Hanny Kardinata and Archiving Indonesian Graphic Design Historically
"If we don't make any notes for it (in this context, archive of graphic design history), we will lose our footpaths and in the end: we will be blind to our own history," said Hanny Kardinata, the author of Desain Grafis Indonesia dalam Pusaran Desain Grafis Dunia (DGIDGD) and the co-founder of Desain Grafis Indonesia (DGI) on its launching back then in 2016.
“Kalau tak dicatat, kita kehilangan jejak apa yang sudah dilakukan dan apa prospek ke depan; buta akan riwayat sendiri.”
I was on my last year of my BA course, currently struggling on my final project when I hear this revolutionary movement in the graphic design industry in Indonesia. Perhaps, that wasn't the first time I heard that the creative industry is moving forward to the next stage, as I was there too when Badan Ekonomi Kreatif Indonesia (BEKRAF) was firstly established in 2015 with its vision to make the creative industry a priority for Indonesia's economic growth in the following years.[1]
Kardinata himself has been someone that I look upon to since I met him in person back in 2016 on his roadshow to introduce his newly published DGIDGD among students of graphic design universities in Jakarta and beyond. We discussed on a really interesting topic of "What is Indonesian graphic design national identity?" that leads to heated debates even until now. His book thoroughly examine this particular topic, and though it's far from the ultimate conclusion of such question, it gave its reader insights on how some backgrounds and historical or socio-political events led to certain graphic design styles in Indonesia supported with notable examples of visuals.
Kardinata's initial struggle with the archival of graphic design history started back when he was a student in the 1980s. He collected notes, made scrapbooks and organise artefacts to be published regularly on a mailing list which eventually turned into a blog. "I prefer blogs due to its flexible, open and interactive nature as I want it to be accessible for everyone," he explained. This blog eventually grown into a bigger scheme which was the establisment of DGI website in 2007.
“Having a knowledge of our profession’s roots projects a sense of pride and identity, a foundation for future development. For an industry often overlooked, we hope that the book is not too late to inform and inspire current and upcoming generation of designers.”
In 2012, Kardinata started to compile his blog posts chronologically, making it into book format. His decision to compile all of the writings was simply "if someone's not starting it now, then who will then?". He then worked collaboratively with several active graphic designers to do the works of layout and illustration, which resulted in a well-designed yet comprehensive layouts.
[...] The book travels back in time in search of the country’s graphic design identity, beginning when missionaries brought printers to the Dutch colony to produce bibles and newspapers. While Indonesia gained independence after World War II, it wasn’t until the 1970s that a search for a national graphic design style emerged, led by Indonesian artist and designer Abdul Djalil Pirous [...]. This nationalistic movement powered by technological advancements led to the flourishing of Indonesian graphic design in the subsequent decades, resulting in works that were shaped by the socio-economic conditions of the times.[2]
“I want to build a museum where young people can learn about the history of Indonesian graphic design. They have only ever been introduced to the international history of the subject.”
The ultimate goal for DGI is to build an Indonesian graphic design museum—a dream Kardinata envisioned when he first founded his mailing list. This dream of Kardinata perhaps has been in progress by slowly archiving contemporary works by emerging graphic designers in Indonesia by holding Indonesian Graphic Design Award (IGDA) for the first time in 2009-2010, and the second time in 2015-2016.
I can see Hanny Kardinata's career in Indonesian graphic design scheme was indeed, a series of interventions, starting from the smallest one as a mailing list that only revolves inside his friends and colleagues, to the ultimate dream of building the first and only graphic design museum in Indonesia. I remember telling Diana in a tutorial for being afraid of doing my interventions because how stupid and small it sounds. I got reminded then by the domino effect video that Diana and David showed in a class before the independent study period initiates; that no matter how small you're doing, you're making a bigger impact for the next one. It's amazing on how I start to see other people's stories as a whole which usually always start small, like Hanny Kardinata.
Further Readings
Kardinata, H. (2016). Desain grafis Indonesia dalam pusaran desain grafis dunia. 1st ed. Jakarta: DGI Press.
Desain Grafis Indonesia (2018). Desain Grafis Indonesia dalam Pusaran Desain Grafis Dunia: Proses Desain. [online] Desain Grafis Indonesia. Available at: http://dgi.or.id/inspiration/case-study/desain-grafis-indonesia-dalam-pusaran-desain-grafis-dunia-proses-desain.html [Accessed 12 Aug. 2018].
Budiman, A. (2018). Hanyut di Pusaran Arsip: Catatan dari DGIDPDGD. [online] Desain Grafis Indonesia. Available at: http://dgi.or.id/read/perspective/hanyut-di-pusaran-arsip-catatan-dari-dgidpdgd.html [Accessed 12 Aug. 2018].
Jenie, K. (2018). Jelajah Grafis dalam Sejarah - Whiteboard Journal. [online] Whiteboard Journal. Available at: https://www.whiteboardjournal.com/focus/ideas/jelajah-grafis-dalam-sejarah/ [Accessed 12 Aug. 2018].
Footnotes
[1] BEKRAF, B. (2017). Data Statistik dan Hasil Survei EKONOMI KREATIF: Kerjasama Badan Ekonomi Kreatif dan Badan Pusat Statistik. [online] Bekraf.go.id. Available at: http://www.bekraf.go.id/profil [Accessed 7 May 2018].
[2] Zhuang, J. (2016). Saving Indonesia’s Graphic Design History Before It’s Lost Forever. [online] Eye on Design. Available at: https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/saving-indonesias-graphic-design-history-before-its-lost-forever/ [Accessed 12 Aug. 2018].