Figures, dedications, and civilisations
Tokoh-tokoh, pengabdian, dan peradaban (Figures, dedications, and civilisations) is an exhibition that emerges from the conservation of historical dioramas at the National History Museum, National Monument (Monas), Jakarta. Beginning with diorama no. 44, “Liberation of West Irian, 1 May 1963”, the project brings together artworks, archives, conversations, and conservation practices to explore how national history is represented, remembered, and inherited. Presented in conjunction with Singapore Biennale 2026: pure intention, the exhibition takes place across four venues: the Singapore Art Museum, RUBANAH Underground Hub, RUCI Art Space, and Griya Seni Hj. Kustiyah Edhi Sunarso. It approaches the diorama not merely as a representation of a past event, but as a space where historical narratives, political interests, artistic interpretations, and collective memories continue to intertwine.
This exhibition is part of Perkumpulan Tanda Hubung Indonesia (Hyphen—)’s project titled When the flood is over. Through the practices of copying, repairing, and studying the figures that inhabit the dioramas, we return to questions of presence and absence: who is made visible, who is erased, how certain events become monumental, and how others are excluded from official narratives. Moving between archives, monuments, exhibition spaces, and workshops, Figures, dedications, and civilizations traces the entanglements between historical representation, extraction, nation-building, and civic participation. Rather than seeking definitive answers, the project approaches history as something unfinished—continuously negotiated through objects, images, gestures, conversations, and the labour of those who inherit its traces.
Research, curatorial, and book team
Editor Perkumpulan Tanda Hubung Indonesia (Hyphen—)
Writers Akmalia Rizqita "Chita", Andri Setiawan, Grace Samboh, Ratna Mufida
Designer M. Ilham Samudra
Published by Perkumpulan Tanda Hubung Indonesia (Hyphen—)
in conjunction with
Figures, dedications, and civilisations
- Singapore Art Museum (as part of Singapore Biennale 2026: pure intention)
October 31, 2025–March 29, 2026
- RUBANAH Underground Hub
October 25 –December 17, 2025
- RUCI Art Space
October 25 –December 17, 2025
- Griya Seni Hj. Kustiyah Edhi Sunarso
September 22, 2025–April 22, 2026