Taring Padi

Taring Padi is a collective of underground artists in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The group was formed in 1998 during the general upheaval following the fall of Suharto.[1]

Taring Padi are well known for the production of posters embedded with political and social justice messages, using the cukil (woodcut) technique onto paper or canvas. In addition to their print work, they also create murals, banners, puppetry, sculptures, street theater performances, punk rock and techno music.

After the fall of Suharto, Taring Padi occupied an abandoned art school which they used as a residence and workspace for creating art, music and theater. Following the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake, Taring Padi became based in a studio in Sembungan village, Bantul, Yogyakarta. The group is well known among international art collectors and underground communities such as the Just Seeds Artists Cooperative and has collaborated broadly internationally.

Works by Taring Padi have been shown in many formal and non-formal settings including Indonesia's National Gallery in Jakarta and at the 31st Century Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand.[2] Taring Padi was also included in the group show Sisa: re-use, collaborations and cultural activism from Indonesia at the University of Technology, Sydney gallery.

In 2004 a film about Taring Padi by filmmakers Jamie Nicolai and Charlie Hillsmith,Indonesian Arts, Activism and Rock 'n' Roll was screened on the SBS (Special Broadcasting Service) in Australia.[3] A short cut of this film can be seen at YouTube.[4] Filmmaker Rohan Langford has made a brief profile of Taring Padi artist Aris Prabawa, who in 2010 held solo shows at the Asia Australia Arts Centre (4A) and Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre in Sydney, Australia.

Taring Padi often run workshops at their studio and undertake collaborative projects with communities and national and international art and political groups. In May 2010 Taring Padi and networks, together with the victims of Siring Village and surrounds, collaborated to commemorate the 4th anniversary of the Lapindo Mud disaster near Surabaya. They held etching, screenprinting, painting and singing workshop activities culminating with a carnival and a people's stage show on the edge of the dam containing the mud. A film documenting this project can be seen and downloaded at engagemedia.org.[5]

In 2010 in Chiang Mai, Thailand (hosted by Empty Space) and 2012 in Yogyakarta (hosted by Taring Padi), Taring Padi collaborated with Thai and Myanmar artists in the project Under, After and In Between. Under, After and In Between focused on the different circumstances of each country and group and how they can influence the purpose of artistic work. The projects culminated in performances in Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Yogyakarta and Kulon Progo.

Taring Padi published its book Seni Membongar Tirani (Art Smashing Tyranny) in 2011 in Indonesian and English covering 10 years of the collective's work, including art work and academic articles.[6] This book was launched in a number of cities in Indonesia in 2012 including Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Denpasar in Bali, Makassar, Medan, and Padang. This book is now available for free download as an e-book from the Taring Padi website.

In 2018 Taring Padi celebrated its 20-year anniversary with a critically acclaimed retrospective exhibition at the Yogyakarta Institute of Art (ISI).[7][8][9]