drawing by Indra Ameng Soft launch of the lumbung network’s online platform lumbung.space is a social and publishing platform by and for the lumbung members and artists of documenta fifteen. The platform allows members of the lumbung network to connect, support each other, and share knowledge collectively while making the process visible to the public. The website will continuously evolve but is based on slow-growing with new tools added over time.

Different cultures have different concepts and definitions of art. documenta fifteen processes are no exception, where the definition of art becomes another space for conversation. The involvement of lumbung inter-lokal from various cities in the world has come with different concepts. When this is brought together in the context of documenta fifteen taking place in Europe, a new dynamic takes place. At least two main features are visible. The first is the tendency of how art tends to be associated with objects resulting from the achievements of individual genius.

(Learning Session with Kate Rich – 04032021) Everyone from different cities is joining. They are from lumbung members, mostly: Gudskul from Jakarta, Festival Le Sur Niger from Mali, Britto Arts Trust from Dhaka, Trampolin House from Copenhagen and others. It was started with a quick introduction. Kate is currently in Tasmania, Australia. She’s going to talk about the feral trade. As an artist, she has been dealing with trade for almost twenty years.

“Welcome everybody. Can you hear me?” Said Morten Goll. He did check-in. “This is stick from Trampoline. It is brought from southwest of the US. Somebody will pass it. It is interesting to know what people eat in different part of the world.” Everyone mentioned what they eat the last time. Some mentioned salad, coffee, orange juice. Morten: We’re thankful for being in lumbung. It’s amazing to have support from lumbung and documenta.

“Welcome everyone to lumbung majelis. Today I am going to be the host with Lara. We’d like to describe today’s agenda.” Ameng started the conversation. “We’ll start with INSTAR today. We do a short introduction with Gertrude on economy. And come back to check out. To join the split, click on the three dots. Remember to click on interpretation, for interpretation. Spanish, French, and Indonesian. Also, we have harvest today.

When the second day of the assembly began, FAFSWAG, a collective based in New Zealand got their turn for the introduction. It is one of the new lumbung members. Hi, everyone. I am Moe Laga. I am a performance artist, also an actress. I am Felencia. I am a transwoman from Samoa. I am of some lineage to German and Chinese. I am a performance artist. Been in FAFSWAG since 2013.

In front of us were people from various cities on the planet. They all, respectively, appeared on small squares on laptop monitor. Reggae song was played. It was also Tone’s birthday. All were smilingly greeting one another. We were on board for lumbung assembly 2021 through zoom meeting. “Welcome to our assembly again,” said Ajeng. “We have Wajukuu and Britto that will host us. “It’s great in assembly again,” Gertrude added.

By Putra Hidayatullah Jawa Pos (12/12/2021) Arnold Bode was 50 years old when he requested a colleague to add the letter “a” at the end of the word “document” to name an art event. When this happened, the Second World War had just ended. The war had also deeply affected the art scene in Germany. Previously, in July 1937, there was the National Socialist propaganda exhibition “Entartete Kunst” in Munich.

Questions on extractive mode of living where resources are concentrated on the few has inevitably been part of conversations. This issue has invited myriad thoughts and dialogues on how to sustainably prolong the resources. Also, there’s no way to avoid conversing about regeneration as it’s been one of the key values in lumbung process. Within the idea of regeneration, the possibility and limit are challenged. How to see resources not just as commodity to be accumulated.

Perhaps there’s an empty hole inside human soul which urge to be filled again and again. Once a hole is jam-packed, another will come up to the surface. It drives individuals to explore or sometimes conquer what is in front of them for the sake of ambition despite political or ecological consequences. As one of lumbung values, sufficiency has been a pertinent concept to revisit today. What is the meaning of being enough?

What is the relationship between those who govern and those who are governed? The critical question might arise as people are living together in one common space. What bring them together? The question will take us to the issue of trust. Will, then, there be trust without transparency? As one of lumbung values, transparency become one key topic in our latest lumbung calling. As it is related to the idea of knowledge and power sharing, Shahidul Alam, a photographer and cultural activist from Bangladesh joined us and shared his practices and perspectives on transparency and its relation to lumbung in his context.

There used to be days when joy was blown in the air. People were dancing. Children and adults were celebrating the moment, also travelers from distant countries. You could listen to the sound of music. Creativity dominated the city. In Segou, art is not only about beauty, but a spirit calling people to come together. They call it Festival le sur Niger, one of the biggest art events in West Africa.

Throughout history, independence has been an important narrative around the world. It is been perceived as a noble goal. Yet, it is still relatively a rare topic to discuss. Within our conversation about Lumbung, what if we revisit the notion of independence? On June 8 2021, Jumana Emil Abboud, a host based in Jerusalem, and Mirwan Andan who is now based in Kassel, trigger this this topic further. Not only conversing about independence, they also weave it with the idea of interdependence which is not hierarchical and binary.

Despite it exists and is familiar in our daily life, humor as a topic seems relatively far from conversations. It was evening in Indonesia when speakers across different time zones began shedding a light on the topic. Our host, Mirwan Andan from Indonesia and Jumana Abboud from Palestine mentioned lumbung and humor. Why they are worth conversing? On the same screen was Gridthiya Gaweewong based in Thailand. As a curator, she has been working on the issue of political culture in Southeast Asia.

With four different time zones, from Makassar, Jakarta, Jerussalem and Kassel, some people were connected to each other through Lumbung Calling. It is the first public program of documenta fifteen (03/04/2021). Hosts and guests looked prepared on the screen. They were about to talk about one of the main values of lumbung for documenta fifteen called: local anchor. As Melani Budianta, a scholar from Universitas Indonesia, got her chance, the conversation on lumbung definition and its practices by locals was started.

27 Oct 2020 Five days later, the assembly continued. “Good morning all! Thank you! We are delighted, we would like to share our story” Bright smiles were on screens. They were Festival Le Sur Niger from Mali, West Africa. On the short video played, people enjoyed exhibitions, talks, and various kind of music. Men and women danced cheerfully. This yearly festival has been one of the drivers of cultural economy in their city, Segou.

“Are you guys ready?” The lyrics appeared on our screen. The music pounded delightfully in our ears, triggering all our adrenaline. All tried to keep on singing a song by Gloria Gaynor, I Will Survive. With the karaoke, time flew. “We can feel your energy. Thank you everyone!” All applauded. That’s how the third assembly was started on October 23. Gudskul from Jakarta accepted its first turn. The background of the screen was football stadium and all Gudskul team appeared with colorful outfit just like football players.

On the second day of the Lumbung Assembly all the vibe was still the same. Cheerful faces from various parts of the earth appeared on the screen. “We have a request, we have a Zoom performance,” said Yazan, representing a collective called Question on Funding from Palestine. “We are going to sing a song and you will sing after us, okay. Here we go!” Everyone got prepared and after each verses of the lyrics, all repeat the word “Yo ya .

IT IS LIKE in a twinkling of eyes, the end of this year is getting closer. It is also within this time of the year 2020 all lumbung members virtually gathered to see the streams of ideas travels and are connected from one place to another. As preparation for the next Documenta 15, all were gathering for assembly in which each of them introduced themselves, shared their stories, ideas, as well as their preliminary projections for the next two years—or even more.

Hundreds of miles from Indonesia arose the roar of the Spanish wind. On the monitor screen was a Caucasian man with a sharp nose. “Assalamualaikum …” he greeted with a smile, “Can you hear me?” That afternoon wind hit his blonde hair. Several times, he adjusted the laptop and sitting position. The sound of the microphone mixed with the sound of the wind, “Yes, Fernando. We heard your voice, ”replied all other lumbung members.

Sarha is a community radio based in Palestine which is managed by a collective called Sakakini. As part of a lumbung members, they host lumbung members. Lumbung which means rice barn is a concept used by Documenta 15 as a curatorial theme covering from cultural to economic practices. Radio Sahara invited Jatiwangi Art Factory to get to know them better. It was 5 pm Indonesian time. It is unusual to see the word art and factory in one name, said Sahara.

Imagine a moment ago you just passed the sea with fierce waves. Shadows of death and uncertainty dawdled in your mind. Is there a better life on the other side? Circumstances have forced you to leave your homeland, where your childhood and the lingering memories of mother and family reside. Stranded on a strange land and meeting people with the same fate but with different backgrounds cause you to feel that unpleasant stories being written in many different parts of the world.

IMAGINE we are on time machine holding on magical chair that’s going to take us to a distant past. As we close our eyes we would land on an old archipelago with myriad cultures. Thousands of islands are connected by the ocean. Sailors of the worlds are waiting for the monsoons wind to reach the isles. There used to be kingdoms on which most people fed on agriculture. With the help of buffalo or cows, farmers cultivate the lands on an arranged season which pours them enough waters.

In Dipantara you find yourself as a stranger. Between the city spaces you see a crowd you don’t recognize. The current of vehicles races with the flow of life. Looking up you see the buildings standing under the slow-moving clouds. “Welcome to the country under the wind,” as if you could hear the giant statues in the city space greet you; before you continue walking. Where will this crowd go and what are wandering in their minds?

The smell of crops touches your nostrils. Nearby a point where you are standing is a small building. It is not hanging, yet it is high above your head. Dozens of chickens are underneath waiting some crops to fall. Your hand hold on the stair. It is made of dried branches of trees. Without worrying, you find it is strong enough to hold your body. Fewer than the number of your fingers, you can count the steps you take.