Perspective Chapter: Artifact Remains in Indonesia as an Object of Field Study of Learning Media for the History of Indonesian Fine Arts Course

Abstract

Education is basically a social institution that functions as organized intelligence or becomes the center of various intelligences that are organized to serve the existing social system. As an integral part of that process, educational media is something that every professional teacher must master. In addition, educational media can be used as an effective means of communication in order to obtain an interactive teaching and learning process. One of the media for art education, both symbolic and aesthetic. Symbolic artifacts can be categorized in non-formal aspects because they are more general in nature and prioritize the value of symbols. Artifacts that are aesthetic in nature are categorized as formal because they are more specifically as works of art. They are objects made by humans in the past that are considered to have symbolic and aesthetic value. The reason that is basis of this writing is because of the existence of artifacts in various forms which are historical relics as it is known that there are many in various regions in Indonesia.

1. Introduction

Education is basically a social institution that functions as organized intelligence or becomes the center of various intelligences that are organized to serve existing social systems. As an integral part of that process, educational media is something that must be mastered by every professional teacher. In addition, educational media can be used as an effective means of communication in order to obtain an interactive teaching and learning process [1]. One of the fine art education media both symbolic and aesthetic. Symbolic artifacts can be categorized in the non-formal aspect because they are more general in nature and prioritize symbolic values. The aesthetic artifacts are categorized as formal because they are more specific works of art.

In line with these two meanings, non-formal and formal approaches emerge in analyzing effect. In this case, the non-formal and formal approaches to artifacts are compatible with the structural approach. This assumption was influenced by structuralist thinking which initially developed in France and America in the 1960s [2]. In this approach, there is a tendency to transform artifacts as clear evidence of the presence of works of art with the results of creation or the artist's thought processes. This approach aims to interpret artifacts not only from aesthetic principles which are used as empirical normative aspects but are developed into theoretical concepts.

Among the various structural theories, there is one that is used, namely the analogy method. As stated by Barrett that basically art has similarities in terms of the rules of science, including concepts, procedures, and criteria [3]. This analogy method also supports evaluative aspects, as well as totality coverage forms. This includes various artifacts that have ideological, aesthetic, psychological, cultural, and philosophical aspects. The construct of this relationship cannot be separated from the three accompanying components, namely the artist, the work, and the appreciation.

The development of artifacts as visual media is actually an evolutionary development of human creativity. So in this case creativity is a historical command of a civilization. The development in this case is not distinguished between primitive patterned artifacts and modern patterned artifacts but viewed from the aspect of formalism. This aspect demands more internal coherence which limits itself to the form of the artifact [4]. So in this case, primitive and modern are no longer distinguished into low culture and high culture [5], but because of their exclusive attitude, they are seen as curious and civilized.

2. Visual media in non-formal aspects

Talks about artifacts in the non-formal category in terms of substance are mostly associated with other factors. According to Martin & Jacobus, each type of artwork has an equal value and is always related. In addition, in terms of aesthetics, it is not only enjoyed but can increase awareness of ourselves and our world together [6]. This non-formal approach has been refuted and considered inappropriate, especially for artifacts from the pre-nineteenth century and mystical ones, for example, from the East [7].

When returned to its cathartic nature, artifacts cannot be seen based on realistic assumptions but also from their functional values, so an interdisciplinary approach is needed outside of aesthetics as an auxiliary science. This approach is actually more focused on the first component, namely the artist, so it is often referred to as the genetic approach [8]. By trying to understand artifacts as a medium for art education, there is a possibility that the development of Indonesian art can be studied through these various methods and theories. This is based on the fact that many of the artifacts were self-produced by the Indonesian people along with their historical journey, from prehistoric times from Homo Sapiens to the present.

In prehistoric times, artifacts can be divided into permanent artifacts such as cave art and smaller artifacts that are mobile art. These various artifacts have very high and noble cultural values because they can be used to determine someone's skills. The sculpted artifacts always imitate the object with expressive linear strokes and with primary or neutral colors so that magical impressions are obtained. As Plato said, seeing an imitation can evoke feelings in him [9]. So in this case mimesis is still placed as the main driving force of creation, even though natural phenomena are still accepted instinctively and are usually expressed with geometric lines in abstract form. In this case, the value of transformation can be found not in the lines and colors used as a means of developing techniques. But more concerned with practical purposes. This assumption can be equated with the theories of primitive science, namely in a power called sympathetic magic [10].

Turning to the historical period, visual media points more to the development of creativity and high aesthetic value. Along with the emergence of the institution of the kingdoms resulted in artistic life getting protection. Borrowing Norbert's theory, it can be said that with the stability of the king's power, civilization will become more refined, giving rise to classical values in its cultural products [11]. In line with the iconography that prevailed in this classical era, art must adhere to two Great traditions, namely Hindu-Buddhist or Indian and Islamic. The formation process begins with culture borrowing which is then developed with the creativity of the Indonesian people themselves. The most commonly known visual media are temple buildings and their supporting devices [12]. As a building that has an important meaning, the temple is indeed difficult to find its exact counterparts except in India so various components must be rooted in Indian traditions.

In its development, there are two different styles, namely the Central Javanese style and the East Javanese style. The East Java period coincided with the entry of direct cultural flows from India, namely Amaravati art in the II-III AD centuries, Gupta art in the IV-VI centuries, Pallawa art in 500 - 750 AD, and Pala art in 700–900 AD [13]. These characteristics can be seen in Buddhist temples that accept elements of Gupta and Pala art (northwest India). In Hindu temples, it looks more influenced by the Chalukya and Pala or South Indian patterns [14]. The most common feature found in the temples of Central Java is the existence of Silpasastra as initially seen in the Dieng temples and the Gedongsongo temples. In this case, the most appropriate example is the Arjuno temple because it has flat and wide feet, the upper part of the body of the temple is shaped like a cube and the roof is also similar to the arrangement of the cubes, the higher the size the smaller the cube.

In contrast to the temples of the East Java style, which no longer accept the direct flow of Indian culture, in this case, it seems to show a decadence or degeneration. This view is paradoxical because changes in the East Javanese style indicate a local development or what is often called local genius. Compared to the Central Java temples which show a stronger impression of the building due to their chubby shape, East Java temples are generally slimmer and are always accompanied by horizontal frames, as if evenly distributed and merged into elements of art. more elaborate buildings and decorations.

Krom and Stutterheim believe that the change from the Central Javanese to the East Javanese style was not caused by the loss of quality associated with the decline of Indian influence but by the reappearance of native Indonesian elements. This is a reminder that art that serves religion as a measure is not a beauty and splendor but rather a function whose religious value must be accepted [15].

The most interesting moment during this East Java period was the union of Shiva and Buddhism, which in this case had never happened in India. The relationship between Hinduism and Buddhism in the East Java period was very close because both of them could live side by side so that both were made the state religion. In the development of these two religions, especially from the reign of the Singasari kingdom until the Majapahit kingdom, they were united as the state religion by way of syncretism or Tantrayana [16]. Hinduism and Buddhism as religions that both originate from India are known to have harmonious similarities, especially in terms of their conception of divinity. This is shown in the conception of divinity contained in Saiva Siddhanta and Mahayana Buddhism, which are a school of Shivaism and Buddhism that influence each other in Indonesia [17]. In Saiva Siddhanta, there is a single Tri or three highest truths called Siva-tattva, Sadasiva-taatva, and Mahesa-tattva. Each of these tattvas is represented by Paramasiva with his Niskala realm, Sadasiva with his Niskala-Savala realm, and Mahecvara with his Sakala realm. Furthermore, from Siva-tattva which is passive, five active cakti are derived, namely Paracakti, Adicakti, Icha-cakti, Jnana-cakti, and Kriya-cakti. Then the five cakti and Paramasiva will manifest themselves as Sadasiva-tattva and Maheca-taatva.

The Trinity or the three truths in the Mahayana book are Buddha, Vajrasatva, and Avalokitesvara. Each of them is in Dharma-kaya, Sambbhoga-kaya, and Nirmana-kaya. Furthermore, Buddha or Adi Buddha is also said to manifest himself in Pancatathagta (located in Barabudur) namely Wairocana, Aksobya, Ratnasambhawa, Amitabha, Amoghasidi. To strengthen their position, the five Tathagatas were also given cakti, which is called Pancatathagatadewi (in Jago temple), namely Bharali Dhatvisvari, Bharali Locana, Bharali Mamaki, Bharali Pandarawasini, and Bharali Tarasakti [18]. From the same basic conception of the Godhead of the two schools, I.B. The Mantra concludes that Dharma-kaya is parallel to Niskala, Sambbhoga-kaya is parallel to Sakala-Niskala and Nirmana-kaya is parallel to Shiva Buddha. With the existence of this same principle, if it is not supported by an atmosphere of harmonious relations among its adherents, then syncretism will not be realized. This can be proven by the situation in India which reminds us that Buddha himself is the avatar of Vishnu [19]. This attitude of tolerance was reflected during the reign of the Singasari – Majapahit kingdom, namely by the existence of temples and literary books.

Tolerance is displayed very harmoniously in the temple buildings, for example, seen in Candi Jago where the reliefs show a background of Hinduism and Buddhism. Reliefs that are Hindu in nature are shown by the stories of Partayajna, Arjuna Wiwaha, and Krsnayana while Buddhist characteristics are shown by the existence of reliefs of animal stories (Tantri) and Kunjarakarna [20, 21]. Furthermore, Jawi temple can be said as the result of a perfect blend of Hindu-Buddhist. This is indicated by the presence of Hindu statues, namely Nandiswara, Durga, Brahma, Ganesha, and Nandi at the bottom of the temple. Meanwhile, the nature of Buddha is indicated by the presence of a roof in the form of a stupa or dagoba.

The peak of other developments includes those found in the reliefs, which in this case are carved in a bas-relief manner. This sculpture shows its decorative nature by depicting figures that are not naturalist in proportion but are slanted (enprofile). Van Stein Calenfels said that the relief form became flatter or thinner until the end of the East Java period. The reliefs that developed at that time had two styles, namely the wayang style or style based on the Ramayana - Mahabharata story and the kakawin style based on kakawin stories, speech, and wawacan. In addition to these two styles, Van Stein Calenfels also still distinguishes the relief form which is not based on the two styles [22]. This difference is based on its simple form because it depends on the place where the temple was built. The temples that were erected in the palace complex area reflect the luxurious and majestic reliefs known as the palace style. Then the type of temple that is located far from the palace, which in this case is usually found in a hermitage, has a simpler relief form so it is often called a mandala-style relief.

The end of Hindu civilization in Java at the end of the fifteenth century was preceded by a new civilization, namely Islam. The development of art, which had reached its peak, became a dilemma where people at that time had to build sacred buildings that were not allowed to depict living creatures. Something unique possessed by the artists at that time was that a change in culture was not responded to with an attitude of surprise but instead caused them to be more creative.

In this case, the Mantingan mosque turban complex represents the transition period from the Hindu-Buddhist religion to Islam. In the Mantingan mosque, there are two relief panels carved on a piece of stone on two sides back and forth. The first panel contains scenes of the characters Rama and Laksmana accompanied by the panakawan while the second panel depicts a lotus pond whose leaves and flowers are arranged beautifully so that it seems to form the body of an elephant. An easy guess is that the first panel was made at an earlier time than the second panel. This is because the Islamic leaders in Mantingan have taken a middle way where they do not dare to eliminate the reliefs of the Ramayana without any replacement reliefs. Then they deliberately began to shift the theme to depict animal bodies with stiliran shapes and arrangements of Lotus leaves and flowers.

Islam in its further development after its position became established has many artifacts in the form of buildings that are sacred in the form of mosques and tombs, while those that are secular are palace buildings. The mosque as it is known is a building for the worship of Muslims. In Islam, there are no rules regarding forms or spaces and rooms that must be applied to a mosque building so there is no universal mosque building structure. The various forms of existing mosques usually reflect architectural traditions and architectural elements from outside religions [23, 24]. Based on this, then known mosque buildings of Arabic, Turkish, Indonesian, and so on.

Broadly speaking, mosques in Indonesia have special characteristics, including: 1. Having a perimeter fence with one main door, 2. Having a square floor plan, 3. Having a porch in front of or beside the main prayer room, 4. Having a mihrab, 5. The roof is overlapping.

Tomb architecture is the most common artifact remains in Indonesia. Graves are always associated with one of the cycles of human life, namely birth, life, and death. Death in the Islamic sense is a human journey toward life in the hereafter which in this case takes place through two stages, namely the waiting period in the grave and eternal life. As it is known that Islam as a divine religion has the concept of homo equalism, namely that each individual is responsible for all his actions and the existence of life after death [25].

From this Islamic conception of death, Islamic tombs usually contain calligraphy writing which generally reminds people of the existence of life after death. These calligraphic writings usually quote the letter Al-Baqarah verse 196 which contains warnings about death, the last day, and forgiveness. This verse is often called Ayat Kursi which is usually also intended as a starting point for rescuing people who have died. Judging from the architectural form of the arrangement of Islamic tombs in Indonesia which consists of a grave in the form of a room where the body is placed and above it, there is a tomb in the form of a rectangular building facing north-south. Some of these buildings are flat and some are tiered. From the aesthetic point of view, the tomb is a manifestation of the artist's work in the form of carvings and architectural forms carved on the maesan, jirat and cupola.

The Kraton building as a secular building is a central part and center of activity which is located adjacent to the mosque as a religious center. These buildings were found in many Islamic Javanese kingdoms which were located inseparable from the main square as a gathering place for many people, mosques, and markets [26, 27]. Then for palaces outside Java, they have different shapes, for example, in Aceh, which mostly faces north. Around the palace there are religious buildings, namely in the northwest there is a mosque and in the east, there is a religious court. In Medan, there is the Deli Sultanate palace which looks similar to the palaces of the Moghul kings in India. Deli Palace is different from other palaces because of the existence of the square which is to the east of the palace and the location of the mosque is far from the palace. Likewise the Ternate palace is located east of the square and mosque is to the south of the palace.

3. Visual media in formal aspect

Artifacts, apart from having to be discussed with functional values, can also be digested in terms of form because they are useful for measuring their aesthetic content. It must be admitted that in addition to the beauty obtained, it also requires a certain technique to make it happen. So in this case, the artifact must be viewed formally according to the applicable criteria. The formalistic theory has been presented by Harold Osborne who says that in measuring aesthetic values, organic and systemic unity is needed [28]. This theory was later strengthened by Liang Gie as a form theory because artifacts must have form and meaning [29]. Actually, structuralist thinking does not really care about the non-formal aspects that tend to be reception theory but focuses more on the formal aspects which require hermeneutics to realize explanations. This method is the ability to provide a verstehen interpretation of each artifact from each era [30]. When considering the goal to be achieved, namely that these artifacts must be able to facilitate communication, then semiotics is needed which is the science of signs as elements of logical structures. In this regard, the opinion of Charles Sander Pierce can be used to analyze it [31]. According to him, signs are divided into three, namely icons, indexes, and symbols. An icon is a sign in the form of a similar relationship. An index is a sign that has a causal relationship, and a symbol is a sign that is based on an arbitrary relationship. This arbitrator relationship does not occur directly so a conventional deposition and acknowledgment period is needed.

The problem that arises in relation to signs as symbols is that there is nothing intrinsic in artifacts that designates something that must be interpreted that way. There is no obligation to accept an aesthetic meaning of an abstract painting, for example, by having to refer to the rules in saddangga or methods for assessing beauty in traditional art. Beauty in a structural sense is not a substantial meaning but rather a generally accepted acknowledgment.

This formal aspect must focus on artifacts so that there must be a certain distance to collective life. This requires understanding artifacts only through the artist's personal emotions so that the aesthetic criteria are still placed as something virtuous. The easy-to-know feature of this aspect is because artifacts must have elements of sensory sensitivity such as composition, plane, level of precision balance, and structure.

This phenomenon is the absorption of the West because, after the Renaissance, humans began to be aware of their individual values so that rationality could open the dawn of reason to cut through the darkness of the world. The industrial revolution that occurred in the eighteenth century as a peak had a negative impact on the cessation of creativity because everything had to be determined by standardization and rationalization.

As a reaction against life in Europe in 1890, the Art Nouveau movement emerged. This movement is more in favor of pre-industrial values and wants something new, although in terms of aesthetic values it is still related to industrial civilization, such as with streamlined forms, and in the world of architecture and design, or form follows function [32]. To try to understand artifacts in a formal aspect, what happened in Indonesia is something interesting. This needs to be known because modern art seems to give a power of its own, contains various problems and demands a special sense of sensitivity. In the above analysis, it can be understood that modern art is a modern reality that is not always in line with the movement of life of some of its people, therefore it is always a subject of discussion and sharp focus.

Modern art is more moving from solitude so artists always uphold their freedom, must be creative and original innovative. It seeks new insights and techniques and new possibilities. This creative activity demands material embodiment, namely with the work itself. After he joins together or simultaneously with his artistic appreciation, the artifact becomes the artist's personal expression. The problem that arises next is whether the artifact will be valued or not accepted by the community. This requires the role of an intermediary, namely the presence of art critics as parties who deliver to the community. These actions are transformative from the formalist aspect.

Feldman in relation to criticism divides it into four stages, namely description, form analysis, interpretation, and evaluation. The description stage is an assessment of the artifact in general. The shape analysis stage is the assembly stage of the artifact content obtained from the description whose purpose is to find out about the composition of the materials and figures. The interpretation stage is an attempt to interpret the artifact so that it is able to give meaning to the description stage and form analysis. This interpretation stage leads to actual criticism because the expression of meaning contained in it can be explained. The evaluation stage is an additional stage after the previous three stages have been completed. It is possible that up to the interpretation stage alone, it can give meaning to the artifact so that the evaluation stage is not mandatory. However, if it is associated with certain considerations from the observer, the evaluation stage must still be carried out.

In its function as an educational medium, formal artifacts can only be reached in two-dimensional and three-dimensional products. Two-dimensional art is generally divided into two major groups, namely representative and non-representative [33]. Representative art is presenting the form of an object close to optical similarity, which is often found in realist and naturalist style paintings. Non-representative art presents a form that deviates from the representative one which is done by means of deformation or stylization. The flow in this art can be found in expressionism, impressionism, abstractism, cubism, surrealism, and pop art. Art that is grouped as three-dimensional art in this case is represented by sculpture. Sculpture in Indonesia has nothing to do with previous traditions, but this phenomenon originated from the experiments of a number of painters who wanted to find other forms of media of expression [34]. An example is a painter Affandi who made his first sculptural work using clay in 1940. His work was not scheduled to be exhibited but only served as a companion to his paintings. This tendency to experiment with sculpture is due to the fact that there are expressive similarities in making paintings and sculptures. Affandi's experimental success as a sculptor was followed by other painters and culminated with the establishment of formal sculpture education in 1950 at ITB (Bandung Institute of Technology) Bandung and ASRI (Indonesian Fine Arts Academy) Yogyakarta. Not unlike two-dimensional art, the sculpture is also divided between realist and abstract. Then as another tridimensional is the monument. Artifacts also have nothing to do with temple architecture, but their development goes hand in hand with modern sculpture. Also, the purpose of making a monument that is easy to understand is to commemorate various important events.

4. Conclusion

The development of artifacts as visual media is actually an evolutionary development of human creativity. So in this case, creativity is a historical command of a civilization. The development in this case is not distinguished between primitive patterned artifacts and modern patterned artifacts but viewed from the aspect of formalism. This aspect demands more internal coherence which limits itself to the form of the artifact. So in this case, primitive and modern are no longer distinguished into low culture and high culture, but because of their exclusive attitude, they are seen as curious and civilized.

Artifacts as educational media are one of the best alternatives and can be done by means of field studies. It's just that because the existence of these artifacts is scattered from each other at great distances, they can be reduced by playing video films or other digital technology methods.

The description above shows that the development of artifacts according to the dimensions of time, which is actually widely known by the general public. However, if an observation is made of each momentum that has gone through the selection, it will be able to open an aesthetic dialogue from each according to its type and style. It is said that these aesthetic dialogues are acquired cumulatively based on their nature, namely horizontally through acculturation and vertically through historical inheritance, thus eclecticism will be found.

If the artifact is associated with a work of art, it will not be able to become an objective description of facts as in science because there is a hidden factor, namely the artist. Thus, to find out the work in accordance with its meaning will be done through a structural approach. The structural approach in the West is useful for transforming open awareness of insight. This is to form a futuristic because empirical normative is considered not sufficient. The art also always faces various problematic realities that must be solved by conceptualizing it through interdisciplinary means.

The aspect that must be distinguished is that artifacts are divided into informal and formal. The non-formal aspect in terms of transformation is easy to do, but the formal aspect is more difficult to do because it is individual so it is necessary to search for formal and universal boundaries. The ideal goal in the non-formal aspect is how to apply the aesthetic normative, whereas in the formal aspect it is how to realize the theoretical aspect. This can be overcome by making an analogy that is interdisciplinary, semiotic, hermenitic, and diachronic-synchronic.