From series of two costumes ‘SARA-swati I, II'. I made this work in 2000, during the reformation period, just after president Suharto had resigned after 32 years in power. Especially in the beginning of the reformation period, with the new-found freedom of the press and expression, many people started to point accusing fingers at each other. You are right, you are wrong, you are corrupt, etc. At the same time, it was considered to be very impolite to point at someone with your finger. Saraswati is the Hindu goddess of knowledge and fights in the Javanese traditional dance performances against the powerful warrior princess Srikandhi. In 2000, there were many riots and outbreaks of violence between the Indonesian militaries and Moslem and Christian communities in the Maluccan islands and ethnic tensions in Kalimatan. A new term appeared in the newspapers, connecting these tensions: SARA - an abbreviation of Suku, Agama, Ras, Antar-golongan, which means Tribe, Religion, Race, Inter-group. For the title of this work, I connected this SARA with the goddess Saraswati.

(Courtesy of www.mellajaarsma.com)