Framer Framed

Ibob Arief was born in 1975 in Gresik, and currently lives in Jakarta. He is an activist, woodcut- and theatre artist who focuses mainly on social and political issues concerning society. For the most part he prints on t-shirts which he sells, as this means he can spread his activist message to a large group of people whilst at the same time gaining some income from his work. Arief is also a member of a music group called Pandai Api Sebumi, and gives woodcarving lessons in several communities in Jakarta.

The work by Ibob Arief on the Pentagonal Icositetrahedron deals with the situation of the people in Surokonto Wetan, who are in the midst of a land dispute issue. The land of Surokonto Wetan had been owned and cultivated by the local people since the time of their ancestors. In recent years however, the land has been taken over by various companies, such as the PT Sumurpitu Wringinsari and PT Semen Indonesia factories. The culmination of this issue came recently, when the land was taken over by the governmental land protection company Perhutani, who turned it into a natural reserve. This meant that the people of Surokonto Wetan were no longer able to cultivate the ground that was feeding them. In resisting and staking claims to their own land, three local farmers got arrested and jailed, charged with using land that belongs to Perhutani. This work, Kurung siji kurung kabeh (‘jail one, jail everyone’), reflects that the fight belongs to everyone, not only to those who got arrested.