WARTAKAWARSA: Rites of the Souls
- Performance
- Free entry
90 min.
Info
WARTAKAWARSA: Rites of the Souls is an experimental performance by the Indonesian brothers Bintang Manira Manik & Gilang Anom Manira Manik, a contemporary work based on research of ceremonial ritual art methods.
The performance has as departure point the sugihan, atraditional Javanese ceremonial ritual that refers to a cleansing process of the environment. The project is a reflection on hidden historical legacies related to the Dutch Colonial era, and is aimed to cleanse or purify places that hold dark memories of Indonesia’s past. Inspired by mysticism and traditional rituals, the brothers developed the two characters Datrawuga Jagad Gala and Jiwatra Nur Gama who come from the Orcy World, two cosmic creatures that have the mission to cleanse and bring new energy to earthly places with dark heritage, and to maintain the stability of the world so that the layers of “the upper” and “the lower” dimensions remain on their axis. Through mantras, movements, sounds, and visual elements, the two artists create an entirely new performative category.
The evening starts with a screening of Natasa Tontey’s “Of Other Tomorrows Never Known”.
This speculative fiction of Minahasa mystical belief interlaces care and ancestral dialogues, embracing a healing renewal across numinous, material and technological realms.Emerging from her own background and personal history, Tontey took part in various rituals of the Minahasa communities in Northern Sulawesi, Indonesia. These rituals offered insights into their approach to technology, as the Indigenous communities now also discuss artificial intelligence in their cultural assemblies.
Biographies
Bintang Manira Manik is a multi-instrumentalist and electronic music producer interested in responding to movement with sound – tribal chant, percussive-ambient, soundscape. He started his practice by playing djembe, later explored various percussion, traditional Indonesian drums, and completed an intense 3-year study of Tabla at Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra, New Delhi, India. Besides percussive instruments, he also explored various styles of vocals such as ancient Indian vocal style, Dhrupad and Tuvan throat singing such as Khargyraa and Khomei. Bintang is part of multiple bands active in India and Indonesia. He is also a recent graduate of the World Music Department at Codarts University of the Arts, Rotterdam, and initiator of different projects around the Netherlands.
Gilang Anom M. M. is a visual & performing artist based in Bandung, Indonesia. After his elementary education, Gilang started home schooling focused on the arts. He was coached in workshops, residencies, cultural exchange programmes and apprenticeships with various craftsmen. Gilang’s art world is extremely rich. As a viewer, you are getting engulfed in the detailed universe constructed by his drawing, fashion, scripts, mantras and comic sagas.
