About
Initially, for some experts, talking about Tanah Runcuk is like merely pissing in the wind. What is the relevance of reviving Tanah Runcuk in a scientific debate?
Some scholars have regarded it as the fairy tale of the colonialists who “failed to move on”. Some other groups even comprehended Tanah Runcuk as a science-fiction enthusiasm like the story of Atlantis. While within the rest—regardless of the fact that some people even never heard of this name at all—was entrenched a great curiosity; it encouraged the attempt of tracking and arranging the ruble of this very story originating from the “lost” land.
Tanah Runcuk that used to be a subject of intense debates among the scholars, is getting more interesting to be discussed again due to its being within an in-between space; between presence and absence, between fiction and reality, between fantasy and history. Precisely, Centre for Tanah Runcuk Studies intends to read the discourse of Tanah Runcuk which occupies a realm between myth and science with the approaches of art project and interdisciplinary studies. Instead of drawing a conclusion and producing a single interpretation, this effort expects to open a dialogue and alternative entry in approaching the discourse of Tanah Runcuk (which is by time scraped out from our collective memories).
In this portal, CTRS involved writers: researchers and/or scholars with experiences in the fields of art, culture, media, anthropology, architecture, and geography. The process of the research will surely be continued along with the development of findings and methodologies, as well as the data which Centre for Tanah Runcuk Studies remains looking for. By opening such a participatory space and dialogue, it is expected to be able to expand the spectrum of Tanah Runcuk studies.
- DISCLAIMER
MEMOIRS OF TANAH RUNCUK [2014]1 – TRACING THE MYSTERY OF TUGU GONO MANGGALA SANGID [2015] 2 – TROPIKA SELEKTA: ECHOES FROM “TERRA INCOGNITA” [2016]3 – UNTOLD STORIES OF THE ARCHIPELAGO [2017]4 – THE DEATH OF A TIGER AND OTHER EMPTY SEATS [2018]5 – THE DEATH OF TIGER [2019]6– LOVE AND DEATH UNDER THE TROPICAL SUN [2019]7 – WILD CRACKS ON PAVEMENTS [2020]8 are series of art projects which manufacturing (fictional) studies. These narratology – conducted’ by Centre for Tanah Runcuk Studies – are raising discussions on a ‘lost’ territory called Tanah Runcuk and its “cultural” elements. Tanah Runcuk is a territory that was predicted as part of the archipelago in Dutch East Indies. The discourse on Tanah Runcuk was claimed to be lost in order to conceal the corruption in colonial administrative that mingled with feudalistic system in 19th century.
CENTRE FOR TANAH RUNCUK STUDIES (CTRS) is a fictional study centre initiated by artist Timoteus Anggawan Kusno. CTRS works collaboratively with curators, historians, ethnographers, fellow artists and academia. This study centre works interdisciplinary, in order to construct the idea of “Tanah Runcuk”—as a ‘lost’ territory in Dutch East Indies—to draw question on the coloniality of power and what are left unseen. This “model of text production” and/or narratology are also responding to the way history is (re)produced, read, and ‘taken’ in its relativity with certain power and regime.
Drawings, dramaturgs, narratology (directed/by) Timoteus Anggawan Kusno under pseudonym “Centre for Tanah Runcuk Studies” and all its components. Written by Timoteus Anggawan Kusno, Windu W. Jusuf, Irfan R. Darajat, Gata Mahardika, Rio Belvage, Albertus Harimurti, Pandu Yushina Adaba, Heri Kusuma Tarupay, in collaboration with Maria Puspitasari Munthe (translator, editor). Exhibition curators & writers are: Irham Nur Anshari, Charles Esche, Riksa Afiaty, G. Budi Subanar, Alia Swastika, Lisistrata Lusandiana, Jason Wee, Joowon Park, Kerstin Winking. Web development and maintenance by Michael Winanditya (tineliti).
1 MEMORIS OF TANAH RUNCUK [2014] editorial & production collaborators are Windu W. Jusuf, Irfan R. Darajat, Leilani Hermiasih, Gardika Gigih Pradipta, Gata Mahardika, Pandu Yushina Adaba, Rio Belvage, Sanusi, Agung Kurniawan, Hafiz Supriharjo, Bonggal Hutagalung, Mosescrue, Yasin Azhari, Sarwoto Kotot. Presented & performed in Kedai Kebun Forum, Indonesia. Curated by Irham Nur Anshari.
2 TRACING THE MYSTERY OF TUGU GONO MANGGALA SANGID [2015] production collaborators are Didon & co., Jamaluddin Latif, Kurnia Yudha, Gisela Swaragita, Gatot Danar Sulistiyanto, Linda Mayasari, Theodora Agni, Dimas Maulana. This exhibition supported by Cemeti Art House and CKU (Centre for Culture and Development, Embassy of Denmark) as the part of Liminal Art Project (2015); entitled Anatomy of the (Lost) Memory – Collective Remembering Through Institutional Art (Liminal 08)
3 TROPIKA SELEKTA: ECHOES FROM TERRA INCOGNITA [2016] production collaborators are Krack! Studio, Studiomahati Indonesia, Tedjo Klasyk, DGTMB Art Embroidery, Juwara Studio, Batik Winotosastro, Sarwoto Kotot, Tony Albert. Presented & performed in Ark Galerie, curated by Alia Swastika (Indonesia, 2016) and Sullivan+Strumpf, written by G. Budi Subanar (Singapore, 2016).
4 UNTOLD STORIES OF THE ARCHIPELAGO [2017] production collaborators are Didon & co., Beni Arjuna, Rendra Bagus Pamungkas, Sarwoto Kotot, Deni Yudistira, Gata Mahardika, Franciscus Apriwan, Gardika Gigih, Maria Puspitasari, Michael Adhy Chandra, Albertus Harimurti, Irham N. Anshari, Studio Mahati Indonesia. Presented by MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND EDUCATION REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA in EUROPALIA ARTS FESTIVAL, curated by Charles Esche and Riksa Afiaty (Brussels, Belgium, 2017).
5 THE DEATH OF A TIGER AND OTHER EMPTY SEATS [2018] production collaborators are Didon & co., Beni Arjuna, Deni Yudistira, Akiq AW & Juwara Studio, Rendra Bagus Pamungkas, Franciscus Apriwan, Jamaluddin Latif, Ari Dwianto, Teguh Hari, Shohifur Ridho’i. Presented and performed in Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Seoul (MMCA), South Korea. This work is part of “Asia Project: How Little You Know About Me”, curated by Joowon Park (Seoul, South Korea, 2018).
6 THE DEATH OF TIGER [2019] production collaborators are Didon & co., Beni Arjuna, Deni Yudistira, Juwara Studio, Rendra Bagus Pamungkas, Jamaluddin Latif, Ari Dwianto, Teguh Hari, Shohifur Ridho’i. Presented in Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCA) Taipei, Taiwan. This work is part of “Stores We Tell to Scare Ourselves With” exhibition, curated by Jason Wee, Taipei, Taiwan, 2018.
7 LOVE AND DEATH UNDER THE TROPICAL SUN [2019] production collaborators are Didon & co., Beni Arjuna. Presented in Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbay City Museum, India. This work is part of “Mindful Circulation” exhibition, curated by Kerstin Winking, Mumbay, India, 2019.
8 WILD CRACKS ON PAVEMENTS [2020] production collaborators are Didon & co., Beni Arjuna, Annisa P. Cinderakasih, Michael Winanditya. Presented in Museum Sonobudoyo, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. This work is part of Festival Kesenian Yogyakarta [FKY], curated by Lisistrata Lusandiana, Yogyakarta, Indonesia, 2020.
Random parts and ascpects in this publication/website may not be scientific and considered fictional; including intertextualities, theories, datas, citation, endnotes, footnotes, bibliographies, and/or writers, et cetera. Partial citation, reproduction, and any kind of mention referring to this publication and or website are neither the responsibility of the author nor the publisher.
Please read with caution.
Some Photographs used in this project & website remixed from the Wikimedia Commons and Leiden University Library Digital Collection, under the License CC BY-SA 3.O. or CC BY 4.0.
CC BY-SA 3.0 You are free: to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, to remix – to adapt the work. Under the following conditions: (1) attribution – You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). (2) share alike – If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.
CC BY 4.0 You are free: to share — to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, to adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms. Under the following terms: Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits. [Notices: You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation.No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.]
Again, please read, reread, and unlearn the text carefully.
- ALL OF THE ORIGINAL ARTWORKS RELATED TO THIS PROJECT – ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NO PART OF THE ORIGINAL ARTWORKS MAY BE REPRINTED OR REPRODUCED OR UTILIZED IN ANY FORM OR BY ANY ELECTRONIC, MECHANICAL, OR OTHER MEANS, NOW KNOWN OR HEREAFTER INVENTED, INCLUDING PHOTOCOPYING AND RECORDING, OR IN ANY INFORMATION STORAGE OR RETRIEVAL SYSTEM, WITHOUT PERMISSION IN WRITING FROM THE ARTIST AND/ RELATED GALERY/ MUSEUM/INSTITUTION.
- THE MATERIAL(S)/ ARTWORK(S) REPRESENTATION(S) ON THIS PUBLICATION AND OR WEBSITE – SOME RIGHTS RESERVED.
Disclaimer (addendum)
Please note that some parts of the artwork were created using historical archives and the artist’s original work, while others were generated using machine learning algorithms. While artificial intelligence technology played a role in creating this artwork, it was primarily the result of human input and creativity. Additionally, this disclaimer was also prompted and generated by an artificial intelligence machine, posing a metafictional and speculative question for our future. We acknowledge that this artwork and the narratives within, like any fictional and historical narratives, are subjective, open to multiple interpretations, and may contain arbitrary meanings. They are meant to be dismantled, read, reread, and unlearned.
