Abdoel Semute was raised in a family who was fond of any kinds of Javanese art and culture, name it puppetry, ketoprak or ludruk (Javanese traditional theaters), and their complementary rituals. Since 1994, Semute has been participating in theater performances. Around 2000s, inspired by the popularity of comic books from abroad, Semute established an independent group of comic creators named ORET 101 KOMIK. The underlying idea is to “preserve” the existence of Indonesian comics. He also initiated Milisi Fotokopi collective focusing on a collaborative art movement engaging the urban villages in Surabaya. Currently, one of the concerns that draws Semute’s attention is the necessary attempt to preserve the local wisdom and tradition of the urban villages in Surabaya. To respond to this matter, he formed a community called PENDAKI (Padepokan Seni Budaya Kampung Ilmu) whose main focus is teaching traditional ludruk and remo dance. He also established a community called Paseduluran Djati Djoyodiningrat that directs their attention to preserve the oft-ignored traditions of the ancestor, including ruwatan, slametan, tirakatan, etc.
Other than making comics, Semute also produces performances and other community-based works. He collaborates with a number of art and culture groups to respond to the diverse social issues happening in their surroundings. For Biennale Jogja, Semute presents one of his works produced in collaboration with Paseduluran Djati Djoyodiningrat aiming at challenging the society’s tendency to be more and more “religious”. In his view, Javanese culture—to be precise, Kejawen (Javanese traditional religion)—seems like being undermined by the intolerant acts of certain groups of society.
He sees that traditional art which should have been deeply rooted in the life of the Javanese is currently marginalized and perceived in a shallow understanding. Therefore, he intends to create a performance that can re-build the lost connection between the communities and their own local wisdoms, specifically in Javanese society.
