Aku’, Chairil, Dan Aku

enin - chairil – nadi - hal.1 Art Exhibition ‘Aku’, Chairil, dan Aku Curator : Enin Supriyanto Artists : Acep Zamzam Noor, Agus Suwage, Arie Dyanto, AS Kurnia, Astari, Budi Kustarto, Danarto, Dede Eri Supria, Dikdik Sayahdikumullah, Dipo Andy, Diyanto, Dolorosa Sinaga, Frans Nadjira, Galam Zulkifli, Laksmi Shitaresmi, Ong Hari Wahyu, Pande Ketut Taman, Pintor Sirait, Rosid, S. Malela Mahargasarie, S. Teddy D., Tisna Sanjaya, Ugo Untoro, Yani Halim, Yuli Prayitno. Address : Nadi Gallery Jl. Kembang Indah III Blok G3 no. 4-5 Puri Indah Jakarta 11610 Opening : Thursday, 28 April 2005 at 19.30 Officiated by : Ibu Evawani Elissa Chairil Anwar Exhibition will be held through 9 May 2005 Ut pictura poesis. This short line written by Horatius several ages before Year One is still a valid formula summarizing the close relation between poetry and fine arts: what applies to fine arts also does in poetry. A Greek philosopher, Simonides from Keos, formulated an even clearer dictum: Poema pictura loquens, pictura poema silens; poetry is a ‘talking picture’, a picture is ‘silent poetry’. Indonesian modern fine arts and poetry publishing (in books) often shows this closeness. If we look back to the stack of poetry books released by the Pustaka Jaya Publishing in 1970’s, we would easily find fine art works by Nashar, Rusli, Zaini, and others, on the book jackets and illustrating the pages of the works of their poetry-writing comrades. When Indonesian prints were still novel, there was a senior artist who was also a poet, named Arinto Soebhakto, launching a collection of poems accompanied by his own prints in a book he called Verses (1959). Today, this tradition is still alive, although it is no longer practiced as often as in 1970’s when poets and painters used to meet in a closely-knitted community, following the previous decade’s tradition of art workshops (‘sanggar’). Dorothea Rosa Herliany’s poetry book Kill the Radio: Sebuah Radio Kumatikan (IndonesiaTera, 2001) is adorned by Agung Kurniawan’s drawings. More pointedly, in the beginning of 1990’s Tisna Sanjaya has made a special collection of prints which were said to be his visual interpretation of Goenawan Mohamad’s poems. This show started as a wish to follow the tradition, therefore we invited several artists to try to interpret the works of one of Indonesian most influential poets of all times, Chairil Anwar. Chairil Anwar passed away on April 28, fifty-six years ago. In 1960’s there had been proposals (to the Government) to add the date to our list of national events as the National Literature Day. But it came to nought, and even worse it sparked a polemic between groups, some were for the idea, enin - chairil – nadi - hal.2 and others against it, politicizing Anwar’s personality and artistic values of his works. I don’t know if the idea has converted the Government or not. Yet it doesn’t really matter. We are free to choose our own way to honor Chairil Anwar’s works and his undoubted influence within the creation of modern Indonesian identity in arts. At the Beginning: Three Planes of Interpretation The artists whose works are here now were asked to make an approach toward Chairil Anwar in three planes of interpretation: 1. Poetry The lines below construct Chairil Anwar’s most well-known poem; the literal translation follows the original in Indonesian. Aku Kalau sampai waktuku ‘Ku mau tak seorang ‘kan merayu Tidak juga kau Tak perlu sedu sedan itu Aku ini binatang jalang Dari kumpulannya terbuang Biar peluru menembus kulitku Aku tetap meradang menerjang Luka dan bisa kubawa berlari Berlari Hingga hilang pedih peri Dan aku akan lebih tidak perduli Aku mau hidup seribu tahun lagi Maret 1943 I If my time has come I want no one entreating enin - chairil – nadi - hal.3 Not even you No need for tears I am a wild bastard Thrown out of the pack Let my skin get bullet-ridden I would still be furiously blasting Wounds and poison I run with Keep on running Until it hurts no more And I would care even less I want to live another thousand years. March 1943 We can be sure that nearly all Indonesians, provided they have ever went to secondary schools, know this poem. They can tell you the name of the poet instantly. That poem is heroic and moving, it builds a spirit characteristic of the day, which keeps going on even today. Anwar’s statements about himself are so final. Aku was written when Indonesia was suffering the merciless and relentless Japanese fascist occupation (1941-1945), which left the whole country far poorer than before. The poem seems to represent the entire nation’s feeling of wanting independence. The timebound interpretation certainly gives us a conclusion that this poem is political. On the other hand, at least according to the poet/movie director Asrul Sani (he, Rivai Apin and Anwar himself collaborated in Tiga Menguak Takdir (Balai Pustaka, 1950, published when Anwar has died), the poem was a personal statement and nothing more. Aku is far away from politics, Asrul Sani said. That poem is “(Anwar’s) bitter farewell to his father who tried to talk him into going back to his hometown Medan (in Sumatera).” Anwar never left Jakarta, convinced that the capital city of Indonesia suited his hot-blooded temperament. Besides, his mother (after a divorce) lived in the same city. The mother and grandmother were two women Anwar loved and respected the most. He bluntly expressed his feelings for them in another poem: Seperti ibu + nenekku juga tambah tujuh keturunan yang lalu aku minta pula supaya sampai di sorga yang kata Masyumi + Muhammadiyah bersungai susu dan bertabur bidari beribu enin - chairil – nadi - hal.4 (dari Dua Sajak buat Basuki Resobowo) Like mom + also my grandma Plus seven generations back I want to go to heaven, too Which, said Masyumi + Muhammadiyah has rivers of milk And sprinkled by thousands of angels (Quoted from Two Poems for Basuki Resobowo. ‘Masyumi’ and ‘Muhammadiyah’ are two of the largest Muslim organizations in Indonesia.) Although, if we believe Asrul Sani, the poem Aku is a personal statement, political interpretation is something we cannot escape from. It says freedom, it contains a bright inspiration in the years of hardship, poverty, and repression. The same ‘message’ is often present in other works by Chairil Anwar; showing his courageous, challenging, enduring spirit. Chairil Anwar, and all his works, are the spirit of freedom in overflowing tones. The poem Aku is a bold human spirit wanting to be free from historical fate. 2. Chairil Anwar: the ‘I’ of ‘Aku’ Chairil Anwar was born in Medan, North Sumatera, on 26 July 1922, and died in Jakarta on 28 April 1949. Within the short span of life, and the short years in which he wrote his poetry, he has left us such a magnificent legacy that even has the power to mould the modern Indonesian literature in general. It is like a self-fulfilling prophecy that he once wrote: Sekali berarti/Sudah itu mati (Once to be of use/And then die). At first, many observers were shocked and displeased by Chairil Anwar’s ‘wild language’. But today nearly everybody agrees that Anwar didn’t only renew the style of Indonesian poetry but also gave a real example of how the Indonesian language could be used aesthetically that way. Anwar’s vocabulary was rich, but he didn’t stop at making rhymes; the freedom of using the language didn’t make him neglect grammar. Chairil Anwar has been ‘mythical’ to most of us. We know his name and his poems, but not many of us know his face and how he looked like, except from stories about how he lived like a bohemian, how he talked (very loudly), and what he said (which was also ‘loud’). On the jacket of Chairil Anwar, Aku ini Binatang Jalang (Chairil Anwar: I Am a Wild Bastard) edited by Pamusuk Eneste (Gramedia Jakarta, 1996), we can see Chairil Anwar’s portrait. His eyes are piercing, his expression ‘devil-may-care’, his fingers holding a well-sucked cigarette. This is how Chairil Anwar looked like, to most of us. The same picture appeared again in Aku , Syumandjaya’s movie script (which unfortunately has never been produced). On the cover of the book titled Puisi dan Prosa Chairil Anwar: Derai-derai Cemara (‘Chairil Anwar’s Poetry and Prose: The Whispering Cypresses’, Horison dan Yayasan Indonesia, Jakarta, 2000), there is Jeihan’s painting of the poet: Anwar is sitting as in deep contemplation, also with a cigarette between his fingers, against a red-and-white background that gives the picture a bleak look. enin - chairil – nadi - hal.5 It seems like the looks of Chairil Anwar that we all know is the one based on a photograph shot by Anwar’s personal friend, who happens to be an artist, named Baharudin MS, who took the snapshot in 1948. Anwar was close with fine artists of his generation. He was certainly liking the ideas of Sudjojono, the spirited painter, and finding Affandi’s style exhilarating. He even wrote two poems about (and for) the painter Affandi: Kepada Pelukis Affandi (‘To the Painter Affandi’, 1946), and “Betina”-nya Affandi (‘Affandi’s Female’, 1946). And there is one poem (in two versions) addressed to Basuki Resobowo, another artist. He used to discuss arts with them. Once, Anwar wrote an essay about the connection between ‘content’ and ‘form’, comparing the process of creating a poem and the one of creating a painting: Membuat Sajak Melihat Lukisan (‘Making Poems Seeing Paintings’,1949).

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