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Gede Suryanta

"My name is Gede Suryanta and I was born in 1977 in Tenganan village, Karangasem regency, Bali. People from Tenganan believe that it is the oldest village in Bali. It is located about 50 km from Denpasar to the east. My village is known for its ancient traditions. That’s why there are many old temples and other old places for the practice of our traditions. One of Tenganan's traditions that still exists is perang pandan (a duel using pandanus or screw-pine as a weapon), which has traditionally been done by the men of Tenganan village to prove their courage.

"Because Tenganan is one of the villages that still upholds its ancient traditions, many tourists come to visit. In every old building, there are hundreds of old statues as symbols of our ancestors. Many tourists come to Tenganan especially to see those old statues. The outward appearance and the color are unique and antique and cannot be found at other places. Inspired by those phenomena, people from my village try to make replicas of the old statues and sell them to tourists as souvenirs.

"I make statues using jackfruit wood and acrylic paint. I choose jackfruit wood as the medium because there are many of those trees growing around my village. In creating statues, my purpose is to make them look old and antique."