fantastic theme and treatment, OK Video will still interest even if you don’t fancy yourself an art expert or even a fan. Catch it this weekend or you’ll have to wait another year!
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