Anatomi Jejak

Anatomy of Traces Curatorial work for Padepokan Seni Bagong Kussuduardja, 2022

The history of Padepokan Seni Bagong Kussudiardja (PSBK), from Bagong Kussudiardja’s artistic explorations to its establishment in 1978 and continued development through the Reform era, reflects a complex ecology of relationships that has sustained one of Indonesia’s important cultural institutions. Rather than the work of a single figure, PSBK has been shaped by a constellation of family members, administrators, disciples, artists, collaborators, and communities whose collective efforts have enabled it to adapt and grow across generations.

The archive emerges from this process as an effort to preserve the traces of these interconnected lives and practices. Comprising photographs, videos, documents, artworks, and ephemera, the PSBK archive records not only the internal life of the Padepokan but also fragments of the wider social and historical contexts in which it existed.

This exhibition explores these two dimensions of the archive: first, the network of people and relationships that have sustained PSBK; and second, the archive’s potential to reveal broader historical conditions, particularly those surrounding the New Order era during which the Padepokan was founded. Through archival materials and participatory works, the exhibition invites visitors to encounter the archive as a living medium through which history is continually activated, interpreted, and reimagined.

Unhistoried Arif Furqan & Reza Kutjh