“JAVA’S MACHINE: PHANTASMAGORIA” artwork by jompet kuswidanarto
As an installation, Java’s Machine: Phantasmagoria, tries to approach the concept above by adopting the form/figure of a royal soldier, as can be found in Java’s centre of excellence (Yogyakarta and Solo). We can see the form and practice of Java’s royal soldier as a portrayal of how Javanese syncretism tries to merge divergent beliefs and cultures that come to Java. Since the middle of the 18th century, when the Dutch colonialization had already intervened in the cultural and political affairs of the Javanese kingdoms, Java’s royal soldiers didn’t have a military function any longer. Their existence only serves a symbolic prominence. As mentioned above, this practice should be seen as a strategy, as a defensive mechanism, to reconcile and negotiate contradictory beliefs and cultures. This can be seen in their costumes, that are in fact, collages of various cultures and traditions: Hindu, Islam, the West and local traditions. This is a new battlefield for Javanese soldiers, a war against the idea of homogenization.
