Coverstory

Proceeding Elegantly through the Ages

Steel frameworks called steger are erected almost up against the walls in the central chamber of Gereja Katedral near the main door. Apparently they were set up to help the painters reach the more remote corners of the walls. Much of the paint looks new, ivory and pale blue, replacing the old paint in the same colors but much more faded.  “Since before last Christmas, we’ve been repainting and installing exhaust fans in the vents near the ceiling,” says Pak Edu, from the Cathedral Secretariat

Features

The Beauty of Glass Painting

If Mas Komar hadn't taken me on the back of his motorbike that afternoon through the streets and alleys of Trusmi Wetan village, Plered, Cirebon, I might never have known that in addition to batik, this village is also a center of glass painting. And unlike the batik artists, who display and sell their batik creations in boutiques along the main road

Charming Chinatown

Though Chinese people have been living and doing business in what is now Jakarta since the 12th century, and Glodok has been a Chinese neighborhood since 1619, under the Netherlands East Indies Governor General Jan Pieterzoon Coen, many Jakartans still do not know where their Chinatown actually is. Some identify Harco Glodok, along Jalan Hayam Wuruk and Jalan Gajah Mada, with Chinatown.