The National Crafts Council (Dekranas) is once again organizing the Kriyanusa 2023 exhibition with the theme \"Excellent Crafts, Advanced Indonesia.\" The event will take place from September 13 to 17, 2023, at the Jakarta Convention Center. This event aims to promote and encourage excellent crafts as one of Indonesia's most valuable assets in facing global market challenges. The Kriyanusa 2023 exhibition will serve as a platform for skilled artisans from across the country to showcase their beautiful and creative works. The exhibition not only features unique handicrafts but also highlights the spirit of innovation and boundless creativity in producing excellent craft products.
The Chairperson of the Kriyanusa 2023 Exhibition Committee, Sri Suparni Bahlil, stated that the exhibition is a tangible effort by Dekranas to enhance the capacity of craft entrepreneurs. The goal is to encourage the creation and development of local craft products while preserving the cultural identity of all regions in Indonesia. "This exhibition serves as a platform to help market Dekranasda-supported products and provides space for the Nusantara craft industry to continue fostering creativity and innovation to improve business performance and showcase its best products,” she explained.
In an era increasingly dominated by advanced technology and economic progress, Indonesia finds its charm and strength in an invaluable asset—craft products. To promote cultural heritage and drive economic innovation, Dekranas has positioned excellent crafts as one of the main pillars in the nation's journey toward advancement. Excellent crafts, which encompass traditional Indonesian handicrafts and arts, have become increasingly important in shaping national identity and playing a significant role in supporting the country's creative economy.
"Excellent crafts are not just about honoring tradition and culture, but also about creating jobs, promoting sustainability, and generating significant economic benefits for Indonesia,” said Wury Ma’ruf Amin in her speech at the opening of Kriyanusa 2023 at JCC on Wednesday (13/9/2023).
One aspect that has attracted global attention is the extraordinary creativity embedded in each Indonesian craft product. Local artisans are highly skilled in blending tradition with innovation to create products that captivate the global market. With their creative touch, crafts such as batik, textiles, weaving, pottery, and carvings have gained the attention of consumers worldwide. This marks the beginning of a long journey toward a more advanced Indonesia.
"The government, artisans, academics, communities, media, and all craft enthusiasts must continue to collaborate in developing excellent crafts as invaluable economic and cultural resources,” stated Reni Yanita, Secretary-General of Dekranas and Director-General of Small, Medium, and Various Industries at the Ministry of Industry.
Reni further explained that this exhibition presents opportunities for investment that can support artisans and craft industry players to grow and compete globally. Additionally, Kriyanusa is an eagerly awaited craft exhibition, not only in Indonesia but also internationally, as it showcases high-quality regional craft products created by competent and competitive SMEs.
This year's Kriyanusa exhibition highlights Betawi cultural icons. "This event is a collective effort to introduce and promote Betawi’s rich cultural heritage to the younger generation and the wider community,” said Sri Suparni Bahlil. "It is also an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of preserving Indonesia's cultural heritage,” she added.
The Daily Chairman of the Kriyanusa Exhibition, Musa Widyatmojo, emphasized that Dekranas maintains strict curation standards for artisans. "All participating products must be handmade, not machine-made or printed. Dekranas is also very strict in focusing on Indonesian crafts that use locally sourced raw materials,” he added. The participating artisans are those nurtured by Dekranas/Dekranasda from across Indonesia, as well as various ministries, institutions, and state-owned enterprises. There are also 307 culinary booths at the exhibition.
Kriyanusa 2023 will be enlivened with various activities, including talk shows, craft-making demonstrations, fashion shows, and cultural performances from different regions, scheduled daily with a total of 27 collaborative events involving Dekranas, Dekranasda, ministries, institutions, and communities. The event will also feature the Dekranas Award program, a form of recognition from Dekranas for creative entrepreneurs and artisans with outstanding craft products in Indonesia. "A total of 377 craft products have been submitted to the Dekranas Award committee for evaluation and curation by a panel of professional and independent judges,” explained Liza Mustafa Abubakar, Chairperson of the Dekranas Award Committee. (Z-2)
