FEMINISM REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN TEMPLE AND ZHAI JIE IN BANDUNG

• Main Author: Widjaja, Tjutju
• Format: Dissertations
• Language: Indonesia
• Subjects: Kesenian; seni rupa dan dekorasi
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/51944
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Chinese women do not have an important role in the social system. This fact is caused by the traditional Chinese culture which adheres to the patrilineal system. The women Temple is a place of worship for followers of Tridharma teachings. Sanjiao or Tridharma (Three Teachings) is a syncretism of the three main schools of belief in Chinese society, namely: Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism. Besides a place of worship, a women Temple serves as a place to care for unwanted babies and girls. They lived to adulthood in the Temple. The kinship in the temple is very close and helps each other. In subsequent developments, the women Temple led by Zhai Ji became a place for the Chinese community to ask for spiritual help as well as a place for formal and non-formal education for the community. The phenomenon above shows that women who are within the scope of the women Temple are able to rise from adversity as unwanted baby girls and become human beings who have meaning for life. This phenomenon shows their power to actualize themselves through organizations in the temples and relations with the wider community outside the temple. The phenomenon related to the existence of women in the women temple is a source of concept in the work process. The work process goes through the research stages with the theoretical approach of women's studies and the history of Chinese culture. Furthermore, the process of working with the theory of women's studies, the personal function of art, and analysis of work uses the Feldman method of criticism. The research process formulates important factors that are taken for the concept of work. The concept in this work is to visualize and express feelings and thoughts related to the life of women in the women temple. The response of sadness, anger to see the condition of the baby girl and girl who was discarded, the response of enthusiasm to see the actions when they rose from adversity, and a response of respect when they became Zhai Ji, a person who has high spiritual abilities in the temple. The process of visualizing the work is divided into three processes. The first process of visualizing feelings of sadness, pity for the girls in the temple and iv feelings of anger at the patriarchal culture that denigrates women, is visualized by using icons in the temple. Visualized in the form of a two-dimensional painting with these icons and Chinese calligraphy writing. The second process is still feeling sad, sorry, and angry, coupled with feelings of admiration for the women in the temple. These feelings are visualized in the form of three-dimensional sculptures made of plaster or paper with the form of Goddess Guan Im and the figure of Zhai Ji with Chinese calligraphy strokes that express these feelings. The third process is the emergence of feelings of optimism and admiration for Zhai Ji and the women at the temple who accept life sincerely and full of optimism. They have arrived at the essence of life, a high spirituality. Visualization no longer requires icons in the temple, but uses Chinese calligraphy writing which is increasingly not concerned with legibility, but shows lines of optimism and direction towards spirituality using black and white. The process of this work shows the process of seeing the life of women in the women temple from worldly things to the end of making them aware of the level of spirituality. The finding in this work process is a shift in visualization from realistic to abstract. The use of Chinese calligraphy was changed from meaning to visual essence. In addition, it uses loops or layers in the work process of the last period.