Botram=Boterham=Brood met boter en ham? In Sundanese language (1), “botram” means having lunch together in the field/ during work. Perhaps the word “botram” in Sundanese language is similar to Dutch word “boterham”, which is probably mean bread with butter and ham.
(Reina Wulansari & Roy Voragen, 2003)
This project was initiated after series of discussion, along with the result from our interest in creating a situation in Babakan Siliwangi City Park, as a public campaign in preserving this place from conflict on the land use, which involving local government, private sector and the city inhabitant. During the realization of this particular project (year 2003), the local government and private sector in Bandung intended to build a condominium, which accumulating a huge protest from the public in Bandung. Perhaps such situation like this is the common case on land use issue in some major cities in Indonesia, or probably in other parts of the world today.
Babakan Siliwangi City Park is located in the north area of Bandung (Kel. Lebak Siliwangi, see map), part of city which is currently regarded as one of the most busiest place in Bandung. In Colonial period (2), most people spent their daily activities in the south part of the city; which is called “Alun-Alun”. During that period, the north area in Bandung was mostly used for residential places, plantation, private school and some private mansion; while the south area in Bandung is a place for commercial activities. For most of Bandung city inhabitants, Babakan Siliwangi City Park is a public space, which allowed us (everybody) to spend their daily activities, especially in the weekend. It is a perfect place for having a “botram” with family & friends.
Luncheon on the Barge Project
As mention that the city of Manchester is famous for its river and canals. This is very different from Bandung. Since this city is located in middle of West Java Island, Cikapundung River is the only river in Bandung. It separated the west & east part of the city (see Bandung City Map, in blue line). Although that the condition of this river is very poor & polluted, it still has a significant meaning for the people, especially for Sundanese people who are the native inhabitant in Bandung(3) . As an extended version, Luncheon on the Barge project in Manchester aims to use the barge as a platform where people from different background can meet & share their experience living in the city of Bandung and Manchester, while exploring river/canals in Manchester. Similar with the previous project, the whole session will be recorded into digital audio, photographs and video, and then broadcasted into wireless network.
Within this particular project, Bandung Center for New Media Arts intended to invite the Manchester city inhabitant for having a lunch/dinner together (approx 4-5 participants, different age/profession/gender), and informally discussing their personal experience living in the city of Manchester. Bandung Center for New Media Arts will bring some local made products from Bandung (t-shirt, music cd’s, local made coffee, etc.) as a gift (4). Some documentation material in the form of still images, video & sound of Bandung city will be presented to compare the situation between two cities (Bandung – Manchester). During the realization of this project, Bandung Center for New Media Arts are going to collect data in the form of still images, sound & video from some particular places in the city of Manchester (public park, streets, residential places, restaurant/ bar/ café, shopping mall, football stadium?). Some of this material will be updated into a website, juxtaposed together with some documentation material from Bandung as an online archive.
Related topic of discussion for the Luncheon on the Barge Project in Manchester consist:
- Migration, Mobility & Urban Diaspora
Certain individual/ communities in the city of Bandung were experiencing the detachment process from their respective origins/ place. Perhaps this process also appears in the form of confrontation with new territories, new habit & tradition; including the process of adaptation with the new situation in the city.
- New Technology & Construction/ Deconstruction of Identity
Mobility & adaptation process stimulates the construction/ deconstruction of identity. Recent generation in Bandung (post-1990 generation), are being detached with the “old” ideology and absorb the influence that rise within the development of new technology & global capitalism, which later on creates new way of communication/ individual expression in their personal/ social life.
- Politics of Surveillance: Power & Control in Urban Territories
How various elements in urban society of Bandung were working as representation of power with a particular economic/ political interest? Urban surroundings in Bandung allow every single individual takes control & see each other as their counterparts. This premises aims to discover the relation between micro/ macro political gestures with everyday life situation in Bandung within its “urban village” phenomenon.
- Terrorism & Urbanity
This notion examines various forms of fear and its multiplication trough media/ public space in the city of Bandung. How people deal with crisis, uncertain economic/ political situation, fear & various form of terror in Bandung?
- Connectivity & Various Form of Displacement/Alienation
New technology allows us to discover new way to communicate with each other, including the new way in understanding the “other”. This new connectivity shapes our daily urban surrounding, but in the same time also creates tension in the form of displacement & alienation (e.g. economic/ political gap, identity crisis, culture shock, paranoia, etc.).
- Land Use Issue: Public Domain vs. Private Interest
Conflicts of interest in land use issues that confront stakeholders of the city: local government, private sector & city inhabitant. Case study: Babakan Siliwangi City Park.
- Urban Narratives
The need to creates new stories & myth in order to “re-creates” the identity in Bandung urban terrain.
Topics of discussion above were occurring during our research on the urban space situation in Bandung. Informal discussion during the Luncheon on the Barge Project intended to critically confront these issues with situations in the City of Manchester as part of comparative studies on urbanity and its relation with the development of new technology.
**Supplemental option: A team in Bandung will try to set up an internet connection that allows project participant in Manchester to communicate with some people in Bandung. Perhaps, this also can stimulate discussion about the experience living in both cities, from each participant point of view. We’re still looking for possibilities in providing the facilities, since the internet connection speed in Bandung is still slow & unreliable.
