Collaborating Artist

Ngono Ya Ngono, Ning Aja Ngono

 

This artwork aims to depict utopian and dystopian landscapes in response to the relationship between humans and nature, as well as the overlapping role of myths and modern perspectives. The characters in this work are not merely meant to entertain, but serve as a medium to deliver the inherited ideas and values. They represent the relationship between humankind and its natural surroundings, as well as the virtues and vices inherent in human nature, such as valor, strength, wisdom, deceit, and greed.

 

Ngono Ya Ngono, Ning Aja Ngono (lit. it is so, but don’t be so) invites us to look back to the land, remembering that behind every pledge of growth, there are always traces of progress left behind. It reflects on how humans build, destroy, and perhaps one day, return to what was once considered merely a backdrop: the earth itself.

 

–Tehato

 

 

Sementara Kering Menjelma Ingatan

 

One of my most vivid childhood memories is a 1990s calendar featuring images of green hills and a dam in Wonogiri. Behind this beautiful image lies the story of dozens of submerged villages and the displacement of thousands of people for the sake of development. Today, at the bottom of the dam, graves and remnants of civilization emerge when the water recedes—becoming temporary monuments that will eventually sink back into the water along with the memories and stories associated with them.

 

This work is adapted from the audiovisual installation Yang Timbul dan Tenggelam serta Ingatan yang Terukir pada Air (2025), inspired by the phenomena and stories surrounding Waduk Gajah Mungkur (Gajah Mungkur Reservoir). This short video raises the issue of the mechanism of memory, which often relies on distance, form, and materiality—on the remains, objects, and traces that are visible on the surface.

 

The rites of ebb and flow reveal the remains of a civilization hidden at the bottom of the dam, but also erode and submerge it. Memories are trapped in transience: waiting to disappear in the stagnant water, or vanishing along with the fragile materials that uphold them.

 

— Arif Furqan