Indonesian Architecture - A Story About Indonesia's Identity

7/2/2020 Indonesian Architecture: A Story About Indonesia's Identity
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Indonesian Architecture: A Story

About Indonesia's Design Identity
By Baladika Badra Anggakara
4/6/2020
Architecture is often considered to be a cultural symbol and a work of art of a particular

place. In this case, Indonesian architecture re ects the diversity of Indonesia’s cultures.
Keep in mind that Indonesia has 34 provinces, each of them unique in their own way.
As such, Indonesian architecture takes many forms and styles that possesses distinctive
features and traits with a story to tell, making the archipelago one big storytelling land.
Here are some of the popular styles of Indonesian architecture you want to know.
Traditional Style Architecture
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Source: travelingyuk.com
Each Indonesian sub-culture has its own distinct form of traditional vernacular houses
known as Rumah Adat. The concept of this architecture is based on the traditional beliefs
and values upheld by the local society. There is no architect or designer to help them
built the Rumah Adat. In fact, they made these houses on their own with the help of a
built the Rumah Adat. In fact, theyIndonesian
7/2/2020
madeArchitecture:
these houses on their own with the help of a
A Story About Indonesia's Identity
local master builder or a carpenter and yet they still manage to create such complex
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architecture works with elaborate design and high aesthetic valueG eby only
t Th e M a gusing
a z i n e natural
materials. A R C H I T E C T U R E / INTERIOR ART / DESIGN C U LT U R E

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Despite the diversity of the traditional style architecture, all of them still have similarity
in some way as they share a common ancestry, Austronesia. For one, the edi ces are
made to adapt to the environmental factors of Indonesia, such as its tropical climate.
Picture a longhouse on stilts with a steep sloping roof to accommodate the

environmental situation — this proves that traditional architecture is already so
advanced, seeing how they put a lot of consideration before building something and can
work with whatever they have.
Hinduism and Buddhism Architecture
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Source: nusadaily.com
This religion-based style was born out of the in uence of both Hinduism and Buddhism
during the Indianized period of Indonesia, between 4th to 15th century, particularly in
Java. These remnants of the period showcases places of worship that were once part of
bygone Indonesian kingdoms.
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The concept of this ancient Indonesian architecture follows speciSGUecBt Srules

T h e M a that
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g a z i n ewere
established by religion. The main goal was to align the building with forces of nature,
maximizing the place’s Lholiness
I F E S T Y Land
E maximizing
VIDEOS its e ectiveness
E V E N T Sas a place of worship.
The materials used to build the temples are usually limestones or bricks, put together
with a locking mechanism between each stone, using mortar or a mix of vine sap and
palm sugar as the binding agent.
Source: befreetour.com
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The di erence
ARCHbetween
I T E C T U Hinduism and
RE / INTER I O RBuddhism-inspired
A R T / D E S I Garchitecture
N C U is
LTthat
U R E the
former tend to be taller with pointed crowns, while the latter uses stupas, or dome-like
shapes ornaments. A lot of remarkable structures made during this period relish in very
sophisticated design, detailed decorations and majestic reliefs. Some of the examples are
the Dieng plateau in the volcanic complex in Java; the earliest temples in the island and
the nest and largest of Hindu architecture, Prambanan; and the World Heritage
Buddhism monument, Candi Borobudur.
Islamic Style Architecture
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Source: abangnji.com
The signature of the Islamic style is derived from their place of worship, known as a
mosque. Islamic in uence started in the 15th century, where it was widely used in
Sumatra and Java. In the beginning, the mosque architecture design was combined with
the past traits of Hinduism and Buddhism, Chinese, and other local cultures, creating the
vernacular architecture of the time. The design uses multi-tiered roofs resembling the
Hindu’s Mt. Meru concepts, and towers resembling the form of a Hindu-Buddhist
temple. They even used the same materials to achieve a look that's exotic yet timeless.
Source: holamigo.id
During the 19th century, the Indonesian Islamic style architecture underwent a
signi cant change as it welcomed in uences by Arabian countries. By bringing domes
and minarets into the Indonesian Islamic style architecture, more depth and colours
were added into Indonesia.
Palace Architecture
Source: befreetour.com
Indonesia had various historic kingdoms spread across the archipelago and evidently
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some palace architectures in various places. Normally, palace designs are based on the
vernacular styles of theLarea
I F E Sin
T Ythat
L E time period.
V I D E O Though
S based
E V E N on
T S traditional houses, the
palace is designed and built with grandeur and majesty. Plus, later on in our history,
sometimes you'll nd a touch of European elements that are much more sophisticated
and opulent, appropriate for the residence of royalty.
Colonialism Style Architecture
Source: wikimedia.org
The Dutch used to colonize Indonesian for three and a half-centuries, and it's no wonder
that the in uence of the Dutch is so strong and has become an essential mark on
Indonesian architecture since the 16th and 17th centuries.
Row houses and canals with masonry and brick as the primary material of the buildings.
At rst, they did not consider adapting to Indonesia’s environment conditions, which
turned out to be disastrous. Later, the Dutch learned from this mistake and started to
incorporate Indonesian architecture style to the design as an e ort to adapt to the
environment. This triggered the birth of the Indies architecture style in the 18th century,
which is characterized by large windows for ventilation, deep verandas with European
decorative elements such as pillars, and Javanese style roof as additions to the original
Dutch architecture style.
Source: mamikos.com
Indies style, inherently an Indo-European hybrid, was implemented in various

establishments such as government buildings, train stations, hospitals, business venues
and hotels. By the end of the 18th century, major cities of Indonesia were greatly
in uenced by this style and to this day, we have a signi cant amount
S U B S of
C Rbuildings
I B E N O W with
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colonial architecture. Despite the grim origins of colonialism, this style is still a major
part of Indonesian history.
Post-Independence Style Architecture
Source: garlandmag.com
The 1920s Javanese art deco style made a comeback in the 1950s and became the root
national architecture style. Politically, it was a way Indonesians liberated themselves
from any trace of Dutch in uence and was an expression of freedom. Named the Jengki
style, based on the word “yankee” of American armed forces, the architecture was highly
in uenced by American mid-century style architecture. It uses a more complicated
volume of structures than the former modernist cubic and strict geometric structures of
the Dutch style architecture.
In the 1970s, the government began to promote the country's indigenous architecture
Indonesia again. By the 1980s, a lot of public buildings have fused their design with local
aspects, few of them in an exaggerated way.
Source: forumdaun.blogspot.com
One of the examples is the state o ce in Padang that includes a large concrete of
Minangkabau-style roof. Despite the outstanding e ort, some of the outcomes came out
looking less magni cent than anticipated as attaching a traditional element to a modern
building is not as easy as it sounds. Some did come out beautifully, such as the original
design of Terminal 1 and 2 of Soekarno-Hatta Airport.
Contemporary Style Architecture

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Source: homedsgn.com
Like the rest of the world, the international architecture style began to pick up
momentum in Indonesia in the 70s, as seen in the rows of skyscrapers decked in glass,
steel, and concrete. Ultra-decorative ornaments subsided and were replaced with
modern and post-modern nuances, creating a booming growth of urban and
contemporary construction that shapes Indonesia’s city’s skyline today.
Like this story, share to your friends
Baladika Badra Anggakara

Contributor
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ARCHITECTURE / INTERIOR ART / DESIGN C U LT U R E