Indonesian Artist Made Bayak Weaves Cosmology with Sociopolitical Issues

March 27, 2019
Flagpole Magazine
By Jessica Smith
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Indonesian Artist Made Bayak Weaves Cosmology with Sociopolitical Issues

One of Bayak’s most complicated trajectories concerns the Indonesian genocide of 1965, which targeted accused communists and led to the establishment of the authoritarian New Order regime. Approximately 5 percent of the population of Bali was executed, paving the way for new investments and hyper-development to swarm in. For decades, systemic silencing surrounding the genocide has prevented public discourse, but today, a loose coalition of activists, including Bayak, are working to collect oral histories, locate mass graves and uncover the truth.