The Journal

(Photo: Eka Wahyu) Rangkaian gelaran Glorious Celebration yang diselenggarakan oleh manajemen Plaza Ambarrukmo Yogyakarta (Amplaz) selama dua hari (26&27/7/2013) berlangsung meriah. Kegiatan seperti Lomba Da’i Cilik, Riham Nasyid, hiburan musik Gambus & akustik, demo make up dan hijab, layanan tenda ta’jil, whirling dance (tari sufi), serta fashion show busana muslim diselenggarakan Amplaz dalam rangka menyambut libur Lebaran 2013. Fashion show busana muslim yang digelar di lantai 2 Amplaz pada Sabtu (27/7) menampilkan koleksi busana muslim karya 10 perancang busana maupun tenant yang membuka gerainya di Amplaz. Bertema senada, Glorious Celebration, peragaan busana ini dimaksudkan untuk memberi panduan pada masyarakat mengenai trend busana muslim terkini sekaligus untuk memberikan pilihan outfit pada para pencinta busana muslim dalam merayakan hari kemenangan Idul Fitri 1434 H yang sudah semakin dekat. Warna-warna cerah hingga natural mendominasi koleksi busana muslim...

Karya Iwan Amir pada Jogja Fashion Week (JFW) 2013. (Photo: Eka Wahyu) Gelaran Jogja Fashion Week (JFW) 2013 hari pertama, Rabu (3/7/2013), menghadirkan koleksi fashion Parade Designer Casual di panggung catwalk. 18 designer dari berbagai kota masing-masing menampilkan 8 koleksi outfit terbarunya pada  fashion show  sesi ke-2 yang dimulai pukul 19.30 WIB. Sesuai dengan tema kasual yang diangkat, para designer mengusung koleksi busana berkonsep  ready to wear  dengan menggunakan kain tradisional yang dipadu dengan potongan modern sehingga terlihat santai namun tetap anggun. Warna-warna cerah juga di eksplor untuk menciptakan kesan dinamis meskipun banyak juga yang tetap mengetengahkan ciri klasik dengan menggunakan warna hitam dan putih saja. Iwan Amir dengan Badui’s Project-nya, misalnya, menampilkan koleksi Weirdorchid yang memadukan bahan etnik batik Tasik dengan warna-warna cerah cenderung mencolok dan potongan simpel. Koleksi busana designer asal J...

Kinci, Roby’s Imagination of Dreams 5/20/2012 - Eka Wahyu “Saturnus”, pencil on paper. A young talented graphic designer Roby Dwi Antono recently displays his 20 artworks in Tirana House & Artspace at Jalan Suryodiningratan No. 55, Yogyakarta. Roby (b. 1990), Ambarawa-born artist which now live in Yogyakarta as an illustrator, exhibits his drawing and painting in a visual art exhibition titled  Imajinasi  (Imagination) until May 30, 2012. According to Roby, the theme Imagination has came out from his conversation with a friend about their childhood dreams. Within an imagination surely lies a strong ambition to make it come true. Such spirit obviously could be felt in this Roby’s debut solo exhibition. “We cannot limit whatever we will do in the future, we should never afraid to have dreams. If you can dream it, you can do it,” Roby said. By the exhibition, he wants to share the beauty of children’s imaginations through Kinci, the rabbit chara...

Ngayogjazz 2011, When Togetherness Expressed in Jazzy Style 1/14/2011 - Eka Wahyu The most awaited jazz performance event, the Ngayogjazz, is finally ready to roll after being postponed for about 2 months from the first schedule. Ngayogjazz 2011will be held on Saturday, January 15, raising a theme expressing the togetherness of the Javanese people,  “Mangan Ora Mangan….Ngejazz” . “Finally the fourth Ngayogjazz can be held after being postponed because of Mt. Merapi`s eruption. It should have been presented in November 30, 2010,” said the Event’s Director, Djaduk Ferianto, on Thursday (1/13). As always, according to him, the theme of the Ngayogjazz representing the Javanese old saying and characteristics of the people and twist it to suit the jazz spirit. This year the Ngayogjazz is holding the theme,  “Mangan Ora Mangan…Ngejazz” , a twist from a famous saying of the Javanese people,  “Mangan Ora Mangan Ngumpul”  (Whether we eat or not it doesn’t matter, ...

Jogja Broadway Show 2011 1/06/2011 - Eka Wahyu Entering the New Year, the Garasi Enterprise will present a new concept of performing art titled " Jogja Broadway Show ", on 6th to 16th January , 2011 starts at 4 PM of local time and take place at the Societet Building, Taman Budaya Yogyakarta (TBY), jalan Sriwedani No. 1 Yogyakarta. This musical theater performance brought together the performing arts with tourism in ‘Broadway’ style to popularize the performing arts and tourism in Yogyakarta. “Yogyakarta as a city of arts and tourism actually only have a few regular theatrical performances. For this reason, we had the idea to hold a new concept of performance in ‘Broadway’ style, which can be an alternative entertainment for the tourists visiting Yogyakarta. This could become a new tourism icon for the city," said Kusworo Bayu Aji, the Executive Producer of the Garasi Enterprise, to the press (4 / 1). Aji explained that Jogja Broadway show is planned to beco...

New Year’s Eve with Daniel Sahuleka at Sheraton Yogyakarta 12/31/2010 - Eka Wahyu (© Eka Wahyu) With his hits Don't Sleep Away This Night and You Make My World So Colourful, the world famous Indonesian-born Dutch singer Daniel Sahuleka will live up the New Years eve party in Jogjakarta. Titled Recovery of Merapi, the concert will be held in Mataram Grand Ballroom Sheraton Mustika Yogyakarta Resort and Spa tonight (31/12) starts at 8 PM of local time. About 10 songs and hits like I Adore You, If I Didn't, and Tiada Lagi Cinta will be performed to welcome the new year. Through this charity concert the Sheraton and Daniel's management will also try to gain fund to help the victims of Merapi eruption by selling merchands, DVDs from Daniel's Accoustic Live Concert at Holland album, and also an auction, an accoustic guitar signed by Daniel Sahuleka will be offered to public. According to Johnny William Maukar, Daniel's manager, at first the concept of th...

Art Exhibition Coloring a Century of Muhammadiyah 6/20/2010 - Eka Wahyu Commemorating ‘1 Abad Muktamar Muhammadiyah 2010 – A Century of Muhammadiyah Organization Congress’, a group of artists will held an Islamic visual art exhibition titled ‘Seni Rupa Islam – Islamic Visual Arts’. This exhibition will take place at two venues, the Student Center of Jogjakarta Muhammadiyah University (July 2 - 9) and at Posnya Seni Godod (July 1 - 16). According to Godod Sutejo, one of the artists, the exhibition will display paintings and sculptures from about 30 wellknown artists from Jogjakarta and surroundings such as Syaiful Adnan, Edy Sunarso, Amry Yahya, Nasirun, Syahrizal Koto, Tulus Warsito, and Agus Kamal. By the exhibition, the artists would like to express their gratitude to Muhammadiyah for supporting them all the time and for Islamic culture for being inspiration of their life and works. “Islam, especially Muhammadiyah as one of two biggest moslem organizations in Indonesia hav...

Kebon’s Hand-Painted Batik Revive after the Quake 6/17/2010 - Eka Wahyu (© Eka Wahyu) Kebon Village in Bayat, Klaten, Central Java, is one of the centers of traditional batik painters that use natural dye. Before the earthquake shook Jogjakarta and Central Java in 2006, some of this village’s batik painters were laborers in famous batik enterprises in Jogjakarta and Solo. However, after the earthquake, most of them returned to their village and worked only when there were orders from wholesalers. Recognizing the potential of Kebon Village, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) with the support of Java Reconstrustion Fund (JRF), currently extends assistances to the 5 groups in hand-painted batik sector, which consisted of 169 batik painters through a recovery for micro and small enterprises program that have been ran for 4 years since the earthquake. (© Eka Wahyu) Before the assistance program, the traditional batik painters from Kebon Village only...

Mexico and Indonesia Look at Each Other Through Lenses 6/15/2010 - Eka Wahyu This June, The Embassy of Mexico in Indonesia promotes third dialogue of Mexican and Indonesian artists. As part of the International Women's Day commemoration, the Embassy of Mexico and Ministry of Culture and Tourism join their efforts to display a dialogue between women photographers from both countries. Photographers Marcela Taboada from Mexico and Desiree Harahap from Indonesia gather in 'Saling Menatap [Looking at Each Other]' Photographs Exhibition held at Jogja Gallery, Jl. Pekapalan No 7, Alun-Alun Utara, Yogyakarta, from June 14 to June 27, 2010 and display about 70 photographs of their works. Marcela Taboada, from Mexico received a scholarship from the Indonesian Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and for two months she traveled to Java, Sumatra and Bali, where, as she said, "began to photograph Indonesia with her soul". The people, their culture and traditions, th...

The History of International Graphic Works at Sangkring Art Space Jogjakarta 6/14/2010 - Eka Wahyu                                        Enjoying two of George Segal's works (Copyright: Eka Wahyu) On the occasion of the celebrations for the Italian National Day (June 2nd), the Embassy of Italy to Indonesia and the Italian Institute of Culture Jakarta, with the support of the Italian Trade Commission and Biasa Artspace, present to the Indonesian public the graphic art exhibition: “THE DOUBLEFOLD DREAM OF ART: 2RC BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND ARTIFICER - AN ALL ITALIAN EXPERIENCE”, curated by art critic Prof. Achille Bonito Oliva. Different works were displayed at three separate art spaces: the Italian and International historical artists were presented at Galeri Nasional Indonesia; the Avanguardia at Selasar Sunaryo Art Space, the American and British artists at Sangkring Art Sp...

A Journey to Classical Music through Harp and Saxophone Recital 5/19/2010 - Eka Wahyu (Copyright: Eka Wahyu) It was a ‘journey’ which brought by Lavinia Meijer & Aurelia Saxophone Quartet to the audiences in a stunning concert on last Wednesday night (18/5). Performing not less than seven compositions from 1903’s up to now, Lavinia Meijer & Aurelia Saxophone Quartet amazed the audiences that crowded up the auditorium of the Faculty of Medicine of Gadjah Mada University, Jogjakarta. To satisfy the audiences that did not leave the concert even after the show end, both Lavinia Meijer and Aurelia Saxophone Quartet finally played five other compositions in solo and ensemble performances. Lavinia Meijer, a well-known Dutch harpist of Korean descent, was so fascinating at the show. With the work of "Danses - Dance Sacrée & Danse Profane" by Debussy in 1903, and solo harp arrangement from Jacques Ibert, "Six Pieces", as well as...

PHOTOGRAPHER LIFE A Day in the Life A photographer takes pictures of people, places, objects, and events and tries to artistically capture and evoke a mood, feeling, or drama surrounding a particular subject. Photography is both an artistic and technical job with which one can present his or her technical proficiency as well as beautifully composed images. A photographer uses his camera much the way an artist uses his brush, as a tool to capture his unique perspective of the world around him. The famous photographer Ansel Adams popularized the genre of landscape photography as art through his pictures of Yosemite. Alfred Steiglitz recorded the charm of the drama of the modern world around him in great photos such as “The Steerage” and also earned fame for his series of portraits of Georgia O’Keeffe. Cartier-Bresson’s subject was the city itself. A photographer must practice extensively in order to master the technical knowledge of light, camera settings, lenses, film, and ...