Prompted by his concern, Kuat. 44, removed the mounds of waste on riverbanks. He set up the Siluk River School to serve as the arena for scientific experiments, undergraduate thesis writing and entrepreneurial training.
By
DWI BAYU RADIUS
·6 minutes read
KOMPAS/DWI BAYU RADIUS
Kuat
Prompted by his concern, Kuat. 44, removed the mounds of waste on riverbanks. He was ready to dig into his pocket for the facilitation of residents’ creativity through the Siluk Education Bridge. Once flooded by an overflow of the river, this forum of self-actualization has revived to organize young people to hold exhibitions.
Kuat shows his library with a collection of around 3,500 books. Siluk Education Bridge Library is the name inscribed in the room that is 2 meters wide and 6 m long. Novels, comics and primary school books fill its shelves.
The library is located on the main veranda decorated with about 15 drawings. The children of a drawing class are appreciated by hanging their works on pillars. Words are printed on several sides, reading “Ojo isin tumindak becik,” which calls on visitors to perform acts of virtue without hesitation.
Then he directs his arm at three bundles containing plastic bottles, contributed by the children of the drawing, theater and dance classes. “It’s enough for the children to bring three used bottles every time they come. The bottles are later sold. Just last month we got Rp 900,000 after collecting them for a year,” he said on Dec. 19, 2022.
On the opposite side of the big bundles is the Sinau Siluk Stall selling among others roasted rice with fillings, orek tempe (tempeh cuts fried with soy sauce), fried snacks, ginger drinks and coffee. “I opened it in 2019 to increase our income. The Siluk Education Bridge should be independent,” said Kuat.
He also set up the Siluk River School to serve as the arena for scientific experiments, undergraduate thesis writing and entrepreneurial training. He welcomes students from different campuses to be engaged in their activities there.
After being halted by the pandemic, it was resumed in 2022.
Kuat has therefore devoted his energy, thought and time to accommodate public expressions. Around 70 children and teenagers regularly visit the Siluk Education Bridge. In total hundreds of people have joined the activities since its inception in 2015.
Kuat has routinely held exhibitions for his young friends by presenting up to 1,000 drawings at every display. “An exhibition is organized for a week in October every year starting from 2017. After being halted by the pandemic, it was resumed in 2022,” he said.
Kuat keeps working. In Selopamioro village, Imogiri district, Bantul regency, Yogyakarta, he is preparing a gallery. In the pyramidal styled building with an area of almost 70 square meters, various colors typical of children combine to form vivid pictures.
KOMPAS/DWI BAYU RADIUS
Kuat
Clearing waste
While chatting in a relaxed atmosphere at the pavilion facing Oyo River, he recalled the time when he began his benefit sharing. Kuat pointed at the space under the Siluk Bridge around 200 m from his position. Its concrete base was originally buried in waste dumped by residents and vehicle drivers or riders.
“I had long been troubled by the sight of the scattered garbage, but after college I was too idealistic to do anything. I just went to the studio to see other artists, went to other cities and exhibitions,” he said. Later he could not stand being harassed by anxiety. So, he talked to a number of village youth.
“I didn’t know why, I was just forced to act. I asked them to join me in clearing the waste. If left to remain, more waste will be discarded at will. My idea was to make the place neat,” he said. He opened a reading park by providing bookshelves, mats and chairs. Residents understood this, but it was not the case with drivers.
I was just forced to act. I asked them to join me in clearing the waste. If left to remain, more waste will be discarded at will. My idea was to make the place neat.
“Cigarette packs, plastic and food containers were still thrown away. They were indeed not informed yet. I made a banner 3 m long, it was gone the next day,” he noted. Kuat again spanned a cloth 6 m long, printed with words prohibiting people from dumping rubbish.
“The waste was not tossed to the side of the bridge. Instead it was thrown to the middle, fouling the river. I spread nets to collect the waste,” he said. Kuat then opened classes of storytelling, aerobics and craftwork from plastic bottles that attracted many children. He set aside his income from painting to buy crayons, racks and wooden fruit boxes for conversion into chairs.
“If the monthly expenses were not big, only a starting capital was needed. It could reach Rp 15 million,” said Kuat. Assisted by his peers, who offered color pencils, paper and drawing books, he also was also collecting other needs, bit by bit. “I couldn’t buy dozens of boxes of crayons directly. I bought 10 boxes per week. Later I bought 20 more boxes,” he pointed out.
The Siluk Education Bridge was in peaceful operation until November 2017, when Oyo River overflowed its banks in a flash flood that caused devastation. Only one bookshelf was left. All its chairs, children’s handicrafts and stationery were washed away.
Kuat again had to tidy up, but this time he had to remove thick mud with a borrowed pump and he sprayed the area for two weeks. Refusing to give up, he continued the Siluk Education Bridge with a new horizon. A proposal to utilize a village land plot measuring 220 sq m was submitted and approved. “I still maintained the area under the bridge for over a year. A new location had to be found, so I needed support. The same disaster was feared to recur,” he said. There was a positive response when the state electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (Persero) carried out its corporate social responsibility program.
Its development started at the end of 2018. “My close friends also helped, such as by contributing ceramics,” he said. After its completion in August 2019, Kuat felt a sense of relief as the forum for creative activities of the succeeding generation could become even more comfortable.
He engrosses himself with the children’s world so he frequently portrays it in his paintings.
Kuat
Born:Yogyakarta, 15 June 1978
Wife: Novita Sapti Wiharta
Children: Two
Education: Pure Arts, the Indonesian Arts Institute, Yogyakarta
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