Jago Tarung Yogyakarta: Group Profile

Opening ceremony "And The Cocks Are Still Fighting" at Syang Art Space,
Magelang, Indonesia, on June, 23, 2012. Officiated by Mr. Garin Nugroho.

JAGO TARUNG YOGYAKARTA is an independent art group founded on 27 June 2010 in Yogyakarta. It has held various art event, not only exhibition but also workshop and creative journey to Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB), Sumbawa, Gili Meno, and Gili Trawangan. In 2013 held a series of art exhibition raised up a theme Indonesian Mythology opened with an exhibition named “The Myth is in Our Pocket” in June 17-25, 2013 at Cemara 6 Museum and Gallery Jakarta, and the culmination of the exhibition series is “Behind the Myth” held on October 21-28, 2013 at AKTO College of Art and Design Athens, Greece.
The programs that have been done are:
1. “Celebrating the Body” at Gaya Fusion, Ubud-Bali, Indonesia (2011).
2. “Tubuh-Tubuh Margin” at Philo Art Space, Kemang-Jakarta, Indonesia (2011).
3. “And the Cocks are Still Fighting” at Syang Art Space, Magelang, Indonesia (2012).
4. Creative journey, “Di Timur Matahari #1”, to various places in Nusa Tenggara Barat (2012).
5. “Art for the Biggest Angklung Performance Beijing 2013” at Graha Niaga Building, Jakarta (2013).
6. “The Myth is in Our Pocket” at Cemara 6 Museum and Gallery, Menteng-Jakarta, Indonesia (2013).
7. “Behind the Myth” at AKTO College of Art and Design, Athens, Greece (2013).

Dedi Yuniarto, group manager (left) with E. Jane Fuller, executive producer
of Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2011 (right) at the opening of
"Celebrating The Body", Gaya Fusion Art Space. (10/02/2011)

At East, where the sun rises. Life starts when the cocks crow. Cock as the symbol of the beginning of the day and the true fighter, is an important element in tradition, mainly in Bali, Java, and Sumatera. Cock can be easily found in Indonesian mythology and literature. Even since hundred years ago, in tradition of Indonesian primitive society cock was highly praised as an offering for ceremony and ritual for the ancestor's spirit.

Thus, Jago Tarung (Great Fighter) is an idiom which means one's spirit to fight the obstacles. Every man is a great fighter in his/her own world, so is an artist. As an ubermansch, the demand is to avoid the 'comfort zone' to stay concerned and creative so he/she will be able to create great works. They have to fight everyday, survive in the worst art world situation, passing through a tensed journey, full of surprise, intrigue, and even endless competition for a special space, that is recorded, memorized, and written in history.