Indonesia
Study Programme of Anthropology (SPA), Faculty of Cultural Studies (FCS) Universitas Brawijaya (UB) held an art exhibition with the theme “Sekitar (Around) Kayutangan” located in the Gallery Room, 1st floor, in the Teras Budaya area of FCS UB. This exhibition was held for four days from Monday to Friday (3/13-17/2023) and was open to the public. Visitors could enjoy various types of artworks in the gallery for free.
This activity is an independent exhibition held under the supervision of Fransiscus, S.Ant, M.A., as a lecturer in the Qualitative Research Methods course and supported by Dr. Hipolitus K. Kewuel, M. Hum., as the Head of the Department of Arts and Cultural Anthropology.
This exhibition was the result of field research conducted around the Kayutangan Heritage area. This project was carried out by all 70 students of the SPA class of 2020. In its implementation, the exhibition organizers were divided into three teams; management, artistic, and research teams.
“Our lecturer started this project. This is the assignment in the qualitative research methods course. Well, the project is in Kayutangan. So, we went to Kayutangan and the focus was up to the research’s aim. Some are taking people’s economics, and some other are about the settlement. The discussion on the scope also varies,” said Shafara, a student of the SPA who is part of the exhibition committee.
Artworks displayed include replicas of Kayutangan shops, paintings, research instruments, popped-up magazines, soundscapes, ethnographic photos, and food replicas. Each of the displayed artworks talked about the uniqueness and social issues existed in the Kayutangan area.
“Here we raise the theme Sekitar Kayutangan, but the topics can be diverse. Some discussed small food hawkers and cafes, buskers on the street, and culinary delights. There is also discussion about the sidewalk’s revitalization and its social role,” added Shafa Berlian who is also on the exhibition committee.
“After collecting the data, we process the data into ethnographic writing. The results of this ethnography are later turned into art pieces we displayed here,” she continued.
Visitors who came to this exhibition mostly were FCS students, and most of them gave good and positive feedback.
“This exhibition looks like created by students, and is unique because of the layout, the goods also look like things made by students, so it feels authentic,” said Dinda and Faiza, the visitors to the exhibition. [dkf/dts/vidya/PR FCS]