Cultural Arts as Investment Instruments

The word "investment" is already closely related to financial rewards. In an economic context, investment means spending today that will bring in profits in the future. But in fact investment activities can be applied to a broader context than that.

Investing can also be done by supporting various organizations from various fields to drive social change. The concept of social investment is now increasingly being echoed by various non-profit organizations and corporations. The benefits are not enjoyed alone. There is a good impact that will spread and take root in society.

One area that can become an investment destination is cultural arts. This became a topic of discussion when the Indonesian Arts Coalition launched the book The Impact of Art on Society on Saturday, November 17 2018. The book launch was part of the 2018 FIFest (Indonesia Philanthropy Festival) series of events.

Exploring Local Potential

Although cultural arts have become a close part of everyday life, their function is nothing more than entertainment or decoration. In forums on development, art is limited to appearing as an opening performance or accompaniment during lunch breaks. Many people forget that well-developed art and culture can have a big impact on the lives of the people around them.

The afternoon talk at the Philanthropy Stage, which was hosted by moderator Budhita Kismadi, presented two communities whose activities have brought big changes to their area. Both are the Harau Valley Community from West Sumatra and Jatiwangi Art Factory (JaF) from West Java.

Roni 'Keron' Putra, representing the Lembah Harau Community, explained how his community moved Nagari Harau from a village that was classified as underdeveloped to be able to generate regional income that was independent. All of this was realized thanks to the holding of the Pasa Harau Festival. This art and culture festival has been held three times. From the start, the implementation was designed to be based on community development, not the regional budget. Villagers became the drafters and organizers of the event with guidance from the Lembah Harau Community. As a result, the festival which was held for three days has exceeded the record number of 4,000 visitors.

In Jatiwangi, a sub-district in Majalengka, West Java, Arief Yudi Rahman initiated JaF. Over the past 13 years, JaF has been inviting residents to develop local native commodities, namely clay roof tiles, into various works of cultural art. JaF held a Village Video Festival, a Ceramic Music Festival, and opened a Land Culture Museum. All these activities, which are mostly funded independently, are held so that the villagers are proud of clay as a characteristic and part of the history of their area.

There are similarities but not the same from the two communities. Both of them chose to explore local potential and strengthen their cultural values so that they could become a source of livelihood. According to Arief, a livelihood area that is strengthened and made happy can reduce the potential for conflict in society.

Cultural Arts Part of Development

Both Roni and Arief invite the general public to become their community investors. In the future, the Lembah Harau Community will focus on developing Bintang Harau, an art and cultural education space for children that they initiated. Meanwhile, JaF has a vision of realizing Jatiwangi as a Terracotta City, complete with their own university.

Investments can be invested not only through financial assistance, but also in the form of facilities, infrastructure, and manpower. They are also very open to collaborating with community circles and philanthropic initiatives from corporations in various fields.

These two groups are only part of the 12 communities and festivals discussed in the book The Impact of Art in Society. In the field, of course there are more cultural arts communities that interact with their environment to create other good impacts.

The community stories included are meant to start a conversation about the importance of investing in art and culture. Until, finally, cultural arts can return to their place, namely to become an integral part of the nation and state development plan.

Like a financial investment, the optimal return from an art and culture investment is also influenced by the time span. The results are not instantaneous, so it requires great patience and support from various parties.