SEEING TRAGEDY FROM THE LIVING ROOM
The visual arts project is to see the issue of the “mass-killing/trauma of 1965 Affair from the point of view of the generation born in the era of the “golden peak of Orde Baru (the New Regime)”. It is a generation signified to be born in the period of the end of 70s or beginning of 80s. This generation practically lives a part of its life within the “cocoon” of propaganda machine under the New Regime; from elementary school until university students, watching local and foreign films selected by the state (may be only few of them watch films released without any selection from the state), getting used to with uniforms (school uniforms, Pramuka uniforms, Paskibraka uniforms, and so on), living in “luxury” of the second economic boom in the mid of 80s and beginning of 90s. How these generations see the trauma of 1965 Affair? What do they know about the affair instead of watching a film by Arifin C. Noor entitled “Pengkhianatan G 30 S/PKI” and rumors?
How can we trace an important affair scraped out from memory? How can we explain to a generation unheard of an important affair happened or in other words how to oppose that mass amnesia?

The repeated questions above will always raise when we talk about trauma of 1965 Affair. Those questions will keep annoying us since we really never want to answer. Let by-gones be by-gones is an apology we hear from time to time.

Tracing the Affair from the Artifacts of Pop Culture
Because of the massive propaganda during the New Regime’s rule, it seemed to be impossible to find some needed data from the first hands. Although the authority of the regime has been over, it is still having its residue (for instance a number of books considered being “left” have been kept in the locked room at Regional Library of Yogyakarta. Stories of the affair remain to be “silent histories” and will never be open as long as no political action challenges them.

The situation above shadows the project. Therefore, it needs a method to face it. Regarding the facts, the trauma of 1965 Affair should be seen in a “circle” way. It means that the analysis is not directly done to the core issue but through the pop culture living in the era with the media of magazines, popular songs, and fashions delighted in the era. So, it is assumed that the core issue might be seen in a different way and the outcomes are far from the stereotypes.

Goals of the project
This visual arts project bases on the spirit that the visual arts with a paradigm of fine art is not the mere choice to the young artists, for indirectly it is a systematic depoliticization trial towards art discipline. Thus, the art project needs to be continued.
By holding a workshop, exhibition, and discussion, a wide audience may learn a different reading on the trauma of 1965 Affair by seeing deeply of the issue not only from the view of victims and perpetrators but also the personal reception of the young generation marginalized from the history itself.

The project becomes an education on human rights as well, a sort of awareness to the young people that they have their rights to gain any information or confirm on any affair happened without a censorship and self-censorship.