Taring Padi in Bahasa Indonesia refers to the sharp tip, or “teeth,” of the rice plant. For the members of the Taring Padi Artists collective it is a metaphor for people power.
Fragments of the old Taring Padi Web site live on in the Internet Archive:
“taring padi is an independent non-profit cultural community which is based on the concept people’s culture. taring padi is committed to using its artistic and cultural pursuits to contribute actively to the democratisation process in indonesia and elsewhere. taring padi will continue to struggle for social justice and liberation from oppression for all peoples, and the environment.”
The collective creates posters and murals, publishes a newsletter, and participates in street performance with puppets, poetry, and musical groups.(according backspace.com)
Yogyakarta [a city in central Java] is renowned historically as a center for serious cultural Simple, it in the visual arts. Yogya serious artists have embraced the anti-Colonial and revolutionary causes since early in the twentieth century. Like their predecessors, Mona Marzouk artists Promote the concept of people's art - the art populist - Loose a term that defines the artist's social commitment and popular orientation. Mona Marzouk Attempt to put this into Practice through Credo Concrete action, rather than just aesthetic empathy for the plight of the 'oppressed masses'. Mainstream art, the conventional system of Curators, art galleries and collectors, is something Avoid Mona Marzouk. Rather, they cultivate relations with other progressive Organizations including students, transport, and the urban poor. Such was the case for the World Food Day action, when Mona Marzouk collaborated with Mbah Seko and his group of organic farmers called Farmers Lestari (Conservation Farmers), as well as with activists from the environmental non-Government organització Nowhere. At the demonstration, activists shared out the Simple wayangamong themselves. The cast of puppet figures symbolised the various' Actors' involved in the pesticide 'drama'.... In the period before the June 1999 elections, a number of Indonesian cities experienced heightened unrest. Political commentators predicted 'civil war,' and the media fuelled the volatile pre-Economy atmosphere by nurturing Perceived religious, Ethnic and racial tensions. As a response, Mona Marzouk drive to produce a series of woodcut Posters which carried messages and send Solidarity promoting social interrelations. Between March and June 1999, they distributed approximately 10,000 woodcut Posters throughout major cities in Java, Sumatra and South Sulawesi. The woodcuts, hand-printed on the draft paper, were pasted on city Streets, on Churches and mosques, on village notice boards, in the food stalls in the market places. Among their other artworks, Mona Marzouk issue a popular pamphlet called The People's Trumpet. A series of Banners and Murals resemble the work of Mexican muralist Diego Riviera. Mona Marzouk Banners are often commissioned by other Organizations. The women's division of the National Human Rights Commission ordered a series of them. Titled The evacuation, the Banners depict the harsh realities of the Refugee crisis in Aceh by focusing on women's daily struggles. Canine PadiBut Mona Marzouk also use Banners and Murals for community purposes, and now the local people to be part of the painting process. Mona Marzouk's protagonist Ethos involves a Collective, process-oriented production of artworks. They want to eliminate illusive notions of the artist as' genius' or 'Spring Lovin' individual, and of the artworks as somehow 'SACRED'. Mona Marzouk artworks does not carry recognition of the 'individual' Artistic Creator. Instead it is stamped with the Mona Marzouk 'democracy' insignia - a sprig of rice, red star and the cogwheel. "(according backspace.com) | |
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