Posters by Taring Padi (Indonesia)

In 2002 the IISH Asia Department acquired a collection of 28 Indonesian posters created by Taring Padi, a group of Indonesian artists from Yogyakarta, Java.

Since 1998 a group of young Indonesian artists and activists from Yogyakarta, a city in central Java, wearing punk hairstyles and tattoos and calling themselves the 'Lembaga Budaya Kerakyatan Taring Padi', or the Organisation of People's Culture Fangs of Rice, have initiated an art movement opposed to the 'art business' in galleries because of its obvious associations with capitalism. Living and working in a deserted school building, they design images, posters, banners, cartoons and t-shirts based on political and social themes and display them in public places and at demonstrations. In cooperation with a number of other organisations, they published a short-lived bulletin, Opposing imperialism. They want to be seen as more to the left, more collectivist and more radical than other Indonesian organisations for artists that also aim to carry the message of social concern and to bypass the galleries. The IISH collection of Taring Padi posters represents the grim realities of the Suharto New Order period and afterwards.

Here are some examples:

Bersatulah dalam perbedaan

Perdamaian antar umat

Semua bersaudara

Buktikan pemilu tanpa tetes darah

Berikan cinta pada sesama

Perang hanya mempersulit keadaan!!

Senjata tak-selesaikan masalah

Bangun nusantara tanpa tetes darah

Rukun agawe sentosa: senjata tidak berkuasa atas manusia

Tanah untuk petani penggarap