Whiteboard Journal/ Studio 1212 is currently looking for Graphic Design Interns:

Graphic Interns (Code: GD)

Graphic design applicants will work under our design firm, Studio 1212. The candidate will be given various task and projects under supervision. The ideal candidate should have an excellent design skill, is detail-oriented, willing to brainstorm and pitch in where needed and has strong desire to learn and is hardworking.

Requirements for interns:

• Must be proficient with design applications (InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator)
• Knowledge of Flash is a bonus
• Ability to translate creative brief into visual design
• Posses creativity, communications skills and problem solving skills.
• A good eye for color, form and detail plus good taste in design and everything related

To apply, please submit to us your portfolio (PDF file no bigger than 2MB) and your resume to contact@whiteboardjournal.com

For our 14th Roundtable Session, we had the honor to interview our minister of tourism and creative economy, Ibu Mari E. Pangestu to discuss the state of our growing creative industry.

This sudden introduction to a new position in the government, forced many to question, what is creative economy? What relevancy does it have to the improvement to our own economy?

Creative economy is an actual term popularized by media businessman John Howkins. By definition the idea behind creative economy is an analysis derived based on creative people, creative industries and creative cities where people’s creativity and exploration of self-identity, art, and innovation influences the improvement of a country’s economy. Different from the other industries whose basis is natural resources, creative economy is a sector whose main basis is human resources and its unlimited source of ideas and knowledge.

Many may think Indonesia’s creative industry has only started to flourish, where in reality, our creative industries have long been taken for granted, for years, our creative streaked lied in the traditional mediums of batik, and handicrafts and only recently the recognition in architecture, film, music, and design.  According to Indonesia’s Finance Today, Indonesia’s creative industry  has contributed to 7.2 percent of Indonesia’s GDP by 2010, which means it is a very small percentage that influences the market value of our standard of living. In a larger outlook, these creative industries is  regarded as a force and a potential for the creative individuals to generate income and employment through the exploitation of intellectual property.

Mr. Yudhi Soerjoatmodjo once involved in British Council for building the public awareness of the concept of creative economy mentioned in an article “it’s important to translate the creative industries into something that the government can understand, which is through numbers and figures,”  because supporting the creative economy leads to unconventional ways to improve the overall economy that can help raise our standard of living.

Ultimately, a healthy creative economy gives positive opportunities for those seeking to dive into the creative world of art, film, music and so on, without having to face doubtful questions as “how can you earn a living working in the creative field?”

What can we do to harvest this growth?

Studio-1212 is looking for an ambitious and enthusiastic marketing associate ready to take on exciting challenges that we face on a daily basis. He/She will assist the team in all aspects of business particularly operational management, creative strategy development, and PR & Online marketing. They will be dealing directly with media and clients on a regular basis.  The ideal candidate must be outgoing and committed to his/her work.
Requirements:

• Excellent interpersonal skills and strong written and oral communications in Bahasa Indonesia and English
• Ability to work independently and in a team setting
• Is ambitious and possess a go-getter attitude to reach monthly targets
• A strong interest and good knowledge of marketing and the creative industry
• Has at least 2 years experience in sales/marketing
• Proficient in Social Media marketing
• Has excellent command in Microsoft Office (Power Point, Excel)
• A sense of humor is a plus!

To Apply, please send your cover letter and CV to taufan@studio-1212.com with Marketing Associate Application as the title.

Though January may have passed by fairly quick, we will have to conclude that the year 2012 is looking very promising. This year, we can look forward to the selection of films, music, and even books that is keeping us anticipated in the year 2012. We are also likely to see a great change in our creative economy with recently appointed Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Mari E. Pangestu, in which we had the honor to interview. Aside from our feature articles, we have also introduced a new daily program, titled Record Review, premiering with the selection of Indonesian music records that have yet to be reviewed.

If you missed the programs we had this month, here is a list and a brief explanation of what Whiteboard Journal brought to you this month. Enjoy!

FEATURES

Interview with Dr. Mari E. Pangestu: For our Roundtable Session Vol. 14, we had the honor to interview our Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Ibu Mari E. Pangestu, and discussed the future of our growing creative industry.

Loops N Shit: For more than an hour, La Melodia’s I.N.T brings us a set of loops and samples that blends into a raw psychedelic mix.

Wild Plums: Athina Ibrahim collaborated with Jatidiri Ono to present  to us a photo montage about their memories of Thailand’s capital city, Bangkok.

W_SELECTION

January: Many interesting products to see and own and Max Suriaganda shares us his most favorites.

2012 Music Lookout: Say hello to the top 10 most lookout artists in 2012 chosen by our music editor, Ken Jenie.

Films to Lookout for in 2012: Athina Ibrahim shares us her ten movies she looks forward to in the year of dragon water.

What to Look Forward to in 2012: Our contributor, Primo Rizky tells us to stay happy despite the rumor of apocalypse in 2012 by picked us 10 awesome events that will happen this year.

2012 Book Lookout: Last year he collaborated with Athina Ibrahim and shared us their top 10 most lookout books. Now, Nico Novito recommends us 10 books that will be released in 2012!

JUST A THOUGHT

Regaining Balance: After coming back from a vacation, editor Athina Ibrahim shares with us her thoughts on why a balanced professional life is important.

Never Put Me in Your Box if Your Shit Eats Tapes: Nas’ debut is heralded as one of the best hip hop album to have ever been released, in this Just a Thought Ken Jenie introduces its charm through one song.

What Freedom, Indonesia?: Nico Novito gives Indonesia a reality check concerning its lack of religious freedom.

Wikipedia Blackout and My Friends in Moni: The Recent Wikipedia strike against PIPA and SOPA has Aidil Akbar Latief thinking about Indonesia’s national language in this Just a Thought.

Indonesian Cinema: Talking about quality of Indonesian movies also about its progress, Putri Hardiman shares her excellent thought to solve the problem.

On Today’s Activism: Guest writer Farid Rakun shares his thoughts on today’s activism in Indonesia after watching a film about recent organized protests.

In the Studio and On Stage: Lana Del Rey’s recent flop on Saturday Night Live has Ken Jenie thinking about the relationship between a studio recording and a live performance.

RECORD REVIEW

Quatromatic – Stolen Sound Vol.1: Our first Record Review has Ffonz taking a listen to the Jakarta beatsmith collection of sample-laden instrumentals.

Sigmun – Sample CD: jan k takes a shot at at the 70s rock-inspired work of Sigmun in this sample cd.

A couple of weeks ago, Lana Del Rey performed regrettably bad on Saturday Night Live. A much hyped artist, she was lauded by critics in 2011 for her rebellious, sexually-charged imagery – she brought the Americana imagery of James Dean and Nancy Sinatra back and updated it for 2011. Lana Del Rey is the only artist other than Natalie Imbruglia to have performed on Saturday Night Live before releasing an album, which really speaks for the anticipation of her music, but sadly due her nerve-wrecked and stiff movement, often off-key and weak vocals she has started a backlash that has many condemning her as an over-hyped act.

The wave of criticism had me going back to the music that she has released in 2011 to see whether or I too was swept up by the Lana Del Rey wave. I never was a huge fan, but I did find Born to Die and Blue Jeans to be enjoyable singles – pop songs that feeds on our love for the anti hero. Listening to them again, the songs haven’t lost their luster, still as epic and as enjoyable as ever.

Bear in mind that the whole Lana Del Rey situation isn’t solely based on her under-performing her recorded material. There are many more factors including her heavily relying on her image, media hype, amongst others, that contributes to the backlash. But this does bring to our attention how different things may sound in the studio and in a live setting. Lana Del Rey’s cringe worthy showing wasn’t the first time I was (and I’m sure you were) underwhelmed by a live performance, I went to countless concerts where I expect the musician to bring their studio material to life and wasn’t impressed by what I saw, and in the same respect bought albums that didn’t live up to the live performances. These being such a common events, perhaps we are often too critical about one’s relationship to the other. They are after all, two different mediums.

Live performances are… live! They are experiential-in person moments of interaction where artists produce the music right then and there. The venue, the audience, the equipment, etc – there is really no duplicating it. Recorded music are more often than not conceptualized, produced by sound engineers, and mass produced with the intent of every listener experiencing exactly what the artist wants them to hear.

It isn’t a surprise that some musicians sound better on one medium than the other, and perhaps we should just appreciate them as two related, but separate artistry.

If you don’t know who Squaddy is now, you will soon. He is the latest street artist to make his mark on the art world in New York and London, with his striking images of war and world events. Having told his story on the street, he is now turning to the canvas. He kindly gave up some of his time to tell me a little more about his work.

Your work is very strong in both color and content, which seems to indicate a stronger feeling or message. Is it “just as it is”, or is there something about war and the current mood of Britain that you wish to convey?

S: There is a certain message to be told in all aspects of my work, which comes with it’s own set of feelings. I want people to view my work and find their own emotions and stories. I have placed such colors and subjects in the medium for people to interpret the story I am portraying.

Your color palette creates a strong visual response from the viewer. Is this just good art, i.e. the ability to appeal to or appall the viewer, or is there more to it?

S: I want the viewer to feel that the colors tell a feeling within the work itself and the subjects are merely there to support the story within the colors and vice versa.

Is there someone or something that particularly inspires you? It could be anyone: another artist, someone in the armed forces or even a childhood friend?

S: I am inspired by current affairs in the world and the way those in power deal with these affairs, whether the right way or the wrong way. I feel through my art I can reach out to an audience who is aware of the current world we are all living in. Through my work I want to shine a little joy or provoke a thought that gets the viewer interacting with my art.

I noticed you have clips of Banksy’s “Exit through the Gift Shop” on your website? What’s the significance, if any?

S: Banksy has been somewhat of a guidance and mentor. I quickly found while working closely with him his passion for what he does and the stories he portrays are very similar to mine.

The relevance of the video is quite simply for those who are new to the world of street art to see first-hand from a collection of top street artists how it’s done and why it’s done, and the reaction it commands on the streets and now in the world’s largest auction houses.

It is also an educational insight into the world of street art seen first-hand from a then video fanatic and now artist. “Exit through the Gift Shop” is a one-of-a-kind documentary of street art, and the same will not be made again any time soon.

Who (or what) do you hope to reach with your art?

S: I want to reach everyone; from the 5 year old who sees my bright colors and smiles, to the old who sees my art and remembers a part of their history or life of what they went through. My Art is Truly Universal and not restricted to color, creed, age or sex but rather on the Human and the thoughts and emotions we all share one way or another through experiences of our senses.

Do you hope to go mainstream, through auction houses and the like?

S: What the future holds nobody knows, we can only work with the now and plan for longevity in this market, if one day my pieces are sold in auction houses I will be pleased not for the monetary value but for the fact that my images will go on to spread and be seen by others who can in turn share the emotions and passion I felt with every brush stroke or spray can.

Do you collaborate with other artists or are you more of a solo artist?

S: I tend to prefer to work alone, being of a military background though teamwork is key in most aspects of life. For my role I prefer to keep to my own timings, own locations and this enables me to keep a low profile and in the shadows from others artists or spectators alike. Having said that, artists have attempted to contact me via other sources to collaborate but I have since kindly declined. Who knows what the future holds? Watch this space.

If you were to give someone art as a gift, who would that be and why?

S: I would give it to my close friend Atam who has believed in me all the way and has stood by me through the hard times and been there for the good. Without Atam and his assistance I wouldn’t be writing to you now.

(Atam is a top New York art dealer who represents Squaddy, and has an eye for recognizing new talent).

What do you think about the government’s stance towards street art, and the new harsh laws that have been set in place? Will quick tags and scribbles done by Scratchies replace powerful, thought-provoking work to prevent run-ins with the law?

S: The Government has to do what it feels right to keep their town looking dull and not attract attention from graffiti or street artists, so they arrest whomever they see and black out any artworks already up on the walls to put off artists from coming back to start again.

I’m sorry to say guys this doesn’t work; it only makes us want to find new location to hit. I think there will always be those who want to just tag, or those who want to do a quick scribble but the ones with a message to tell or those with true passion stick around for the more complex artworks to stand out from the crowd. This is where you set yourself apart from the scribblers and taggers, as those who can call themselves true street artists.

How do you feel about street artists painting over each other’s work? Is that just the evolution of the art itself, and the natural law of street art, or do you think that the current art (in situ) needs preserving?

S: I have to be careful when answering this question, as I don’t want to upset a certain friend.

In my views if it is a scribble or a tag sorry but I don’t give a damn it’s getting covered, for the pure fact that the person who did it took no time or effort or didn’t put no heart or thought into it.

In their eyes their mission is to set out to tag as many locations as physically possible, no matter if it is over someone else’s pride and joy. If you live by the sword guess what?

So in general, no it is not right to go over another street artist’s work or of those larger than life graffiti pieces, there are enough walls in the world to respect others’ work and let it be. After all we have the authorities going around doing just that and covering others’ hard work so why help them.

Thanks for your time, Squaddy we look forward to seeing more of you. 
artbysquaddy.blogspot.com

If 2011 enchanted us through works by famous authors (Haruki Murakami and Jeffrey Eugenides, to name a few), we are in for another thrilling ride this year. Aside from novels with interesting plots, 2012 will also see the publications of mind-boggling non-fictions on varied subjects, from atheism to the presidential family. Several books featured here are already out, so you can start your literary trip now.

1. From the Memoirs of a Non-Enemy Combatant by Alex Gilvarry (January 2012)
This satire is a faux-memoir of a Filipino fashion designer named Boyet Hernandez who wants to make it big in New York. But his luck turns upside down when he was accused of helping a terrorist plot and detained in Guantánamo.

2. The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson (January 2012)
Inspired by his travel to North Korea, Adam Johnson crafted a chilling thriller about the son of an orphanage owner who grows up to be a professional kidnapper—and Kim Jong-Il’s rival.

3. The Obamas by Jodi Kantor (January 2012)
If previous books about the Obamas are more focused on the president and his journey to the Oval Office, Jodi Kantor reveals about the influence Michelle Obama has on her husband. Peppered with behind-the-scene gossipy tidbits, The Obamas lends us another point of view to see the First Family.

4. The Flame Alphabet by Ben Marcus (January 2012)
Ben Marcus’s new novel fantasizes about the time when language becomes a virus, where children’s utterances can have poisonous effects on the adults. The novel’s narrator Sam alienates their daughter in order to stay alive—and seek the cure for this quirky phenomenon.

5. Wanted Women: Faith, Lies, and the War on Terror by Deborah Scroggins (January 2012)
This non-fiction spotlights two women from Muslim background, and yet grew up to be on two different edges of the ideological spectrum. Ayaan Hirsi Ali escaped the civil war in Somalia and became a critic of Islam and now lives in the United States. Meanwhile, Aafia Siddiqui was a Pakistani neuroscientist educated in MIT and yet linked to Al Qaeda before convicted of attempted murder. A riveting account on Islam, women, and war of terror, Wanted Women is one to behold.

6. Religion for Atheists by Alain de Botton (March 2012)
Religious people and atheists are usually portrayed as two opposite poles, but through his new book, Alain de Botton argues that non-believers can borrow several aspects from religions for a more enlightened life.

7. The Secret of Evil by Roberto Bolaño (April 2012)
It is a compilation of essays and short stories from the late Roberto Bolaño‘s archives. If you are a fan of this writer’s works (which are mostly set in South America), make sure you get a copy.

8. Home by Toni Morrison (May 2012)
A legendary novelist and Nobel Prize winner, Toni Morrison comes back with her new book about a Korean War veteran who returns to his homeland and must confront racism in 1950’s America, while his war experience still scars his mind.

9. The Newlyweds by Nell Freudenberger (May 2012)
In what might be another compelling story about immigrants’ lives, this novel is inspired by the author’s encounter with a Bangladeshi woman in a plane. It highlights the early years of marriage of a Muslim woman with an American man whom she met on the Internet.

10. Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon (Fall 2012)
Michael Chabon is famous for The Amazing Adventure of Kavalier & Clay, and this year, his ardent fans cannot wait for Telegraph Avenue. Although no excerpt of the book is already out, in some interviews, he hints that his new work will be a “naturalistic” novel revolving around two families in Berkeley, California.

From the looks of Cineplex 21 or Blitzmegaplex the quality and content of Indonesian movies are slowly improving, don’t you agree? Its quality of production, acting, cinematography and others has improved in the last 10 years. Not to mention the content of a movie, the flow of the story or the quality of its scriptwriting, topics that’s being raised in the movie has improved with a more sophisticated approach to express into a movie. However it will always be sidelined by other movies, mainly by Hollywood movies which is more commercial and scopes a larger market in Indonesia and other Indonesian movies..

In 2009, an article was published on discussing the improvement of Indonesian Film Industry, Ministry of Trade Mari E Pangestu was interviews by Media Indonesia newspaper, she compared Indonesia to country such as India and Thailand ‘In most countries, the creative industry has improved significantly. Such as India, they’ve successfully produced a lot of their national films and exported to other countries’. I personally think Indonesian films can’t be categorized in the same degree as India in the Film Industry, you see, India is famous for their Bollywood movies, it stands out for its different ways of expressing its culture in a movie, such as the involvement of the traditional dances in just about any genre of drama, romance or comedy, maybe even horror.

And we can’t really say that Indonesian have a ‘term’ to define its own type of cinema, except maybe horror or cult genre movies? but do we really want to export just about any Indonesian horror or cult movies with its lack of quality?

Since 2001 until 2011, we could see the rapid increase in quantity of Indonesian movies, not to mention the number of horror movies every year. I personally think that there’s this obsession that Indonesian have with horror stories, no matter the quality of the production. Through a documentary by Mondo Macabro titled ‘Indonesian Exploitation Cinema‘, we could see that there’s indeed an obsession with old folk-stories that involves the use of supernatural, horror figures thats quite popular in Indonesia.

From the statistics shown by Film Indonesia, we could see the increase numbers of Indonesian movies yearly, and which movie is the most popular in the numbers of audiences. From that statistic we could see a pattern of every year, the number one movie with the highest audiences is either a horror movie or a movie that exposes religion/cultural beliefs. With a large market sector divided between working class, it had created a gap of different tastes in movies for most Indonesians. I think it would be better if there’s a movie where those who writes significant horror script collaborate with a great director and a trustable cinematographer, don’t you think?

The Indonesian Film Industry could create a whole new market with its own unique identity, such as India’s Bollywood, or Thailand’s horror movies. With Indonesia’s vast array of cultures and traditions, and by having all of the people who are highly involved in the Indonesian film industry collaborate they could achieve a higher accomplishment of better storyline, direction, cinematography, to attract more Indonesians to watch Indonesian movies.

2011 is officially the year of global protest: The Arab Spring, Occupy Wallstreet, the rise of Slavoj Žižek in popularity, Greece’s burgeoning ‘Don’t Pay‘ movement. What about in Indonesia?

Watching Jakarta Ketuk Pintu (Knock, knock Jakarta – Youtube videos below), a documentary about legal environmental activisms in metro Jakarta area—touching cases on KRL and Pulau Seribu, but really puts its focus on residents’ suit against Antasari flyover—I partly found the answer. I am hopeful. Not exactly because of the specific cases being discussed or how they unraveled, but more about how far we have developed our strategies and tactics. And, more importantly, what lies beyond.

Entering undergrad education in the year of 2000, I have always felt that I missed the boat of reformation euphoria that had reached its peak on 1998. Student protest movement has been dying since then. Most of us disapproved, and maybe still are dissing, street demonstrations as unnecessary nuisance in our everyday life, as a source of constant displeasure. The strategy no longer works. The system has been successful in their attempt to appropriate the exact same strategy for its own benefit. How often do we see a demonstration against the present government with senseless and dated arguments, it is so clear that the operation was conceived by hungry mediocre minds, and being funded by similarly evil power-hungry opposition?

In the movie, it’s no longer students who take the steering wheel. It’s the middle-class, quarter to middle-aged residents, driven by honest discontent of everyday life, who decide to take the fight. More levelheaded and willing to invest more energy in the form of reasoning and planning, they are less testosterone-disguised-as-ideology driven. They have more resource and aptitude to come with convincing arguments. They know where to go and understand the way the system works a little bit better, making it possible to build better networks. Maybe in the middle we should trust.

If the medium is massaging at all, the awareness to concentrate on workable scale, to document well (Ucu Agustin, the director, is not a newbie in the documentary film scene), and to source appropriate funding, therefore making it possible to undermine the possibilities offered by the digital realm by releasing it as Youtube movie series, serves as proof on how savvy our contemporary activism can be. Again, for me the best thing about the movie is not the cause, but more the lesson it offers. Since personally, I found the things they are fighting for in the movie to be tainted and, in their best sense, boring. And according to another classic insurrectionary maxim: “Boredom is counterrevolutionary”.

–

Just A Thought: On Today’s Activism is written by guest writer Farid Rakun

We are coming to the end of the world; well, according to the Mayans. But who cares? In this W_Selection, we picked 10 things that will keep you optimistic, happy, and joyful in the year 2012.

1. Papaya Playa Project
Papaya Playa is a pop-up hotel consisting of 99 cabanas built in Tulum, southern Mexico. The hotel is equipped with 40 ocean-facing cabans with private decks and hammocks, a spa, a boutique, and organic food service from 42°Raw. The hotel will only last until early May 2012.

2. Monocle 24
This newly launched Internet radio service is an extension from Monocle magazine. Monocle 24 shares the same spirit as the print version, it brings global affairs to our home in a stylish manner. To complete the offerings, Monocle 24 also has its own iPhone application so that we can keep our eyes and ears on the world, wherever we are.

3. Tsutaya Books, Daikanyama
When big bookstore chains started to disappear, Culture Convenience Club is brave enough to open another store of Tsutaya Books chain December last year. The latest outlet is located in Tokyo’s Daikanyama district and it boasts a wide range of books, magazines, music, and movies; 140.000 books, 30.000 magazines back issues, 120.000 music CDs, and 3.000 manufacture-on-demand movies.

4. Isola
Swedish trio Claesson Koivisto Rune has created a chair for Tacchini that becomes the answer for every modern people’s need; a place for gadgets. Isola accommodates gadgets by providing an oval table that extends from its base. This stylish, curvy, and organic design chair debuted last week in Paris at Maison d’Objet 2012.

5. London Summer Olympics
2012 will be the time when London will host the summer Olympics for the third time. The Olympic has been designed keeping the Internet generation youngsters in mind and to involve them more to create a successful event. This youth-oriented spirit is reflected in the Olympic logo created by brand agency Wolff-Ollins that already sparked controversies since last year.

6. Coachella 2012
The annual Coachella Music Festival is back this year with a twist. The festival is experimenting with the schedule by hosting the same exact lineup twice in a row over two weekends; April 13-15 and April 20-22, which means double the fun!
This year’s lineup includes names such as The Black Keys, M83, Neon Indian, Radiohead, Bon Iver, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, The Weeknd, Thundercat, and many more.

7. Marni for H&M
After successful collaboration with notable designers and fashion houses such as Comme des Garçons, Matthew Williamson, Lanvin, and Versace, this year Swedish retailer H&M will be collaborating with Italian label, Marni. To make it more excited, the campaign will be directed by Sofia Coppola.

8. Air’s Les Voyage Dans La Lune
French electronic duo, Air is back with the new album “Les Voyage Dans La Lune” due release March 2012. The album takes the inspiration from the classic 1902 movie by the same name.

9. Gardens by the Bay Singapore
It is another mega project from Singapore. Gardens by the Bay is a 101 hectares waterfront garden in the downtown of Marina Bay. The garden is part of the country’s government strategy to transform Singapore from ‘Garden City’ into a ‘City in a Garden’ that aimed to raise the quality of life in Singapore. Gardens by the Bay is set to open in June 2012.

10. United States Presidential Election
All eyes will be on United States this November as they host the 57th presidential election. Whatever the result will be, I believe that the chosen candidate will bring a significant impact to the world.