A designer’s job is to make sure that the model can be converted into a working prototype – a blue print for the manufacturer. However, it is in our nature to measure individuality. Since the 1980s designers have been injecting unique identity “chromosomes” into their products on an industry scale.

High-income earners – which are the industry target – fill the empty space of boredom in their lives by shopping. But possessing the exact same product as everyone else only creates a new kind of boredom. The era of uniform consumerism has ended. Mass products are now being challenged by truly individual designs. Yes, it’s pseudo individualism.

During the 1980s, the concern for environmental damage was no longer exclusive to environmentalists. The call to stop deforestation, environmental pollution, and the green house effect entered into popular culture. Terms such as Eco, Green, and Global Warming were often used, while at the same time the importance of the 3Rs (Reuse – Reduce – Recycle) became ever more apparent.

Recycling can sometimes be too expensive and requires a lot of energy. Which is why some people turn to upcycling, which means converting waste or unused materials into something useful, like the products developed by Freitag. In Bali, Nafka initiated a laboratory for creative designers focused on developing responsible lifestyle products. In June 2011, Nafka showed their first exhibit in Denpasar titled Wonderground. Nafka will once again be showing the creations of their designers at the Ecologically Sustainable Solutions Week on April 16–22, 2012 at Little Tree in Kuta, Bali.

To create designs out of used materials, Nafka designers focus on planning the shapes. Through the process, the used materials can offer unexpected visual surprises. It’s as if looking at a montage or photo collage by artists from the Dadaism era on products such as bags, sofas, room partitions and lamp shades, all made from reclaimed waste or used plastic wrappers. Cut up images, numbers or letters, a build up of colors.

Nafka products seem to fuse the line between art and craft in the shape of everyday accessories. Visually they are attractive. Nafka products are a refreshing surprise in the droll of everyday standard mass-produced products. Nafka products are truly one-of-a-kind.

The products may represent individual expression. But the production process is fueled by a passion for community movement and empowerment. Nafka outsources its production to local handicraft community groups. Handicraft producers, much like other traditional production workers, are marginalized in today’s modern economic distribution routes.

In modern sales systems, the middleman marketing the products can be a necessity. When the producer and consumer are too far apart and there is no access between them, the role of the marketer grows ever larger. The role of the middleman in sales is to dictate the price to maximize profits. The producer has little power to sell at a higher, or more profitable price.

This inequality in the marketing stage is only beneficial to the seller and too often exploits the producer. In Bali, these symptoms have long been visible in the industry, for example in the sales of art or crafts. Art shops in Bali have a very high profit margin, sometimes as high as 60 percent on the handicraft products they sell. By the time they are sold, these handicrafts can be expensive, but the amount the producers receive is too far below the selling price.

The partnerships Nafka builds with local handicraft producers follow fair trade standards. In this way they are supporting sustainability, not only the environmental aspects, but also the social aspects.

It takes hard work to follow the principles of fair trade while also successfully conducting business. To make sure the products are not just salable because they are “fair trade” and pulling on heart strings, but because they are of high quality.

If upcycling has it’s own attraction for consumers, could upcycle product hold special economic value? Anyone can take unused material around them and transform it into something new and useful. So, is there still a market for Nafka products? Here the idea of branding comes into play. A product will not just be valued in a utilitarian perspective or at face-value use. Urban residents want to communicate and declare their individuality in the midst of their lonely disoriented lives. Brands provide this.

Brands become a tool for interaction, a celebration of togetherness, even without having to communicate it. A brand is a message in itself.

The Embassy of the United States, Serambi Arts Antida, and BaliSpirit Festival will host a special workshop and presentation by Tariq Snare, percussionist for the American conscious hip hop band Native Deen. Percussionists of all skill levels, from children to adult are invited to take part in this free workshop. Each workshop participant will receive a certificate of completion signed by Tariq. All DJs, MCs, Dancers, and Hip Hop Fans alike are also warmly invited to take part in a jam session with Tariq. The event will also feature performances with Tariq and PitchBlackGold, SnapBack, and Dewata Hip Hop.

Indonesia faces a classic dilemma in the world of publishing. Over the past year 15,000 books have been published by 1,400 publishers, these numbers are relatively low for a population of 230 million.

Publishers struggle to exist in conditions where the cost of paper to print books and taxes continue to rise. They must carefully calculate the business end while choosing manuscripts for publishing. So it’s not surprising that we are experiencing a decline in the quality of literature published. Traditionally publishers enlighten and help to advance culture, this role must not be forgotten.

Have Indonesia’s publishers followed the path of blockbuster films in Hollywood, do they find it easier to publish manuscripts written by popular writers? Is there still a chance for new writers to break into the world of publishing, how? What can writers do to prepare themselves? It is important for writers to find the right publisher for their manuscripts.

All of this will be covered in the discussion this Wednesday night with Windy Ariestanty, author of Life Traveler. Windy has also published Tiara Lestari: Uncut Stories  Shit Happens: Gue Yang Ogah Kawin Kok Elo Yang Rese?!, Studying Abroad: Belajar Sambil Berpetualang di Negeri Orang. The discussion will not only be from a writer’s perspective, for Windy is also the editor in chief of GagasMedia and Bukune.

Discussion (Obral) 25 Januari 2012

Location: Danes Art Veranda, Jl Hayam Wuruk no 159 Denpasar

Time: 19.00 WITA

In 1920s Europe, cubism and expressionism art were in vogue, but not all artists were content with these new movements, which sliced nature into geometric shapes or considered nature only as a medium through which to express emotion.

Walter Spies felt that the new art styles of the time negatively impacted his work as a surrealist. Coupled with his discontent with European society, which did not accept his sexual orientation, Spies was motivated to leave the Netherlands for the Dutch East-Indies in August 1923. From Batavia (currently Jakarta), he went on to Jogjakarta, and in 1927, on invitation of the king of Ubud, Cokorda Gede Agung Sukawati, he moved to Bali.

Spies met many of the local artists. He was influenced by the fine art aesthetics of Bali which, at the time, only portrayed scenes from folk tales and shadow puppet stories. So was born a style of painting that portrayed Bali with mystery and beauty, a style deemed naturalistic and naïve by Western surrealists.

Spies began to give direction to Balinese painters to paint the forgotten world around them and transfer it onto the canvas. In 1935, along with Cokorda Gede Agung Sukawati and Rudolf Bonnet, Spies founded Pita Maha. The goal of the group was to add value to the art of local Balinese painters to better compete within the commercial art world that was developing in Bali.

Pita Maha provided paint, supplies, and guidance to local artists. Then they would promote selected paintings and carvings made by Balinese and exhibit them in Java and even overseas. Through fine art, Bali’s attraction grew even stronger as a paradise of topless women, and Bali attracted more and more foreign visitors. Spies and his cohort were responsible for popularizing Bali as a paradise lost, where Europeans could live out their lavish fantasies in a world far removed from the pretensions of their own nations.

The image of Bali as a paradise island has shaped Bali into what it is today: This small island is mislead into living off the tourism industry, which never provides enough and, hence, continues to expand through more investment and development. The building of tourism infrastructure takes no notice of Bali’s limited capacity. To this day, even basic needs, such as waste management, have not provoked practical solutions to meet the island’s needs. The ecological impacts of tourism infrastructure development are not yet deeply considered.

Many Balinese, who traditionally hold a deep respect for nature, have changed their behavior: They are busy selling off their natural resources because the price of land on the island skyrocketed. In the end, many Balinese fall into the position as the screws to turn this big machine known as the tourism industry.

But the actual conditions on Bali have provoked a reaction from a number of artists, though they are still in the minority. One such artist is Made Muliana Bayak. Bayak expresses his discontent through multimedia art composed of installations and paintings. I new exhibit of his work, “Fresh from the Oven,” is now on display. The Exhibit opened on Friday (20/1) and will end on 2 March 2012 at Griya Santrian Gallery, Jl. Danau Tamblingan 47, Sanur.

The curator of the exhibition, Wayan Jengki Sunarta, wrote in the introduction to the exhibition that most Balinese artists are busy fulfilling what the art markets demand. They touch on aesthetics and form, but forget to explore their own ideas and the meaning of their work. For example, most artists graduating from fine art institutions choose the safe and comfortable path as painters: “Their art only chases beauty; it is ‘made to order’ and appears dominated by images created by Bali’s tourism industry. This art successfully sells the lies of what Bali is. [The artists] are having fun masturbating with aesthetics, and they ignore all the important issues which are right in front of them,” says Jengki.

In his paintings, Bayak criticizes “Sukawatian” paintings, which replicate the Mooi Indie style and are commonly sold at art markets, galleries, and gift shops in Bali. “Sukawatian” paintings portray the exoticism of Bali with iconic beauty, such as rice field views, quite villages, or topless women. In reality, the rice fields of Bali are being replaced with hotels and villas, and colonial etiquette long ago coerced local women to cover their breasts—while tourists enjoy the freedom of being practically topless.

Bayak has reproduced these iconic touristic paintings and added new icons to represent Bali’s actual current conditions: the words “SOLD,” for example, and barcodes and dollar symbols accompany the images. He also added ornaments which portray Bali’s new reality, such as cement walls, billboards advertising land for sale, and the modern farming machinery that has replace cow-drawn farming methods.

Bayak’s paintings do not delve too deeply into technique. The focus of the exhibit is clearly the message. In the past, Spies used fine art as a tool to promote tourism in Bali; in contrast Bayak is promoting the degradation of Bali as a result of the tourism industry.

Recently, the Balinese Provincial Environmental Agency (BLH) as well as the Bureaurs of Law and Human Rights (Biro Hukum and HAM), began drafting provincial regulations regarding waste management, with the goal that these regulations would be implemented in 2011. Through these provincial regulations, Bali will start waste management starting at the level of individual homes, using the Takakura model—separating organic waste to be processed into environmental friendly compost.

This new program launches in conjunction with several efforts for a plastic-free Bali (such as the Bali Clean and Green Province initiative), which runs 2010-2014. The government is also developing school waste management units, from elementary schools through to university campuses.

The plan to make Bali free of plastic wastes could mimic China’s methods used in 2008. With simple steps, such as banning plastic bags in grocery stores, the plastic waste volume reduced by 50%, around 100 billion plastic bags. The principle is simple: Shops that continue to offer plastic bags are required to charge customers for each plastic bag. They can keep the profits from the sale of the plastic bags. As a result, customers learn to reuse plastic bags.

Home level waste management could be improved through building waste processing facilities at the banjar (sub-village) or village level. In this way, waste will be managed close to the source, rather than being immediately transported to landfills (TPA). Besides being good for the environment and providing other benefits for villages, this method could also bring in financial income from the sale of products created from waste (see the rough financial breakdown above).

The government can additionally work together with private companies and banks to create waste processing machines or technology for both organic and inorganic waste. In Denpasar, there are four villages currently managing their own waste: Sanur Kauh, Sanur Kaja, Tegal Kertha and Kelurahan Ubung. Utilizing their ideas, the government could encourage the a commitment to waste management by community-oriented companies.

The decision to involve village communities and education as part of a waste management program is a strategic move. In addition to addressing the trash buildup problem on a small scale, the government will hold communities accountable for handling their own waste problems, with the incentive of numerous benefits. This is modern business, where the level of progress is defined by our ability to develop and protect Planet Earth from destruction caused by waste.

The moral is simple: A society is considered modern or advanced if it is able to handle waste problems and turn these “problems” into assets. Ipso facto if a society is not able to manage it’s waste problems, then that that society remains primitive, living in the past.

In one short year, Serambi Arts Antida has become the choice haunt for the young novice and seasoned doyen to socialize, theorize, and cultivate an already burgeoning Denpasar arts scene.

On Saturday (29/10) Serambi Arts Antida celebrates its one-year anniversary with a lineup of performing artists that suitably reflect Anom’s vision for an artistic mélange on the Serambi stage: Performers include dramatist and writer Cok Sawitri, two outstanding folk trios Nosstress and Dialog Dini Hari, 15-years-strong rockers Navicula, and several international guests, including tenacious hip hop emcee and long-term Bali resident Kamau and visiting American blues and soul guru Jim Larkin. One year ago Serambi opened its doors to local, national, and international performing and visual artists and their enthusiasts. In the last year, Serambi Arts Antida hosted some of the most talented and creative provocateurs through photograph and painting exhibitions, music album launches, education workshops, jam sessions, and poetry slams.

The cozy, open-air venue, partitioned into a warm bar and stage area and an inviting, spacious garden, is attached to the island’s best recording and production studio—and consequently boasts the best live sound mixing, a reputation which is attached to the name of the architect behind it all: Gung Anom.

Antida’s roots lie in a country thousands of miles away from Bali: Switzerland. Anom moved to Switzerland where his father was employed in order to study French, with the goal of becoming a French teacher in Bali upon his return.

But with only three months of French lessons at Alliance Francaise under his belt before settling in Europe, Anom faced an uphill battle gaining entry into Switzerland’s competitive school system. Eventually, after several months of intensive language studies, Anom managed to secure a spot at a college in Geneva, studying French and linguistics. During his studies he pursued his love of French—and met his true love and future wife.

Toward the end of his studies, Anom realized he had little interest in returning to Bali. He enjoyed his lifestyle in Switzerland, and particularly the creative community to which he had access in Geneva. He couldn’t imagine returning to Bali: a place that, to him, was still devoid of a thriving music and arts scene.

But newly married and with work and residency permits in hand, Anom now faced the hard truth that there was little he could do with a certificate to teach French as a non-native speaker living in Switzerland. “I still wanted to live in Switzerland, but I couldn’t work as a language teacher,” he explains. “My first experience in the recording studio was making coffee for the engineers and cleaning the studios,” Anom laughs. “Eventually, the engineers gave me a few lessons.”

So with no job prospects in the field of language teaching, Anom turned his attention to another: He enrolled in a state-run audio technician school and began freelancing as a sound engineer for television broadcasting, live outdoor productions, and theater. He worked everyday and attended audio theory classes once a week for two years before receiving his certificate and beginning work fulltime in sound reinforcement.

Anom opened a small, underground studio in Geneva, christened with the same name that signifies the high-end and expansive production studio now located on Jalan Waribang. He also explored other musical terrains: together with his friend, Pouney, he founded a French hip-hop duo called “Tout un Monde,” All The World. Anom was kind enough to offer a track from Anom vs Pouney for free download on Akarumput.com.

Click here to download

After thirteen years in Europe, Anom’s romanticism of life there began to wear thin, and he longed to return to the serenity he remembered in Bali. “It turns out that life in a foreign country isn’t as easy as we imagine,” Anom recalls. “Don’t think that everything there will be great. It’s actually really difficult, and I had to work so hard.” Anom and his wife left Switzerland behind and settled into Balinese life and Denpasar. “These days,” he says, “I’m much happier in Bali, much more comfortable.”

In 2004, Anom opened a tiny studio in a storefront space—the second location of Antida Studio—in front of Taman 65 on Jalan W.R. Supratman, which he subsequently filled to capacity with the audio equipment he purchased and brought back from Switzerland. He continued to freelance, mixing for live events, and he rented his studio for recording and production.

Finally, in 2007, with the help of a few wise investors, the third edition of Antida Studio opened its doors on Jalan Waribang. Antida Studio quickly gained a reputation for its international-standard recording equipment and expert recording, mixing, and mastering engineers. “The thing about sound reinforcement is that you really can’t study it in theory,” says Anom.

Today, as he nears fifteen years of experience, Anom’s services as a freelance engineer, as well as his studio, are in high demand. Balinese, national, and international recording artists ranging stylistically from hard rock and grunge to jazz, pop, world music, and gamelan have all recorded and produced albums at Antida. “Dangdut’s the only thing we haven’t recorded,” Anom says, chuckling. Anom has also sponsored and produced several artists, including Dialog Dini Hari and Nosstress. Anom says, “My dream is to start a record label under Serambi. I enjoy supporting bands who have great potential”

Anom hasn’t completely left Switzerland behind: he returns once a year to spend several days handling sound for large conferences and festivals. The time spent there—and the extra cash flow it provides—allows Anom to maintain his internationally competitive studio.

Anom has long contemplated making a more direct impact on Bali’s creative community. This desire became the impetus for breaking ground on Serambi Arts Antida. “Serambi Arts Antida is dedicated to developing and promoting contemporary art and culture of the local communities in Bali.”

He also hopes these local communities feel a sense of ownership over the space, and he is proud it has become a popular hangout, particularly for local musicians and their friends and fans. But he also wants to facilitate an experience of a wider diversity of art: “Bali has such a strong rock music scene, and that’s great,” he explains. “But I also hope young people can hear something new as well.” One of Serambi’s most popular music series has been their world music concerts. “I’m hoping that this kind of music can have a place in Denpasar, just like rock music. I want to encourage young people to hear and appreciate all kinds of music in an open, creative forum.”

With Serambi’s continued success, it seems that the creative community Anom appreciated so much in Geneva can now be found in his own backyard.

All photos by Rudi Waisnawa.

With every pregnancy and birth to bring new life into the world, we are also facing the risk of loss: the loss of a mother’s life. In Indonesia, maternal and infant mortality rates are still very high for Asia standards.

Midwives are the spearhead to improve the health of mothers and infants, and to reduce the mortality rates. In rural areas, it is midwives who are first contacted by community members when the pains of labor begin or if there are complications during delivery. One of these midwives is Robin Lim. Through the Bumi Sehat Clinic in Ubud, Bali, Robin Lim has assisted in providing free health services since 2003. “In the first 8 months of 2011 alone, Bumi Sehat has offered free healthcare services to over 20,500 patients and assisted in the delivery of almost 400 babies.” says Robin Lim.

Her social work has now received appreciation, Robin Lim has been nominated as a 2011 CNN Hero this past March. It takes nine months before the CNN Hero of the Year is announced, which will be this December 11th. Nine months, the same time it takes for an infant to grow in the womb.

To learn how to vote for Robin Lim, and to learn more about her work, visit:
Visit the Official CNN website to Vote for Robin Lim
akarumput.com/robinlim atau bumisehatbali.org
Facebook:Ibu Robin Lim
Twitter: @iburobin

Fill the seedling pots with potting soil, this can be topsoil mixed with manure, rice husks, and other organic materials. Make sure there are some holes in the bottom of the pots so that water doesn’t collect there.

Sawi (Chinese cabbage) seeds.

Pumpkin seeds.

Long beans and snow pea seed pods; peel and remove the seeds.

Plant the seeds with a happy heart and smile on your face. Think of the seed like your child. A child will grow healthy in a family that is filled with love.

Label the seedling containers so you don’t forget what kind of seeds you planted. Place the seedlings in a place that is protected from direct sunlight, strong winds, and heavy rain. Ants love baby seedlings, so to protect them from ant armies, place your seedlings on a raised platform or table and put the table legs in a container of water. Remember to water your seedlings every morning and afternoon.

Some rhizome plants, like ginger, bongkot, and turmeric, can be planted directly in the land. The same goes for plant and root cuttings, such as cassava, bamboo, and banana. Pumpkin and long bean seeds also grow well directly in the lands. Seedlings and extra care is most important for vegetable plants, such as sawi, lettuce, chili, and tomatoes.

After a week, cute baby plants will start to appear :)

After about two weeks the seedlings can be planted in the land. Carefully remove the seedlings from the containers. Make sure to not damage the roots. Add the remaining potting soil around the plant roots so that the seedlings can adapt well to their new environment. Different types of plants can be planted close together, and this diversity is good for your garden.

If your land or garden bed is in direct sunlight or it is too hot during the dry season, you can add some shade, like the netting used here. Netting works well because it still allows some sunlight to pass through. Care for the young seedlings well. Make sure the soil doesn’t dry out and there is enough mulch around the young plants.

A healthy, organic home garden will not only reduce your expenses, but can also provide nutritious food for the whole family. And the area round your house will be greener, cooler, and of course beautiful. Extra vegetable produce can be shared with your neighbors, and they will love you more for that. But, make sure not to make your neighbor’s wife jealous. Remember, urban farming is the realization of the slogan: the neighbor’s garden is always greener.

Welcome to the Urban Farming Syndicate! Follow @BaliUrbanFarm on Twitter.

Click here to read part 1 of this article.

Especially if there is unused land around your house; instead of letting this become a toilet for your dogs, turn it into healthy vegetables. Instead of letting the snakes nest there, plant some snake-like vine plants. Instead of wasting time, roll up your shirtsleeves and get to work: Plant your own food! Lift your hoe, my friend!

Following are a few simple steps on how to plant a vegetable garden behind your house. When you start your garden, please share your farming stories and photos with Akarumput.com. Who knows, maybe you’ll find a love-connection with someone who is on the look out for a do-it-yourself partner, who is kind, passionate, and smells a little like soil.

Prepare the soil. You can start with a small plot and slowly expand slowly.

Loosen up the soil with a hoe and clear away any rocks, plastic trash, or used condoms.

Raise the soil and shape it into garden beds. Use any shape you like, long, square, circular, star shaped, spiral. Leave some space to walk through the garden beds, because you need to avoid walking on top of the beds to make sure you do not compact the soil.

If needed, add some nutrient rich soil which has been mixed with manure. In Denpasar, this soil can be bought at plant-shops for around 250,000-300,000 rupiah for a whole pick up truck full. But it’s even better if you mix your own potting soil with fertilizer, because the kind you can buy usually only contains a small amount of cow manure. Look, my dog Backer wants to donate some manure to the garden ;)

Husss!! Backer!!! Stop following me!!

Add some fertilized soil on top of the garden beds.

Now you can also add a layer of mulch on top of the garden beds. Mulch is made up of organic materials which will protect the soil from too much sunlight and make sure it stays damp underneath, while providing additional nutrients to the soil. Mulch could be rice husks, hay, woodchips, coffee husks, or dry leaves and grass. If you have pets at home, like Backer or chickens, make sure to add a fence around your garden. Use cheap and available materials. The fence could be made from tree cuttings. Legumes like lamtoro, kelor, kayu santan, and dapdap make great living fences. These tree cuttings will grow up to provide shade for your garden and the leaves can be used as a vegetable. Legumes are really useful for the soil, because when they are cut back, the nodules in the legume roots release nitrogen into the soil. In this photo you can see we used kelor and kayu santan as living fence, because kelor leaves are one of my favorite veggies. The garden fence can also be used as a place to grow vine plants.

To save space, use vertical gardening techniques, like pergolas for vine plants such as pumpkin, passion fruit, and long beans. Our garden uses bamboo weaving which leans against our neighbor’s wall so the pumpkin plants will grow vertical, not horizontal which takes up much more space.

While preparing the land, pots or polybags can be used to plant seeds. Again, use materials that are easily available. You can even use left over materials or rubbish as seedling containers, such as old soda cans, sardine containers, water bottles, milk cartons, or broken buckets.

Wow, urban farming serves so many purposes. Mmm, and this article is getting way to long. So stop back soon and follow @BaliUrbanFarm on twitter for more urban farming techniques.