Site-specific project and participatory performance with hot chocolate and a refrigerator. Part of ‘900mdpl’, curated by LIR (Mira Asriningtyas and Dito Yuwono) in Kaliurang, Indonesia.
During colonial time, in the former Dutch East Indies, the Dutch created settlements in mountainous areas to escape the tropical heat. They built second homes in Puncak, Lembang, Munduk, and Kaliurang amongst others. Up till now, in these areas, there are many examples of Dutch architecture and other colonial traces to be found.
In central Kaliurang, a village located on the slope of the volcano Merapi, there is a small house that has always reminded me of my grandmothers home in the Netherlands. In the eighties and nineties, I used to visit this house to get a shot of nostalgia, fresh air and a cup of hot chocolate. For this project, which takes Kaliurang as its subject and site, I take you to Vogels, a traveler’s café in the center of Kaliurang. Its owner, Pak Christian, used to take people up to Mount Merapi. While you listen to Pak Christian’s many stories, I will serve you a shot of hot–steaming chocolate milk—and cold—you will be sitting in front of a refrigerator—as a way to activate your senses.