BAIK ART PRESENTS “MARCH”, A SOLO EXHIBITION BY JOMPET KUSWIDANANTO

Images courtesy of Baik & Jompet K

Baik Art Jakarta – March 22 – April 27,2024

MARCH is an exhibition that explores forgotten feelings and unrecorded memories of power and resistance in Indonesia’s sonic history. The artist reflects on the complexity of daily sound experiences, ranging from melancholic tunes to post-reform anthems and colonialism’s trauma.

Through MARCH, Jompet’s works resonate faint voices amidst Indonesia’s historical journey.

The works presented in this exhibition are a series of the artist’s reflection on the complexity of daily sonic experience in Indonesia, ranging from mushy tunes of the 80s melancholic songs to cacophonic Post-Reformasi anthems, from a music score in a state propaganda movie to the trauma of colonialism implied in mantra chants.

Presented by Som Santoso

Jompet started his artistic journey as a musician, playing various styles and forms of music. He founded several bands and experimental sound projects in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 1997, he attended a contemporary art exhibition and was inspired to study contemporary art on his own. Since then, he has been influenced by the theater collective Teater Garasi and has incorporated sound, video, performance, and interactivity into his art. After completing his studies at the Faculty of Social and Political Science, Gadjah Mada University in 1999, and moved by the euphoria of Reformasi, he started his own art by incorporating sound, video, performance, and interactivity. The early Reformasi era also gave Jompet a strong impetus to explore new realities through the language of art.

Jompet has exhibited his works widely, including Solo exhibition at TropenMuseum Amsterdam, 2014; Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, Sydney, 2016 and MAC’s Grand Hornu, Belgium. As well as group exhibitions including Sun Shower, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, 2017; Sharjah Biennale 2019; Bangkok Art Biennale 2022. In 2014 he won an award from Prudential – Eye Award in Singapore in the installation art category.

His latest solo show, “Dream Express: Personalized History of Mysticism,” explores mysticism in the context of Indonesian history.

Following are Jompet’s recent artworks presented at Baik Art Jakarta :

After Voices 2016
Resin/latex hands, costumes, motorcycle parts, motorcycle helmets, shoes, electronics, flags,
speakers, drums, video, sound, variable dimension
Commissioned by Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, Sydney, 2016

Jompet’s art series, “After Voices,” delves into the performative nature of democracy, focusing on symbols, marching songs, sound systems, and mass mobilization tools as integral elements in conveying power and exploring the boundary between celebration and danger in Indonesian democracy.

Grand Parade 2024
costume on mannequins, leather, saddle, percussion, digital audio player, acrylic on fabric
variable dimension

Grand Parade is a dance performance that draws inspiration from traditional performing arts rooted in the historic Java War conflict and the subsequent colonial plantation industry. Known by various names such as “Angguk,” “Ndolalak,” and “Glipang,” the performance showcases dancers in colonial officer costumes engaging in choreographed fighting scenes. Accompanied by percussion players and singers, the performance reflects on the memory of war and its embodiment by the defeated, while also highlighting the influence of the colonizer. Jompet has been working on this project since 2007, exploring the significance of the defeat of Java War in Javanese politics and culture.

Mnemonic #1 2024
flag, fan, mechanical machine, variable dimension

Watch MNEMONIC#1 installation here

Mnemonic #1 is an installation of mechanically fluttering and falling flags that bear numerical notations from an anti-communist propaganda film’s music score. These simple notes locked in memories and perspectives on communism atrocities for a period of time.

Mnemonic #2 2024
fabric, bucket, mechanical machine, digital audio player, variable dimension

Watch MNEMONIC#2 installation here

Mnemonic #2: Text-washing installation features a fabric with melancholic lyrics repeatedly dipped in bleach, symbolizing a government’s control over music censorship.

Mnemonic #3 2024
cable phone, digital audio player, variable dimension

Mnemonic #3 is Jompet’s melancholic pop music exploring nostalgia and challenging the history. He believes writing melancholic music from the 80s can reveal hidden memories of his social relationships.

Echo chamber #1 2024
ceramic, 35 x 40 cm

Jompet‘s works often feature a headgear made of folded t-shirt, but in Echo Chamber, it becomes a small ceramic room. The headgear contains and reflects the wearer’s voice, including both external and internal sounds. Inside the ceramic object, Jompet wrote musical notation that influenced his development.