https://drive.google.com/file/d/17MVHB1h7faC_ZLwtrDYwN1_5zNs10Ky8/view?usp=sharing

“The virtue of all-in wrestling is that it is the spectacle of excess. Here we find a grandiloquence which must have been that of ancient theaters. And in fact wrestling is an open-air spectacle, for what makes the circus or the arena what they are is not the sky (a romantic value suited rather to fashionable occasions), it is the drenching and vertical quality of the flood of light. Even hidden in the most squalid Parisian halls, wrestling partakes of the nature of the great solar spectacles, Greek drama and bullfights: in both, a light without shadow generates an emotion without reserve.” ― R. Barthes, Analysis of wrestling from “Mythologies”

Goal: Understanding the culture of the participants with critical thinking and appreciate beauty and humanity

Definisaun: saida mak Arte Marsiais? / What is Martial Arts?

Historia: halo referensi ba realidade iha Timor / Reality in Timor-Leste

Solusaun: Dame/ Peace and  Unity

Workshop Reference https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1C03bGlKP-yFfV8C1OMPfqomtZKphOqbcX5dLZjgSmWY/edit#slide=id.p 

To study love and violence in human nature, REKREATIF, a collective of young Timorese photographers will study forms of martial arts and document the movement each other as central players of the free practices and spectators of the practices. https://www.facebook.com/groups/rekreatifmedia

ASK YOURSELF…

Make something NEW

that only a contemporary Timor-leste can make.

Why there is the issue with martial arts groups in Timor-Leste?

A tradition is often created to unite a group of people. 

What is tradition to you?   

Investigate your feeling while the performance.

Do you also feel affection as well as excitement and anger?

War is there because of love, 

you love somebody so you protect him/her. 

That is the beginning.

We need to control the violence in ourselves,

that is why we made society and institutions.

How can we love our neighbour? 

©︎
Acacio Pinto

Silvestre Rudiyanto Soares

Hipolito Da Silva Baptista

Silvestre Pires Castro

Rofino Leandro Ferreira

Background

“There is a miracle in every new beginning.”  Hermann Hesse

Because of the Covid 19, we had to find a way to do the workshop remotely. I wanted to take this challenge into a chance to do something that I don’t usually do. Every work of mine always has my strong ego as a female Japanese artist. 10 out of 11 participants in the workshop are men. I thought this is a chance for me to do something that only boys can do.

I never really had a problem being a woman,  but sometimes I felt I can’t join the boy’s club, like pro-wrestling  in school (Yes, it was the 80’s). I couldn’t help myself to stop them and I was called Eba-police, which comes from a children’s TV show combined with my surname Ebata. I envied the boys talking about their secret base. They seem to warm friendship through pain as a sign of accepting each other.So I wanted to propose a project that only boys can do.

Learning about The 1999 East Timorese crisis, it seems to be appropriate to do something about violence , not to celebrate and as a disaster tourism, but to understand what is violence. A primitive violence can be a tool of communication and the physical power has been celebrated throughout human history. A love towards beauty, power usually encourages desire of possession and leads to violence. But love can survive as a noble mind.

It is great to have peace, in Japan physicality including violence becomes more like a fantasy rather than reality. But there is a downside of higher suiside rate and lower childbirth rate. To not have real space and real small violence, things can go crazy.

The sad history of the East Timorese crisis can be strong aura of the identity of the artists, and to think through physicality is very important part of martial arts, to have harmony in mind and body, which all of us feel strongly during the Covid 19 where everybody has to stay at home at the moment.

When I proposed the idea to the participants, they were shocked, saying it was dangerous. Apparently the martial arts groups are a hot issue in East Timor at the moment. It was a kind of miracle that I pointed out the important issue. 

Near the end of his last book Chaosmosis (1993), Félix Guattari asks: ‘how do you bring a classroom to life as if it were a work of art?’ For Guattari, art is an endlessly renewable source of vitalist energy and creation, a constant force of mutation and subversion. He lays out a tripartite schema of art’s development, arguing that we are on the brink of a new paradigm in which art is no longer beholden to Capital. In this new state of affairs, which he names the ‘ethico- aesthetic paradigm’, art should claim ‘a key position of transversality with respect to other Universes of value’, bringing about mutant forms of subjectivity and rehumanising disciplinary institutions. Transversality, for Guattari, denotes a ‘militant, social, undisciplined creativity’; it is a line rather than a point, a bridge or a movement, motored by group Eros.

In other words, I would like to investigate  love and violence in human nature with REKREATIF  studying physicality and emotion through forms of martial arts. Although I need more research I could somehow understand this martial arts movement needing to protect themselves among different political powers and after the crisis, and low employment rate of course. However I hear that there are positive sides of this group that they are uniting the community.  Young people are full of  energy. After all an martial arts suppose to unite body and soul. The energy of people is so attractive. 

I don’t consider workshop as a form of education, for me it is just making a project together as usual. But after I spent time talking to each participant and learnt a lot, it reminded of the do famous Paulo Freire’s education as a practice of freedom (educacao compo praticia) a little and made me like the idea of workshop. I am excited to see from this beautiful island East Timor.

– Kyoko Ebata, Tokyo,  17 February  2021

In the End

Through the Covid 19, I made a lot of  good friends without meeting in person from a country where the sun rises and  in same time zone as Japan but in completely different season. I feel I know them and I can trust them. What an interesting world. Although in terms of violence, I didn’t learn anything, I think. I only learned through conversation, book and photographies. I even admire them looking at the pictures that the participants took. I am not sure how I would feel  I were there in Timor-Leste. I guess there are things that we cannot learn without being there.

Through the workshop, we tried martial arts performance in a kind of mockumentary, and even invented one dancing like technique which I would like to call REKREATIF Dancing Puch (please collect me if is not cool) if no one object. One of the REKREATIF member succeeded invite a person from  different martial art group, which seems to be quite a difficult thing. I see this is as a kind of symbolic gesture of friendship of mart art groups in dispute, and very proud of them. 

Other discovery was that there are ao many strong women in Timor-Leste. The women there are so beautiful and healthy. The recent trend of plus size fashion models, they really should use the women from Timor-Leste, they look happy, beautiful proud and strong. Maybe this is another fantasy I build up from the pictures and not from the reality by not being there. I see so many possibility here where a democracy has just starting to grow and makes me excited..

But if they are interested, perhaps the performance can be developed into Capoeira, Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, and music. Or if there are next time for me to visit Timor-Leste, I would like to do something about dance that I like, exchanging  denser representatives from each tribes and learn another style from different tribe and have a dance festival. 

In the show we could only show a few works, I tired to show different emotions in the model, passion, pain, excitement, concentration, cares and affection. So pictures with similar expression were turned down, but it does not mean they are not good picture. REKREATIF produced many good pictures in very short time. And without  the members like Janicia and Binsar who helped for translation and solved communication problems, we could not do this workshop. Also in the first one on one interviews with all the members of the participants, I feel very welcomed especially there was one who brought his family support our challenging project. I learned about the history between Timor-Leste and Japan too.  I am so glad that nobody got injured in the end and I would remember all the words and smiles  that we exchanged. 

Thank you very much Ms. Toeingam Guptabutra, Faculty of Painting, Sculpture, and Graphic Arts, Silpakorn University, The Royal Photographic Society of Thailand, The Japan Foundation Asia Centre for giving me wonderful opportunity.

Obrigada,

– Kyoko Ebata, Tokyo,  25 March  2021

https://www.timorthaiphoto.com/general-2

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Bangkok Post 19 MAY 2021 Yvonne Bohwongprasert

https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/arts-and-entertainment/2118123/an-eye-for-the-details

An eye for the details
With help from mentors, budding photography students from Thailand and Timor-Leste came together to capture life amid a pandemic

As students of photography, Somboon Unpracha and Thanaboom Pobumrung were pitted against a relatively unknown bunch of budding photographers from Timor-Leste. However, it proved to be a lesson in collaboration because the inaugural photography workshop they attended would conclude with an online exhibition of their work.

The one-month workshop dealt with themes such as “Diary Of A Pandemic” in Timor-Leste and Thailand in which students from both countries took part. Meanwhile, “REKREATIF”, a photography club where amateurs from Timor-Leste come together to share their passion, covered topics such as martial arts performance photography and how to cope with being human.

Six East Timorese and 18 fine arts students from Silpakorn University participated in the workshop.

The resulting online exhibition, which features around 200 stunning photos from both camps, is titled “7,610-kilometre Distance: Finally, We’ve Met One Another!” and is currently taking place after a successful offline event in late April.

After having the likes of top photography experts Dow Wasiksiri, Wannapong Surarochprajak, Ornin Ruangwattanasuk, Subkun Sarunpueti and Taweewit Kijtanasoonthorn mentor and lead workshops covering topics such as travel, fashion, culture and documentary photography, the students went out to explore the vicinity of Silpakorn University’s Nakhon Pathom campus and Bangkok to capture their subject matter.

Each spent hours searching and interviewing before actually conducting a photoshoot.

Timor-Leste’s Acacio Pinto captures the plight of local residents, many of whom who are poor and despondent. (Photo © Toeingam Guptabutra)

“My desire was to capture the hardship of Thai SME businesses that have been barely existing since the pandemic began,” said Somboon, 23. “My theme was ‘Vendors: Faith And Hope’. Prior to documenting their daily life, I spent time gaining their trust and understanding their life and business by chatting with them. In some instances, I had to come the next day to actually capture their candid moments.

“This type of photography is time-consuming and challenging because people usually shy away from the presence of a camera. The question was how can I take photos which seem to capture the essence of a subject I’ve just met? It is never easy but I am happy with the results of my hard work.”

Thanaboom, 21, had his work cut out when he decided to focus on businesses that have been most impacted by Covid-19. After countless hours on the road, he remarked: “It was only when I was exploring the topic that I realised just how many establishments have been hit by the pandemic. Some that come to mind include gaming centres, grocery stores and community libraries.

“My theme was ‘Fading’. One photo that was chosen for the exhibition was that of a shop selling used books. Even though I had just gotten to know the owner, he opened up to me about his business and the emotional stress of living through this pandemic.”

Tanapong Wongtayan gets creative by utilising natural light to tell an otherwise simple story. (Photo © Toeingam Guptabutra)

Prof Toeingam Guptabutra of Silpakorn University — the brainchild behind the project — who has worked with the two students in the past, said that after seeing the artists’ potential as photographers, it was her desire to bridge the gap by offering them the know-how to take their passion to the next level. That is when the idea of a workshop and exhibition came to life, and was executed in early March.

“This has also benefited aspiring photographers from East Timor where there is a lot of raw talent in need of guidance and mentoring. This experience has equipped them with photography skills and concepts needed for their fine art and commercial art careers,” said Toeingam.

Toeingam said Silpakorn University’s Faculty of Painting Sculpture and Graphic Arts, The Royal Photography Society of Thailand and Japan Foundation Asia Center, all played a pivotal role in the success of the project.

One of the biggest impediments she faced in organising the photography workshop in Bangkok was Covid-19.

“The pandemic took us all by surprise. The East Timorese students were supposed to fly to Bangkok for the workshop and since we could not cancel the event, it was decided that we would have it online instead,” said Toeingam.

Seen Aswadetmathakul documents a happy moment for a homeless man. (Photo © Toeingam Guptabutra)

“That in itself created a number of challenges but with the support of a talented and determined team, we managed to not just have a successful virtual workshop, which was held in February and March this year, but also have an online exhibition of the photos that were taken by both students. Their work will be up for sale.”

In retrospect, Toeingam said one of the highlights of the workshop was the ability to get two street gangs who were on opposing sides to give a martial arts performance for photographer Nuu’udar Uma, who conducted a photoshoot on the theme “How Do You Cope With Being A human?”.

“Street gangs are a social problem in Timor-Leste, so it was Kyoko Ebata — a Japanese artist and mentor — who wanted to see this documented because it speaks volumes about the failure of the education system of the country,” said the project director, who teaches media and sound art. “Kyoko felt this gesture was a form of peacemaking effort between both gangs and when you see the resulting photos, this becomes apparent. The emotions these photos reveal are raw and genuine.

“I have a desire to work with these talented photographers in the future. They have so much talent and are thirsty to learn to improve their skills in photography. Through these photos, I hope one day Timor-Leste can become a country people will desire to visit and eventually, fingers crossed, become part of Asean.”

Toeingam said due to the pandemic Dili, the capital of Timor-Leste, was in lockdown during the online workshop. This made it next to impossible for the six participants, three of whom are journalists, to collect the quota of photos they had been assigned to send their workshop leaders.

Hipolito Da Silva Baptista explores the subject of street gang fights. (Photo © Toeingam Guptabutra)

She encapsulated the month-long experience by saying that it took blood, sweat and tears to document their work in the most candid manner. Both sets of students had their share of challenges to face before being able to put together what the audience sees online.

“What makes this photo exhibition special is just the number of obstacles everyone had to overcome. It was trial and error for most of the part and this makes the outcome all the more significant. It should tug on the heartstrings of the audience because there is a lot of emotion behind each photo. Relating to a story via photos takes more than the click of the camera. Photographers have to study their subject before they can put the plot of their story into one frame. As an amateur photographer, the work put in was all the more.

“Despite having a good knowledge of gender inequality in Timor-Leste, I was shocked by the number of homeless women documented on the streets. Acacio, who is a journalist, took some thought-provoking photos. One of them was of a woman who had become mentally ill after having lost her baby and was now living in an old used car on her own. Other photos also show women living on the streets with their children in the most precarious environment one would desire to be in during this pandemic.

“You see that there is an acute shortage of face masks. Either we see them without a mask or wearing one that should be discarded. This showed the reality of what East Timorese women face. While this is well-documented in print, we don’t get to see it much in photos to visualise its severity. It was my desire from the start to offer a well-balanced side of Timor-Leste. That is why the audience gets to see degradation and the flip side which showcases its rich culture, traditions and people.”

Now that the foundation has been laid, she hopes others with photography expertise will offer a helping hand.

“To help them reach their potential, they require further professional skills. This will help them to showcase their country’s culture, traditions and lifestyle through their photos.”

The exhibition can be viewed online at timorthaiphoto.com.

Basilio Gomes da Silva picks a candid moment between mother and daughter. (Photo © Christian Mulhauser)

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