Kamera Lubang Jarum, Creative Economy Photography Program

By Bahtiar Dwi Susanto/ INSOMNIUM Indonesia

At its early development, the phenomena of digital photography in Indonesia is sided with both pro’s and contra’s. For its role in business, digital photography, by most, is considered a benefit supporting their industries and particularly for the published media industry. But for many others, its technology has made it much too effortless and unchallenging especially when leisured by digital imaging. Ideological aspects and idealism may influence each side in contra towards the other. Nevertheless, digital photography is utterly an extortionate technology.

As global crises continues, entering its second period (post economy bankruptcy in the US), many photography communities that give more concern on fundamental knowledge of this subject see the existence of digital photography as a challenge. Today’s photography due to its digital trend is an exceptionally exclusive and expensive subject to mingle with. As a consequence, for 108.7 million impoverished Indonesians or about 49% of its populace (figures from world bank annual report 2006), photography seems even more untouchable. The challenge is a matter of how to present photography in an economic creative way so that it can be accessible for a broader public. One resolution we come to is by providing inexpensive learning courses and by using alternative instruments that are affordable like the pinhole camera for instance.

For the record, in the year 1999 two photographers by the name Ray Bachtiar Drajat, supported by I-See gallery (now vacuum), and Yudhi Soerjoatmodjo, a famous research photographer in Indonesia, formulated a project on the pinhole camera and established the Indonesian Lubang Jarum (pinhole) Community. The Indonesian Lubang Jarum (pinhole) Community progressed with members coming from nine cities around the country, Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Malang, Surabaya, Bali, Makasar and Medan in only two years time (1999-2001). Although with very limited funding, this program was able to achieve remarkable success. It had opened new views on photography as not only an inexpensive but also a fun and practical activity. It became common for more people and many found the pinhole camera as a helpful instrument to learn about the early technology of taking and processing photographs.

By using a simple tin can as a camera and photo paper as the recorded media, people will enjoy the product of photography in a unique sense. The complete output is processed in the dark room and the photos created will be highly appreciated both esthetically and technically. The pinhole program promotes creativity in economy Evoking interest for more people on photography by making it accessible for everyone. Further to add, its basic technology will teach people to better understand how to operate the modern camera and its lens.

In Indonesia, programs like the pinhole camera had been promoted since the early 21st century. These programs had also promoted the study of photography thru history and its science. The pinhole camera had placed a new current and nearly started a new trend. Now it is time to reinforce and continue its progress for even more generations.

As a consequence of Indonesia’s economy condition we believe that the pinhole camera and providing inexpensive workshops will be the best solution to maintain the existence and popularity of photography in our country. Creating a product of photography doesn’t always have to depend on one popular technology, on the contrary, some problems as a result from technology itself may also evoked alternatives, such as the case of digital technology. In other countries such as Cuba and China, a photography revolution had also taken place during an unfit economy conditions. At the period of economy impediment, Cuba had produce their own creative photography using conventional technology. In china means of democratizing photography by producing products in their own country had made photography a subject accessible for their impoverished citizens.

In Indonesia the reliability of digital photography is inevitable especially for numbers of business purposes but for the rest of our 49% impoverished this pixel phenomena is somewhat an exceptional venture. Concepts for creative Economy like the Kamera Lubang Jarum photography program manifest importance in developing countries such as Indonesia. And with the help of photography communities socializing this activity will make it possible to keep the existence of photography as well as have every layer of community be involved in learning its techniques. By maintaining its practice and popularity amongst our future generation, hopefully photography will become a subject not only oriented in business and industries but also a subject of studies oriented for education and even further become a part of Indonesia’s culture.

Lets have a peep thru the pinhole…

Deconstruction of Visual Art Media

A reflection of photography as a media of art and technology

Bahtiar Dwi Susanto /INSOMNIUM Indonesia

The history of technology is the history of developing techniques and inventing its supporting devices. Knowledge and cultural background urges mankind to invent and just the opposite almost most scientist analyzes maters by reflecting on technology because the proficiency of technology will directly effect on economic efficiency and other traits. Photography as a form of development in mechanic procreation of art is a phenomena of art and technology in indisputable growth. At it is commence, the documentary purpose of photography has taken over the era of realism painted artworks. At this period the human demand for documentation is crucial. Photography extends and becomes a new form of visual reality. For instance, the conception of studio photography for European high society, mass media illustrations, nature documentation and other fields of study. After over half a century after it was introduced, photography has given important contribution to cultural progression of the modern human particularly during the 20th century when it created a revolution in terms of vision or the way of seeing. Photography doesn’t only create accurate imagery, but also specified and objective in presenting reality. Post-Photography Regarding this matter, there are indications of how our people act towards the condition of modern photography. Yudhi Soerjoatmodjo says that there is a trend for the demand scheme for our society related photography as a part of an industry. How photography at its commencement replaced the role of wood cut in printed media and was blamed to be imprudent as a consequence to its unlimited ability to replicate. Photography was viewed as low-class art and even doubted to be a work of art. The achievement of digital technology today is a triumph delightfully appreciated by business people. Photography technology is further applied in many other forms of technology like in mobile phones, video cameras, and portable computers/laptops. Electronic companies compete in producing affordable photo camera aimed for people from lower class economy. At this period technology in photography was positioned as something accessible for anyone and anyone can “instantly” become a photographer. Business opportunities expand from big cities to small towns. People viewed photography had archived the height of perfection. Photography became a form of art that is massively accessible to people at every level, thru institutions, like mass media and publishers. Photography became a symbol of the spirit in modern culture; democratizing the world of imagery (before photography, painted artwork was possessed only by a specific class in social hierarchy) The conditions of photography particularly in Indonesia are an exception-far from phenomenal. Here art institutions are not equipped with a systematic and distinct syllabus. This is the cause to why photography overlaps-covering parts of the same interest- in art and technology. Independent organizations founded by community base groups are rather rare; therefore the steps for appreciation of photography and its every occurrence becomes a challenge. Further, it turns into motivation and spirit to analyze Photography comprehensively by presenting works of photography crafted with traditional techniques. This doesn’t mean that the new techniques are not of interest. It is more of an effort to keep up with the fast development of technology causing the old techniques to be forgotten and also to maintain the availability of materials needed for conventional photography in the market. We have run campaigns to promote past photography techniques such as cyanotype, photogram, pinhole camera, lomography, and techniques of the darkroom. We intend to regain the sprit of learning the history of modern photography as an effort to democratize knowledge and photography studies, affordably and massively. The purpose is to create new generation of photography moved by the spirit to bear the future of photography that will be viewed more than just a vehicle of mechanic reproduction but also the possibilities in progressing appreciations in the future. The demand for advance photography technologies should create passion and enthusiasm as forceful as it was when first discovered. As a conclusion, I would like to state that photography should be reanalyzed to achieve it’s redline of leading strength in visual art appreciation. The history of photography will be the path to our goal for this progression by employing avocations and informal education.

Paper presentation at ISEA2008 Singapore

Menilik ISEA2008, Sg

Perjalanan ke ISEA2008 Singapore lalu merupakan kepenatan bagi saya sendiri sebagai peserta yang baru pertama kali mengikuti program ISEA. Karena awalnya hanya keisengan dengan mengirimkan proposal presentasi dan ternyata lolos. Tidak banyak yang saya ketahui sebelumnya bahkan sampai pulang dari acara tersebut. Akhirnya yang saya tahu bahwa ada sebuah konsep baru dari globalisasi, seni, internet dan networking. Mungkin juga saya salah menterjemahkan isi secara garis besar program tersebut. Namun dari banyaknya presentasi yang saya ikuti selama seminggu semuanya mengarah pada internet culture.

Yup. Ruang interaksi yang sebenarnya menawarkan banyak hal dalam networking sekaligus ruang yang berbahaya bagi konsep pembacaan global. Semua tersaji disitu tanpa sekat. Bagi yang belum siap dengan internet culture bisa merupakan bumerang, karena hanya akan jadi konsumen saja. Kita tidak tahu mau dibawa kemana. Sedang mereka telah dapat membaca dunia orang lain hanya dengan searching by internet.

Bagaimana semestinya kita mensikapi ‘internet culture’?

Inggris pernah mengeluarkan tanda bahaya untuk ini, facebook pun disinyalir sebagai bagian kerja intelejen international.