Whether acknowledged or not, Amir played a crucial role in the Second Youth Congress that gave birth to the Youth Pledge. Amir Sjarifoeddin was the treasurer of the Youth Congress. - This biography of Amir Sjarifoeddin is undeniably one of the most anticipated books by its readers for several … [Read more...]
Literature Marks the Times
October 23, 2025 by
Every literary work always marks its era, without exception. Nevertheless, the innovator forges their own path, boldly rejecting conventional rules. Chairil Anwar, a 20th-century Indonesian poet, pioneered the liberation of Indonesian poetry from all forms of constraint and structural rigidity … [Read more...]
Sri Owen, food writer who introduced Indonesian cuisine to Britain in the 1970s
October 12, 2025 by
Working in an age before lucrative supermarket tie-ins or television deals, she never achieved the name recognition of younger chefs. Sri Owen, who has died aged 90, was an authority on Indonesian food, and was widely credited with introducing the country’s cuisine to the English-speaking … [Read more...]
Melani Budianta, Unrecorded History Can Live in Literature
July 13, 2025 by
”History was like an old house at night. With all the lamps lit. And ancestor whispering inside. To understand history, we have to go inside and listen to what they're saying.” (Arundhati Roy - ”The God of Small Things”) The quote from the novel The God of Small Thing by Indian … [Read more...]
‘The Jakarta Salon’: Remembering a home that nurtured Indonesian maestros
July 5, 2025 by
Authored by Hong Kong-based art specialist Rishika Assomull, the 293-page volume was launched at the very place where it all began: the Papadimitrious residence. Today, Indonesian maestros such as Affandi, Ahmad Sadali, Hendra Gunawan and Srihadi Soedarsono are celebrated as forefathers of … [Read more...]
