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REVITALIZING TRADITION: THE POP ART STYLE OF WAYANG PACITAN BEBER
Ahmad Ndari
Faculty of Art and Performance, Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) Surakarta, Indonesia
AB O U T ART I CL E
Key words:
Wayang Pacitan Beber, Pop art,
Traditional arts, Cultural heritage, Revitalization,
Contemporary adaptation, Indonesian art.
Received:
22.06.2024
Accepted
: 27.06.2024
Published
: 02.07.2024
Abstract:
This paper explores the innovative use
of pop art style in revitalizing the traditional art
form of Wayang Pacitan Beber. Wayang Pacitan
Beber is a unique Indonesian narrative art that
combines storytelling with visual arts on a large
scroll. The adaptation of pop art elements injects
new life into this ancient tradition, appealing to
contemporary audiences while preserving cultural
heritage. Through a case study approach, this
research examines how the integration of pop art
influences the narrative, aesthetics, and reception
of Wayang Pacitan Beber. It highlights the role of
collaborative efforts in conserving traditional arts
through creative adaptation and modern
interpretation.
INTRODUCTION
The dominance of foreign cultures, which are becoming increasingly popular
presented through a variety of information and communication technologies, has resulted in the
emergence of new challenges for generations that are still conservative in the arts and culture of their
ancestors. Digital media are finally and currently altering generations' appearances, mental models,
identities, and minds (Darmawan, 2016). These days, the current age's consideration and worry for
development and tribal legacy are progressively blurring alongside unfamiliar social items that are
extremely mutilated and differed. Lastly, it is believed that the local culture is increasingly disappearing
and is being seriously displaced by foreign cultures. Nowadays, the younger generation is more
interested in instant and practical culture. The present youthful age imagines that external culture is
more agreeable with their temperamental and western in vogue spirits.
Enhancing and making the best use of the original traditional arts from the archipelago is the
solution to repelling and reducing these foreign cultures. One of them is by organizing and preserving
the Wayang Beber characters' traits. Traditional cultural arts have been affected by how to deal with
the effects of globalization, modernization, commercialization, and the spread of cultural
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communication technology around the world. Wayang Beber has been near, grew up, and created for
quite a while as of recently it needs security in the period of globalization, which is all cases of the
Indonesian archipelago. The art of wayang culture, which incorporates scenes from the Mahabharata
and Ramayana kingdoms into the precious culture of the archipelago, has been recognized by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) since 2003. Wayang's story and
character have developed into a model for educational philosophy, morality, and the character of the
nation's children for younger generations. The specialty of wayang culture is a legitimate culture that
has been conceived, grew up, and lived from one age to another in the archipelago, for example, in the
realm of Java, the Lombok islands, Madura Island, the Sundanese public, Balinese individuals, South
Kalimantan individuals, South Sumatra wong, and a few pieces of the archipelago other. Wayang, or
dance, is an original culture whose values are applied as a way of life that is believed to bring blessings
to many citizens of the archipelago. It is the philosophy and example of ancestral life. According to
Sudedjo & Prilosadoso, the resilience, tenacity, and adaptability of Wayang art, which contains local
wisdom, can be tested throughout history in the face of various upheavals at every stage of global
development. As of now, manikins are as yet inseparable from a neighborhood culture that fills in each
locale in the archipelago. There are many aspects to the shadow puppet show, such as the sound art of
music, the art of advice writing, the art of beauty and pleasure music, the art of language and speech,
the visual arts, and other traditional arts.
The Puppeteer of Wayang Beber performance frequently teaches the audience religious teachings and
norms about the glory of life, both through what is implied in each story and character of the play and
how to react, so that local meanings and wisdom become motivators for going through both happy and
difficult times. Because the puppets contain religious norms, wisdom teachings, community manners,
and high moral values as guidelines for people's lives first, wayang serves as a tool for living guidelines
and a philosophy of life in Javanese society (Margana et al., 2018). Back to the past, the conventional
wayang craftsmanship has been demonstrated in confronting different unrest and tensions and
difficulties in individuals' day to day existence venture. It has gone through a number of these various
developments. Wayang can continue to exist as traditional art due to its endurance and adaptability to
globalization. Accordingly, UNESCO unequivocally upholds the execution of the Show on the Defending
of Immaterial Social Legacy of Wayang for Indonesia in 2003 to safeguard world social structures that
are more brief and save world societies' variety, including manikins from the archipelago and Malay.
Wayang Beber are Pacitan classical art performances with traditional values that come from Donorejo,
Pacitan Regency's Dusun Karangtalun area, Gedompol Village (Prilosadoso & Rosmiati, 2017). Sumardi
alias Mardi Gunacarita is the legitimate heir to the Donorojo puppet artifacts in East Java, and the Beber
Wayang artifacts he owns are a legacy from his ancestors from a long time ago. Sumardi, who asserts to
be the thirteenth generation since Naladerma brought the Beber puppet to Pacitan, comes in next. Also,
he thought that the puppet show was a gift from his ancestor Naladerma to King Brawijaya V, the last
Majapahit king in 1478. The Wayang Beber story initially depicts the Mahabharata epic's Wayang story,
but as it progresses, it shifts to the Panji story, which began in the Jenggala kingdom in the 11th century
and reached its zenith during the Majapahit era, which lasted from the 14th to the 15th centuries. The
explanation explained that the wayang beber developed in Pacitan, East Java, after being born during
the Majapahit kingdom and ending with no dalang offspring. In the history of the traditional art of
wayang beber, which originated in the Jenggala kingdom in the 11th century, the form of wayang beber
with a narrative picture of wayang stories depicted on flat leaves.
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Not all of our people have abandoned their ancestral culture in modern times. However, the majority of
today's younger generations still believe that local culture is no longer appropriate for keeping up with
the times. As a result, their ancestral heritage is becoming less and less important to them. In this
manner, the job of the local area and government is required in light of the fact that in the improvement
of Beber wayang these days, it requires protection endeavors so it doesn't become wiped out
(Rachmadian, 2016). To ensure that Pacitan Regency
—
known as the birthplace of Beber wayang
—
continues to produce Pacitan puppets, all efforts
—
from the production of beber puppets to
performances and other alternative efforts
—
are required to turn them into a community-pleasing
entertainment event.
Wayang Beber is derived from the leaf-shaped Mahabharata and Ramayana epics; The story of Panji
Asmarabangun and Dewi Sekartaji is then connected to a paper painting. Wayang Beber has at first been
a customary workmanship from Pacitan which encouraged the insight of nearby culture in Karangtalun,
Gedompol Town, Pacitan Rule, East Java, around then it was perceived as an exhibition of shows that
were extremely appealing to the majority. In addition to the love story of Panji Asmarabangun and Dewi
Sekartaji, each group's stories have been enhanced and made very popular throughout the region. The
staged works known as "Beber wayang" convey local wisdom and ideas. The vision of the local
community in relation to society and the environment is the source of this wisdom. The younger
generation of the population is the most active connoisseur of the younger generation, who ought to be
viewers and stewards of culture and the natural environment, particularly the Beber wayang. In the
future, Indonesia's dominant young population, also known as the millennial generation, will be the
leading, superior, and promising work generation.
Naturally, this brand-new Beber traditional art form is preserved for the purpose of protecting one's
ancestors' heritage. New traditional art salvation is proposed to create regular beauty art innovations
without changing or detracting from the standards and essence of traditional arts that are classified
because traditional art is an art with its own messages, terms, and conditions. It will add populist values
and values without removing the original identity and soul of traditional arts that already exist by
changing the art from the original and the performance packaging for classical art performances into
contemporary art. Craftsmanship is as past works of the actual characters in different and different
structures like artwork and expressive arts. This craftsmanship likewise unites the specialty of
perception, vocalization and instrumentalization music, sensational, abstract, and regular, as well as the
craft of puppeteer which will expect abilities to protect and resuscitate the personality of wayang. In
order for the Pacitan puppet show to continue in existence and progress forever, this kind of work will
require solutions through a variety of media and channels that can be staged. According to Jethani &
Leorke (2013), critical and dynamic education and training are needed to explore developments, think
about how we can market and evaluate the potential for the existence of this traditional art, so that its
continuity and life will continue to exist and alter the conventional paradigm of urban and urban places,
spaces, and dwellings.
Given the context of this study, it is essential to attempt to preserve and provide a solution in the form
of a Beber puppet that combines technology, animation, audio, and character and other performance
technologies. In this way, there is a requirement for development and coordinated effort through
different media that interface the millennial age with the Wayang Beber to be one approach to
safeguarding the craft of the archipelago's social legacy. In the future, the advancement of Diplomatic
Wayang Beber media's advanced animation will enable a greater number of millennials to admire and
evaluate this traditional Beber art as international in the age of technology.
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METHODS
We have utilized a subjective enlightening examination strategy way to deal with get information from
the works which we then break down because of this exploration. This research method (Heriwati et
al.,) used questionnaires to learn more about the study's subject in depth. 2019). The primary goal of
qualitative descriptive research is to explain the role that digital communication and information
technology played in modernizing Pacitan Wayang art and culture. Cultural studies explain how
practices that link traditions and goods, blurring national and international boundaries, make up a large
portion of the world's unexplored heritage (Pietrobruno, 2009; 2010 (Järvensivu & Törnroos).
In order to preserve Pacitan's wayang beber's traditional art, this study aims to develop wayang beber
through a variety of media, one of which is pop art illustration stylization. An interactive model is used
to analyze information from the literature review and interviews using various sources of results. Each
stage of the research includes data collection, data reduction, presentation, and drawing conclusions.
According to Miles & Huberman (1994), the analysis process's mechanism will proceed continuously as
the cycles interact with one another until the sought-after information is truly complete. The pop art
stylization illustration itself and the Wayang Ber characters served as the primary data sources for this
study.
According to Bandem (2005), the five design processes of the Wayang Beber tourism icon from Pacitan
areas are included in the book Art Consortium (1986). a) observation; b) collaboration and further
development; c) analysis and synthesis; d) realization; and e) project completion. Data triangulation, as
well as theoretical and practical triangulation, were utilized in the data validity test. The validity of the
data is evaluated through additional means by analyzing the data triangulation process. Analyzing data
through a four-stage interactive cycle includes the stages of data collection, data reduction and
reduction, data exposure and presentation, and conclusion-drawing.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
The Origins of the Wayang Pacitan Beber Journey The archipelago is home to a number of distinct kinds
of wayang. Because the Wayang Beber art uses an unfamiliar stage model and an image as an object of
interpretation, it is one of the various arts. The sungging method of painting, which combines the
advantages of manual and conventional manufacturing processes, is used to design beber wayang
concepts that are depicted on cloth or paper media in a scene model in accordance with another method.
Wayang Beber used the classical painting technique known as sungging, which is done very carefully,
meticulously, and has its own style, to polish well on cloth or paper in one view, following other shows
in an orderly manner. This Beber manikin is a venue with an item being played or an image that is joined
by a story. Storytelling tales and image rehearsals were used to perform the Beber puppet show, which
was said to captivate the audience.
The Pacitan Beber Puppets are referred to as the Wayang Simbah or Punden Tawangalun by the
Karangtalun community and the surrounding area. The Yellow Flower Jaka Beber, as the name suggests,
is given by the owner simultaneously. The story of Raden Inukertapati and Dewi Sekartaji's love affair
is the focus of the Kediri play Jaka Kembang Kuning. This story is an improvement of a form of the Panji
story from a few Panji stories that are notable to people in general. The following are the causes of the
decline or scarcity of Pacitan Beber traditional art:
a) The Beber performance is unappealing because it only depicts images that appear stiff, repetitive,
and more sacred.
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b) The aspect of the Beber narrative that is comprised of six scrolls that contain 24 jagongs has not been
developed.
c) The Panji stories are compiled from various versions of the well-known love stories told in
agricultural societies in local records.
d) The widespread belief that Beber's ritual performances are based on myths about the puppeteer and
particular communities.
e) For members of the arts community who do not wish to study because they believe that Beber cannot
be developed further as performance art.
f) Aspects of the Susuhunan Hanyakrawati Seda Krapyak order that states that wayang beber should
not be performed as a ceremonial ritual in the Mataram palace, where the next king dynasty still follows
this rule.
Game plan of Beber Characters Through Representations of Pop Workmanship Stylisation
The play can offer a positive benefit to the peruser with the presence of a representation style in a
masterpiece. According to Rasjoyo (1994) in Kristanto, the definition of illustration explains that the
word "picture" derives etymologically from the Latin word "illustrate," which means "to describe or
explain something" (Kristanto, 2011; 2004 by Quan and Wang; Wang, 1997). In contrast, the broad
definition of description states that a work of art that aims to clarify or explain something can take the
form of music, pictures, stories, or scripts. Delineation throughout the entire existence of its
improvement isn't just valuable for of supporting a story. Nevertheless, it can be used to decorate empty
spaces, such as packaging, packaging labels, and other elements applied to printed media like books,
tabloids, magazines, and newspapers.
The capacity of an illustration in communication to serve as a medium for translating the text and
assisting in the precise, quick, and firm transmission of a message. The most common way of planning
delineation will include numerous thoughts and thoughts to decide the components of the story,
characters, settings, and foundation. To be believable, characters in video games, films, and television
shows must exhibit a wide range of other personality traits (Hyde et al., 2013). The Wayang Beber
characters can also be transformed into characters by using pop art-style illustrations. This allows the
characters to be used as alternative media for the company's future development, which will obviously
be tailored to its customers' segments, particularly the millennial generation. The ability to connect and
develop verbal performance modes like narration and on-screen text with nonverbal storytelling modes
like graphics, video, animations, and environmental sounds in a single device (the computer) has been
made possible by technological advancements.
In the meantime, the image is described as an illustration by Rohidi (1984). Drawing illustrations is a
form of fine art that depicts something through visual elements to further explain, explain, or beautify
a text so that readers can experience the story directly through their own eyes, characteristics, and
movements (Kristanto, 2011). The meaning of the image above emphasizes the language used to
explain the idea or to explain a written manuscript so that its contents can be easily understood.
The establishment of a Pop Art gallery in 1960 played a major role in art's influence on the world's
visuals. This art movement has grown rapidly in England and the United States due to its close ties to
popular culture. Through their use of visual language, the works of art produced during the Pop Art
period have distinct styles. Pop artists frequently create icons, such as celebrities, comic books, and
advertisements that frequently appear in society or the media. After that, the various existing icons are
processed into brand-new forms that frequently appear naughty and unexpected (Wardana, 2012).
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In the meantime, an explanation of Pop Art or Pop Art is an art form that originated in the United States.
It was born out of dissatisfaction with the development of the Expressionism style, which affected
academics and a large class at the time and was thought to be harmful to society. Therefore, the
perspectives of individuals who oppose American Expressionism, such as; Andy Warhol, Leo
Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg, Janes Rosenquist attempt to toss their pop work to people in general for
a huge scope through their work, realistic contemporary, in response to his disappointment with the
style of Expressionism that won in American culture at that point.
The visual elements necessary to produce a visual appearance are utilized in this Beber illustration
work with pop art stylization, along with the following explanations:
a) Line the visual elements of an illustration's outline can be used anywhere to help the reader visualize
and comprehend the character of the Beber character.
b) Field The purpose of the blank spaces in this illustration in the pop art stylization style is to identify
the wayang beber characters.
c) Color the appeal in terms of illustration, specifically color, where one of these visual elements serves
to draw attention, particularly the millennial generation, by using tertiary colors
—
a combination of
primary and secondary colors
—
is the appeal.
d) Dark light the juxtaposition of light and dark colors in this pop art-style illustration can both
emphasize the puppet characters and convey a message.
e) Format This pop art stylization illustration that takes into account both the large and small visual
elements needs to be carefully considered so that the appearance of this Beber wayang character has a
special value and can also introduce its name to the millennial generation.
CONCLUSION
The author is grateful to the Research Center and Community Services, the Minister of Research and
Higher Education, the Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) in Surakarta, and a number of other parties for their
support and assistance throughout this research phase.
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