TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Lala Bohang has been an impactful part of Jakarta’s burgeoning art scene and has no plans of slowing down. Her latest creative escapade is set to impress at the National Gallery’s “Indonesia Residency Program Exhibition 2014.”
The Jakarta-based artist/author will be one of six artists who will take part in the multinational event, which will feature two Indonesians and artists from Italy, France, South Korea and Japan. The National Gallery has joined hands with Jakarta Art Institute (IKJ) in developing the event’s second installment.
Lala’s contribution runs under the title “Written by Lala Bohang,” an installation piece that examines what she perceives as Indonesians’ decreasing interest in quality books literature, which Lala feels has been replaced by “dream selling” reading material.
“Why are the best-selling books here the ones that don’t have their feet on the ground? Books about financial success, life comforts and the likes are successful. Why the focus on schemes or methods on ‘How to Get Rich’? I am not saying all of those [books] are particularly bad, but they will not leave a good impression for the younger generation,” she said.
Lala says she grew up around books, a habit her grandfather had encouraged her to adopt. He introduced her to iconic children’s authors, such as Enid Blyton, Astrid Lindgren and Indonesia’s own “ Serial Cerita Rakyat ,” a series of stories recounting the nation’s folklores.
Through these books, Lala was able to expand her imagination; she recalls wanting to live in a dormitory due to her devotion to Blyton’s “Malory Towers” series. And as a result, her creativity flourished, emphasizing the stark contrast between Indonesian schools’ conservative studying method and the artistic and literary freedom shown to Lala through the power of books.
“Never once did I feel like I was being told or directed to read these books. That was completely different from what we were experiencing at school, where it was all about stale memorizing,” she said.
Luckily, Lala’s secondary high school introduced to her an Indonesian language teacher whose passion for books ran deep. He would encourage his students to write about the books they were reading. It was through this teacher — whose interactive teaching methods and genuine interest in students’ development had a huge impact on the budding artist — that Lala explored her interest in writing, and eventually other creative endeavors.
Last year, Lala joined forces with several friends to establish the Instagram account @lemaribuku, on which the online book club posted photos of books they were reading — especially those that have made a lasting impact on them — along with a brief plot summary.
“That was how I eventually came up with this ‘Written by Lala Bohang’ concept,” she says. “The idea was to create the character, or an alter ego, of a successful writer who was extremely productive in churning out best-selling books — but with poor content.”
One of these literary creations Lala — the alter ego — came up with is titled “The Book of Questions,” a cheeky antithesis of Carol Bolt’s popular “Book of Answers,” which the artist cynically dismisses as a “mystical” piece of text that has managed to dupe modern society into putting its trust in the book’s vague, fortune cookie-style advice.
“Such books show [our] desperation for instant answers and closure. In my ‘book,’ there are questions geared toward a critical audience. It shows that questioning things is what will make us ‘rich.’ Instant answers are dull,” Lala said.
After several failed attempts at clinching a spot in the National Gallery’s residency program, Lala feels appreciative of the rare opportunity to display her work at the prestigious event. She admits to being both excited and cautious about her first stint with the program.
“The amount of effort and focus that is required of the residency is actually an ideal method for coming up with inspired pieces,” she says, adding that the process has been a “sterilizing” experience that has warded off negative distractions.
“It really is like you are being ‘caged’ voluntarily with only your ideas as a cell mate. That kind of focus really has brought me to a level that I have never experienced before; it turned my ideas into something real,” she explains. “In a way, it is not unlike living in a bubble. The only think you can focus on is what is already in your head. What you do is what you do. That is a rich experience.”
The intense experience of preparing for the internship has so enamored Lala that she plans on placing a “personal residency” program once she is done with this exhibition; a self-imposed, rigorous working condition which she believes will result in her best work.
“But before that, I’d like to take a vacation and go hiking or camping in the mountains,” she laughs.
What has truly made a lasting impression, the young artist adds, are not the program’s resulting works of art , but the struggle and dedication she witnessed coming from her fellow artists, which had given her a strange sense of belonging and comfort.
“It was through this residency that I truly understood how young artists abroad may be facing similar situations like us [in Indonesia]. They are also struggling and must work smart in order to continue their craft and display their work,” she says in admiration of her peers. “The only difference is laziness; compared to them, I feel lazy. They are so diligent in documenting their pieces and are very ready when presenting their work to others. That is really where I feel I could learn a lot from.”
According to Lala, being an artist is a “job that requires thorough consideration. The art you create must be prepared and ready no matter how busy you may be. Your art is your livelihood, and so you must be professional.”
JG | MARCEL T
