TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The 2013 Art Jog–a contemporary Art Fair–opens today at Taman Budaya Yogyakarta and will be attended by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Hatta Rajasa. "I hope that this will not only become a local event," said the Director of 2013 Art Jog Satriagama Rakantaseta.

There are 158 artworks from 115 artists which are being exhibited and ready for sale in the event. The artworks are the selection of 1,423 works submitted since March to May. The participating artists come from Yogyakarta, Bandung, Jakarta, Bali, Magelang, Semarang, and also foreign countries such as Malaysia, Japan, and United States.

The Art Jog also exhibits commission art works. The artist for this year's Art Jog Commission work is Iwan Effendi. The artist is well known through a puppet performance and will now exhibit a carousel at the Yogyakarta Cultural Park yard. There will be seven puppets on the carousel, consists of Adventurer, Trader, Religious Figure, Painter, Chef, Diplomat, and Linguist.

The organizer of the Art Jog provides Young Artist Award, an award to be given to the artists under 33 years old. The selected artist will receive training and will get opportunity to participate in the three months artists' residence program in Berlin next year. "[This is] to sharpen the search of new artists," Satriagama said. The art fair which is held from July 6 to 20 carries themes about maritime culture. Bambang "Toko" Wijaksono, a curator of 2013 Art Jog said that the theme is not solely refers to boats, beaches and sea. "The maritime culture is also a reflection of the people's behavior and paradigm," Bambang said. The theme appears in the visual arts offered to the collectors.

ANANG ZAKARIA