Representations of Diponegoro after Arbitrary Interpretations

Martinus Dwi Marianto

, Nur Sahid

and Purwanto

Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta (Indonesia Art Institute of Yogyakarta), Jln Parangtritis KM 6,5, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Keywords: Diponegoro, yogyakarta, vernacular, war of java

Abstract: This research is to investigate how Prince Diponegoro - one of the National Heroes in the Republic of

Indonesia - is presented in visual works either in two or three-dimensional media. Of the various vernacular

expressions scattered in many places in Yogyakarta, it can be said that Diponegoro - the eldest son of Sultan

Hamengkubuwono III of the Yogyakarta Sultanate - was presented in various expressions, which seemed to

be based on arbitrary interpretations and arbitrary conception. . This research was conducted by first observing

Diponegoro's drawings from a number of works - paintings, sculptures, and reliefs - then observing again

using visual data and historical texts from official sources that can be accessed by the public. Each selected

artwork is considered a sign; its signifier is analyzed, interpreted, and assessed to answer research questions.

In general, there are many interpretations of Diponegoro, causing many perceptions, about Diponegoro. Based

on the findings obtained, it can be said that the representation of Diponegoro in various visual works have

developed in such an arbitrage, even from what is symptomatic can be said to have shown the symptoms of

anarchism.

1 INTRODUCTION

Prince Diponegoro, the first son of Sultan

Hamengkubuwono (HB) III of the Yogyakarta

Sultanate, is one of the Indonesia’s national heroes.

He lead the Java War – a fierce and bloody battle -

against Dutch Colonialism in 1825, until 1830.

Diponegoro is very popular in various communities

in Yogyakarta and its surroundings, but the opposite

happens in the Palace of Yogyakarta Kasunanan

itself. The history of Diponegoro related to the War

of Java, and what causes the war is still a 'mystery'

until now. Diponegoro actually had culturally

defected from the Sultanate in the 1810s, when the

Sultanate was legally and militarily under control of

the British government in Java, represented by

Lieutenant-Governor Stamford Raffles od the Dutch

East Indies (1911-1816) (Wikipedia: Stamford

Raffles); the court was internally governed by an

Advisory Board consisting of 4 people. (Roni

Sodewo, 2016). The ruler at the time was Sultan HB

IV, who was too young to rule the Sultanate. He was

crowned as Sulatan Hamengkubuwono IV when he

was 9 years old in 2010 when he was 9 years old,

replacing the deceased Sultan HB III (Diponegoro

and the new sultan’s father). (Roni Sodewo, 2016: 22-

23).

Diponegoro then lead the Java War as a protest

against the interference from the Dutch towards the

sultanate’s internal affairs, such as influencing the

appointment of the next sultan, HB V, who was 2

years old when he was crowned sultan in 1820.

(Sodewo, 2016). The valiant prince, known as the

leader of the Java people against Dutch colonialism,

has been the subject of many art forms, especially

after his capture in Magelang on March 30, 1830, that

marked the end of the War of Java. Diponegoro was

then brought by the Dutch Colonial Government to be

exiled to Manado, North Sulawesi, through Batavia

(now Jakarta); and then moved to Makassar, South

Sulawesi. Di masa 3 tahun pengasingannya di

Manado Diponegoro menulis sebuah babad

(chronicle), consisting of 30 chapters, which is now

called Babad Diponegoro (Chronicle of Diponegoro).

(Peter Carey, 2008, via Sodewo, 2016)

The second incongruity is the fact that although

Diponegoro is welkonown for his his heroism against

imperialism, yet even in a museum that was built in

1968 as a tribute for the great prince, namely

“Museum Pangeran Diponegoro Sasana Wiratama”,

there is no single statue of this legendary figure.

Marianto, M., Sahid, N. and Purwanto, .

Representations of Diponegoro after Arbitrary Interpretations.

DOI: 10.5220/0008544700370043

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Interdisciplinary Arts and Humanities (ICONARTIES 2019), pages 37-43

ISBN: 978-989-758-450-3

There are only statues of two great generals instead

who fought for the Independence of the Republic of

Indonesia, they are the Great General Sudirman on

the western side and Lieutenant General Oerip

Soemohardjo located in the eastern side of the main

gate of the complex.

On the other hand, images that are assumed to be,

stated, and accepted as Prince Diponegoro emerge in

many visual works that are spread throughout

Yogyakarta and its surroundings. These works,

which were made to bring specific purposes, are in

the form of statues, paintings, reliefs, drawings, and

wayang (shadow puppets); made by professional

sculptors, vernacular artists, even by ordinary people

living in kampongs.

Figure 1. Relief of Diponegoro, at Sleman, Yogyakarta.

Monumental statues of Diponegoro outside the

cities around Yogyakarta, for government

institutions, were made by professional sculptors,

including: Saptoto, Eddie Sunarso, Dunadi, Purjito,

Sukasman, Yusman, Soewardi; Made Karta, the

sculptor who made the Diponegoro statue at

University of Diponegoro Campus, Semarang. The

above mentioned sculptors received art education at

the academy / school of art, which is now part of the

ISI Yogyakarta.

In fact, those monuments that are scattered all

over the place differ from one among the other. Each

work is made from the free interpretation of its maker.

Some of them are objectively below the objective

standard for a monumental statue. Some others looks

funny, or were poorly made. (Figure 1)

Presumably, the visual data and the history from

many sources that can be legally accessed and are

from the time of the Dutch Colonial era are not

considered important as well as relevant. What is

more important is always the ideological aspect,

where Diponegoro’s character carries or has either an

explicit or implicit signifier of his heroism or his

religiosity or both.

The research problems are: 1) What kind of

characteristics can be found in the representation of

Diponegoro in the works that are being researched?;

and 2) To what extent are the differences among the

characteristics of the works that can be found in many

places in Yogyakarta and the works with Diponegoro

as their subject material from the Dutch Colonial era?

This research is conducted using Art Criticism

and Semiotic methods. Every art object observed is

treated as signs. The signs here are realized as three

interrelated aspects, namely ‘sign’, ‘signifier’, and

‘signified’. (Arthur Asa Berger, 1984) The signifier is

described and analyzed objectively beforehand; then

it is interpreted and evaluated by comparing it with

the signifiers from drawings and paintings with the

subject matter of Prince Diponegoro from the Dutch

Colonial era.

2 PRINCE DIPONEGORO IN ART

FORM

2.1 Diponegoro in Dutch Paintings

The first art work with Diponegoro as its subject

matter, considered as the initiator for other works, is

a drawing made by A.J. Bik. There, Diponegoro is

illustrated wearing white turban, fully clothed with

eight buttons on his chest right under his neck. His

sarong is slung over his left shoulder towards the

right waist. The Prince’s shiny keris (traditional

dagger) is tucked in between his belt and his clothes,

with the tip its handle facing to the right. His eyes

glare at the audience; he looks serious. His ears ere

hidden underneath his turban. He has no moustache

or beard. From this illustration a lithograph was made

by C.C.A. Lost in 1835. Consequently, the use of

dark-light contrast on Diponegoro’s figure seemed

sharper, his keris looked shiny, and the image of the

Prince became more volumetric.

The illustration by A.J. Bik and the lithograph

made five years later means that Diponegoro’s

existence is valued; he is considered as an important

figure. Even after his capture and is locked up in Fort

Rotterdam, Makassar, he was visited by high-profile

guests, including the 16-year-old Dutch Prince Henry

in 1837 (Wikipedia: Diponegoro). In correlation with

this, the history recording of Diponegoro’s capture

was very important, even made Lieutenant General

De Kock—the commander of the assault—got

ICONARTIES 2019 - 1st International Conference on Interdisciplinary Arts and Humanities

recognition in the record as shown In the following

painting.

The Submission of Prince Diponegoro to General

de Kock, by Nicholaas Pieneman, made around 1830

– 1835, shows Diponegoro submitting to the Dutch

authority. Diponegoro’s face was painted in detail,

although it is not clear whether it was made based on

realistic occurrence or fictional, because he was not

shown as an ordinary Javanese from Yogyakarta with

long and thick eyelashes. Fully dressed wearing a

greed turban, Diponegoro’s hands are stretch out in a

way showing as if he was in a submissive state. It is

shown that Diponegoro does not bring his keris. His

chin is raised a little, indexically telling that he is

looking towards his followers, the indigenous people,

in front of him (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam).

Diponegoro is presented with submissive

gestures, contrast to how Lieutenant General De

Kock that looks more relaxed, and is shown to point

towards a carriage to his right. De Kock he orders a

soldier carrying a sword to take Diponegoro to

Batavia. The guards do not appear to be on standby,

while Diponegoro’s followers looked sad because

they have lost their role model, and are in the state of

shock.

2.2 Diponegoro in the Eyes of Raden

Saleh

Raden Saleh, a painter from Terboyo, Central Java

(1811-1880) who had been living in Europe for more

than two decades, saw Prince Diponegoro differently

to Pieneman. Saleh painted Diponegoro distinctively.

In The Arrest of Diponegoro, Saleh depicts

Diponegoro with his chin slightly raised and his eyes

staring directly to his front left into the eyes of De

Kock who doesn’t dare look back at Diponegoro.

Diponegor’s left hand is in a tight fist stretched

upwards a little; his right hand open, stretchs

downward, in a gesture that can be seen as if he are

trying to calm down a kneeling woman who is in awe

of the situation. The woman seems to know

Diponegoro quite well, because it can be seen that she

is touching the Prince’s thigh. No swords are drawn,

no guards were on standby. Figuratively speaking,

this was not an armed confrontation, but a war of

strategy which, according to Raden Saleh, harms

Diponegoro.

Werner Kruss in his article “Raden Saleh’s

Interpretation of the Arrest of Diponegoro: An

Example of Indonesian Proto-nationalist

Modernism”, states that Raden Saleh through his

paintings contests the Dutch’s “Visual version”

hegemony about the key event in the capture of

Diponegoro and painted it using the Javanese idiom

which he lived up to (Kraus, 2005).

2.3 The Images of Diponegoro after the

Independence of Indonesia

In the realm of national heroism for a nation that just

declared its independence (August 17, 1945), Prince

Diponegoro has been included as a national hero. His

name was used by the Third Division of the People’s

Army of Indonesia in Central Java (Division

III/Diponegoro) on June 3, 1947; then it has been

used to name The Military Territorial Command

IV/Diponegoro on July 20, 1950 that covers the

provinces of Central Java and Special Province of

Yogyakarta (wikivisually.com). This means that

Diponegoro has been popular throughout the country

ever since the Republic of Indoneasia received its full

sovereignity; Diponegoro continues to be one of the

subjects of heroism presented in various art media.

Basuki Abdullah (born in Surakarta, 1915-1993),

one of Indonesia’s elite painters, was an active painter

and once took the role as an art teacher during the

period of Japanese occupation (before the Republic of

Indonesia was proclaimed), saw Prince Diponegoro

as an important figure. Abdullah, who took art

education and lived in the Netherlands and other parts

of Europe for several years, expressed his nationalism

through his painting entitled Diponegoro Leading the

Battle, made around 1940 – 1960 and has the

dimension of 150cm x 120cm. This painter who once

became the official painter for the Kingdom of

Thailand and afterwards as the official painter for the

Presidential Palace of the Republic of Indonesia,

presented Prince Diponegoro as a leader in a battle.

Diponegoro is depicted as having his right arm

stretched forward with his forefinger pointing to a

distant place, and he wears white clothes with white

turban (Printed in Lukisan dan Patung Koleksi

Sukarno, Jilid I). The prince carried his keris that was

tucked in between his clothes and his belly cloth. His

left hand firmly hold his horse’s rein. His horse is a

special one, with black fur except for the tips of its

legs that are colored white. Diponegoro’s horse has

become a legend until this day, its name is Kyai

Gentayu. "Kyai" is a term for honorable people,

usually used for religious leaders. The use of the word

‘kyai’ in front of the names of sacred objects, horse

drawn carriages for kings, and also for horses is also

a tradition common for the Yogyakarta and Surakarta

Sultanates.

Representations of Diponegoro after Arbitrary Interpretations

3 IMAGES OF DIPONEGORO IN

THE URBAN COMMUNITY OF

YOGYAKARTA

In the city of Yogyakarta there is a strategic yet

metrically short street which stretches from the

Magelang Street crossroad to the east and ends at the

Tugu Pal Putih monument; the name of this street is

Diponegoro Street. The same street name also exists

in the Sleman and Bantul districts.

Not far from Diponegoro Street, around 2 km to

the west, there is a museum named Museum

Monumen Pangeran Diponegoro Sasana Wiratama;

located at Tegalrejo area where the Prince was raised

by his grandfather’s family. However, the exhibits

there are peculiar. Despite its name, there is no actual

statue of the great prince. Instead there are two

realistic statues—the head and torso—of the Great

General Sudirman and Lietenant General Oerip

Soemohardjo of the Indonesian National Army (TNI).

The relief about Diponegoro’s heroism looks so naive

and sober, that seems to be made carelessly even in

the place where Diponegoro, the nation’s great

national hero, once lived.

Nevertheless Diponegoro still proved to be seen

as an important hero in Yogyakarta and its

surrounding area, as well as in other cities whether

they are in Central Java or in East Java. For example,

in Semarang the name ‘Diponegoro’ is used to name

a famous state university in Semarang - the capital of

Central Java - namely Diponegoro University. For

example, in Semarang the name ‘Diponegoro’ is used

to name a public university in Semarang - the capital

of Central Java - namely Diponegoro University

There are more than 20 monuments of Prince

Diponegoro spread throughout the City of

Yogyakarta and its 4 Districts, and other cities around

Yogyakarta. These monuments are in the form of

statues and reliefs; made as commissioned works, or

by the local communities as an expression of

admiration towards the great prince who fought for

justice and religion. Therefore, in Yogyakarta, there

are a lot of statues and reliefs of Diponegoro that are

made near or on the entrance gate of kampongs, or

become landmarks/site marks of many strategic

places.

A professional photographer named Arif

Sukardono documented these monuments, either in

the form of statues or reliefs, of Price Diponegoro in

almost everywhere within the City of Yogyakarta and

its Districts. All those monuments depict Diponegoro

who is wearing a turban just like A.J. Bik’s depiction,

as a symbolic attribute for Diponegoro’s religion and

heroism.

3.1 Diponegoro in Shadow Puppets

Prince Diponegoro also appears in shadow puppet

performance arts in Yogyakarta. In 2016 a new genre

of shadow puppet arisen and is called Wayang

Diponegoro. This puppet was innovated by Roni

Sodewo. Sodewo himself is the seventh decendant of

Prince Diponegoro. The ideas used to write the script

was based upon “Babad Diponegoro” (The

Chronicles of Diponegoro). Wayang Diponegoro

holds a number of historic stories rooted from the

“traces of English colonialism in Java.”

From August 2016 to the end of August 2017,

Wayang Diponegoro had been performed six times.

This wayang told historical stories of Java in the 19

century from Prince Diponegoro’s point of view that

are different from mainstream stories of the Sultanate

of Yogyakarta. In the performance, Prince

Diponegoro’s character is displayed in full, and not

just showing his greatness and heroism, but also his

human weakness. Through this performance, the

everlasting heroic spirit of Prince Diponegoro is

presented, and has continued to inspire many people

to create as well as to interpret today’s life (Kompas,

Thursday, August 31, 2017; Sodewo, 2016).

A set of Wayang Diponegoro characters from

Roni Sodewo's collection was exhibited in “Pameran

Sastra Rupa: Gambar Babad Diponegoro” (Visual

Litarary Exhibition: Visuality of Babad Diponegoro),

in Jogja Gallery, Yogyakarta, 1-24 February 2019.

(Figure 2)

Figure 2. Wayang Diponegore, collectios of Roni Sodewo.

Exhibited at Jogja Gallery, 2019.

In connection with the Diponegoro Puppet, it

should be noted that there was once a thick

paperboard (puppet) maker, named Lejar Subroto

ICONARTIES 2019 - 1st International Conference on Interdisciplinary Arts and Humanities

(1937 – 2017). One of his works documented by Arif

Sukardono is the puppet figure of Prince Diponegoro,

who is turbaned and robed in white, wears a slippers,

has an orange belly, and a keris is tucked between his

belly and his robe in the abdomen.

3.2 Diponegoro in Fine Arts Today

3.2.1 Paintings by Heri Dono

Prince Diponegoro’s figure as a national hero and as

subject in art is continuously reinterpreted. In 2017

(more than 150 years after Diponegoro’s death) Heri

Dono, one of the leading artists in Indonesia, who

since the end of 1980s have participated in a number

of prestigious art exhibitions worldwide, has made a

painting with the dimension of 200cm x 150cm,

entitled Pangeran Diponegoro Is In Front of the

Colonial Hotel. The layouts and some other

components of this painting are taken out from Raden

Saleh’s The Arrest of Prince Diponegoro, 1858. The

building, the two mountains on the left hand side of

the painting, and the type of trees presented in there

are more or less the same. The only difference are the

figures. Liutenant-General de Kock is replaced by a

big and tall man that interpretably resembles the 6

president of Indonesia: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Other characters presented in that painting were King

Salman from Saudi Arabia, Habib Rizieq Shihab—a

controversial man, Basuki Thahaja Purnama (Ahok),

Megawati Soekarnoputri—the 5

president of

Indonesia, Wiranto—a former general of the

Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), several

other former state officials, and other politicians or

celebrities that often appeared on the silver screen.

There is also the image of Prince Diponegoro as

painted by Raden Saleh, and is even a character that

ichnographically be seen as Raden Saleh himself.

Heri Dono modified Saleh's paintings by

replacing previously existing figures with famous

figures, as well as ordinary people for his paintings.

Short said he made a parody through his painting. The

most significant is the fact that Heri Dono painted

himself in his work. At the far left on the roof of the

building is painted the image of Heri Dono, he

seemed to be running away, or is away from the

commotion caused by many political figures whose

social-political views crossed each other. Dono uses

Raden Saleh's painting as a ‘text’ which is freely

reinterpreted, then placed in the present context, to

offer new perceptions and meanings. (Figure 3)

Figure 3. Heri Dono, Diponegoro is in Front of Colonial

Hotel, 2017, Oil Painting on Canvas, 200 cm x 150 cm.

3.2.2 Paintings by F. Sigit Santoso

The similar free interpretation as a creative concept

was conducted by an artist famous for his realistic

paintings, his name is F. Sigit Santoso. Santoso’s

work entitled Abdulrohim Jokowibowo Namaku was

exhibited in “Pameran Sastra Rupa: Gambar Babad

Diponegoro”, at Jogja Gallery, Yogyakarta. (Figure

Figure 4. F. Sigit Santoso, Abdulrohim Jokowibowo

Namaku, 185 x 115 cm, Oil Painting on Canvas

Representations of Diponegoro after Arbitrary Interpretations

During the exhibition (that was held from

February 1, 2019 to February 24, 2019) showed

paintings, a set of Wayang Diponegoro, and an

installation of objects associated with Prince

Diponegoro. This exhibition was held based upon the

history of life journey written by Prince Diponegoro

himself during his exile in Manado, North Sulawesi

and Makassar, South Sulawesi.

In his painting, Santoso depicts a young man

wearing a headband based upon the description from

Babad Diponegoro (The Chronicles of Diponegoro),

in order to represent Diponegoro in his twenties. His

right hand is stretched pointing upwards. His left hand

is holding his keris that is tucked in his rolled up

sarong wrapped around his belly. The figure that is

intended to be Prince Diponegoro wears a turban, just

like A.J. Bik’s depiction. He is wearing a faded moss

green surjan (a traditional clothe from Yogyakarta).

He also wears a faded maroon sarong.

What is significant in this painting is the facial

expression of the young figure that is the subject of

the painting. That face of the figure looks like the face

of President Joko Widodo. The similarity between the

face of 'Prince Diponegoro' on and the face of

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is very easy to

recognize, because Jokowi's face has been exposed in

newspapers, television, and social media in particular

in relation to the 2019 Indonesian General Election,

which will take place on 17 April 2019. Moreover,

Santoso also creatively played the names of the two

candidates who were contesting the 2019 national

elections, namely Joko Widodo (No 1) and Prabowo

(No. 2), which he picked as he pleased, and combined

them into a new name, 'Jokowibowo'.

Image ‘Prince Diponegoro’, in his 20s, with

Jokowi's face when he was young, in Santoso's work,

shows that the interpretation and reinterpretation of

the character and 'mystery' of Diponegoro's history of

the War of Java have continued, and appeared in

various artistic and non-artistic expressions.

4 CONCLUSIONS

Since his death in 1855 until today Prince

Diponegoro’s character is still circulating and

inspiring many people in Yogyakarta. There are

many artists from several branches of art who have

created art works based on the media involved,

including fine arts, dance, opera, theater, radio drama,

and monuments; meaning that Diponegoro has

become one of the significant subjects presented in

various art media.

Monuments that were made by either professional

or vernacular artists are spread everywhere; their

visual display can vary, meaning that these art objects

were made based upon the artists’ free interpretation.

Looks like the image reference from the Dutch

colonial era is no longer considered relevant. What is

more important is that within the work, there are hints

that are signifying the ‘heroism’ as well as the

religiosity of Prince Diponegoro.

The fact that the role and image of Prince

Diponegoro did not appear in the Kraton of

Yogyakarta, and that no statue of Diponegoro in a

museum built to commemorate Diponegoro's heroism

can be interpreted that the internal problem within the

Yogyakarta Sultanate in accordance to the history of

the Java War, led by Prince Diponegoro, is not yet

finished and is still considered as controversial.

Whereas various statues, reliefs, paintings, and

other art expressions that were created and continue

to be created in many places in Yogyakarta and in the

surrounding areas signify that the character and

heroism of Diponegoro have continued to revive

amongst many communities. The mystery that

surrounds the history of Pangeran Diponegoro's

journey actually more stimulates and inspires creative

people to explore art through various media.

Diponegoro’s character used in the new genre of

shadow puppet performance telling the stories from

Babad Diponegoro (the Chronicles of Diponegoro),

has its own agenda and interest, and can never be

separated from the socio-cultural dynamics in

Yogyakarta.

In Fine Arts, it seems that the free interpretations

and the re-interpretations of Prince Diponegoro in

correlation to the history of the War of Java (1825 –

1830), has developed openly and freely.

Of what was phenomenal about the

representations of Diponegoro, it can be said that the

various interpretations are so free and far from the

visual data and official historical records of the

Prince, even somewhat anarchic. It is as if everyone

can interpret and represent Diponegoro in any

possible way, as long as it displays the signs of

heroism and religiosity that are accepted by the

power-holding communities.

It can be said that the interpretation and re-

interpretations, especially which are related to art

creativity, can be carried out in many ways, whether

it is retrospective, productive, prospective, or even

deconstructive. Each choice can create different kinds

of significance based on the paradigm used.

ICONARTIES 2019 - 1st International Conference on Interdisciplinary Arts and Humanities

REFERENCES

Berger, Arthur Asa, 1984, Signs in Contemporary Culture¸

Longman, New York.

Carey, Peter, 2008, The Power ofprophecy, KITLV Pres,

Leiden.

Kraus, Werner, 2005, “Raden Saleh’s Interpretation of the

Arrest of Diponegoro: an Example of Indonesian Proto-

nationaist Modernism”, Archipel 69, Paris, 2005, pp.

259-294.

https://wikivisually.com/wiki/Kodam_IV/Diponegoro

Lukisan-Lukisan dan Patung-Patung Koleksi Presiden

Sukarno dari Republik Indonesia, Volume I.

“Wayang Diponegoro Buka Persepsi Baru”, Kompas,

Kamis, 31 August 2017.

Sodewo, Ki Roni, 2016, Perjuangan Pangeran

Diponegoro, Patra Padi,Yogyakarta.

Sahid, Nur, 2016, Semiotika untuk Teater, Tari, Wayang

Purwa dan Film, Gigih Pustaka Mandiri, Yogyakarta.

Wikipedia: ‘Stamford Raffles’

Representations of Diponegoro after Arbitrary Interpretations