Efek Rumah Kaca collaborates with Ika Vantiani, Naomi Cassyane for freedom of art

Bogor-based band Efek Rumah Kaca (ERK) collaborates with visual artists Ika Vantiani and Naomi Cassyane to demand freedom of art. The initiative came from Koalisi Seni, a non-profit organisation that aims to create a better environment in the art industry. 

In the collaboration, the band and the visual artists worked together on ERK’s song, “Jalang”. The song was created by the band in 2006 in protest of what was RUU Anti-Pornography and Anti-Pornoaction (now UU Pornografi/Pornography Law) which was thought to encourage censorship and limit the artistic freedom of a certain group. “Turns out, this demand is still relevant in 2021 since the restriction on artistic freedom only gets stronger,” said ERK vocalist Cholil Mahmud.

Ika also expressed how regulations and public opinions hinder her creative process. “It’s very common for artists to censor their own work to avoid legal problems or public persecution,” she explained. 

In response to the song “Jalang”, Ika and Naomi made exclusive merchandise comprising t-shirts, bags and masks donning their collage arts. They went with the panopticon concept, which means an omniscient eye that represents the way the authorities are controlling the society. 

The merchandise is up for sale from 17 August to 17 September 2021 on Koalisi Seni’s Tokopedia. Proceeds from the merchandise sales will support Koalisi Seni’s advocacy works and 2.5% of it will be donated to artists who are affected by the pandemic.

Freedom of expression is one of the six rights of artistic freedom. The others are the right to unionise, the right to move freely, the right to adequate income, the socio-economic rights and the right to access art. Even though artistic freedom is a part of Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which are ratified by Indonesia, there hasn’t yet any systematic effort to uphold artistic freedom in Indonesia.