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Documenting Dayak Houses in West Kalimantan in March 2005

Workshop Java "Cultures of Living"

Short account of the Workshop by Irmengard Mayer and Britta Blasnik:

The institute of comparative research in Architecture organised a two week excursion with 14 students and 10 persons of university staff to Java, the main Island of Indonesia. During this stay the students had occasion to learn about the culture and tradition of a foreign country and had the unique possibility to experience everyday Indonesian university life at Gadjah Mada University, while cooperating with local students at the workshop "Culture of living".

The trip started with a one-week stay in Yogyakarta, one of the more important towns of Java. A workshop including lectures about the topic "Culture of living" took place in the buildings of Gadjah Mada University. Most lecturers were Indonesians or came from the TU Vienna.

The second week was wholly dedicated to the exploration of famous places and remains of early hinduistic culture in East- and Central Java. Among other localities we visited the Dieng-Plateau, had a look at Gedung Songo in mysthical rain and fog, got a glimpse of javanese royal court architecture while comparing the palaces of Surakarta and Yogjakarta and tried to identify balinese influence in temple gates of the Candi Bentar type in Trowulan.