By Eko Budihardjo
The World Heritage Cities Conference and Expo was held successfully in Surakarta (Solo) in late October. We all deserve to be proud of the fact that Surakarta was acknowledged as a Heritage City through the establishment of the Indonesian Heritage Cities Network.
Jero Wacik, the minister of tourism and culture, who was at the helm of both significant events, meticulously recommended the utmost protection of cultural heritage sites that are found throughout Indonesia.
Thus, it took us by surprise when out of the blue emerged appalling news of a plan to build a 13-story modern hotel within the vicinity of Vastenburg fortress.
Who would not be stunned and dazed by such news? Vastenburg fortress -- also known as Grootmoedigheid -- was built by Governor General Van Imhoff in the year 1745. I was reminded of a pearl of wisdom passed on by our ancestors (told to me by the late KRT Hardjonagoro) which states that historical buildings of more than 50 years of age should be protected from demolition.
The quote at the beginning of this article, cited from a book by the famous Spiro Kostoff, titled The City Shaped (1991), reinforces this wise advice.
Vastenburg fortress, in all of its 263-year-old glory, has become an integral part of Surakarta‘s history. It should never be demeaned, forsaken or ill-treated by anyone.
The term "historic identity" was coined by Siri Myrvoll in the book Historic Cities and Sacred Sites: Cultural Roots for Urban Futures (2001) published by the World Bank and edited by Ismail Serageldin et al. In this book it is written explicitly that ancient buildings which serve as a mirror to their city‘s history should never be sacrificed for mere financial or economic benefit.
Historic identity creates a "sense of continuity" and a "sense of place" which, in turn, give way to a "sense of pride" for the whole nation.
A good city is one that presents its history, both physically and visually.
There was once a local government official who voiced a question as to why we “Indonesia” should maintain ancient buildings from the Dutch colonial era, if this would only serve to remind everyone of the fact that Indonesia was once controlled by the Dutch.
He states that we should be ashamed of this episode, especially toward the younger generation. What he had overlooked was the fact that there is no such thing as changing history. It certainly cannot be manipulated into "his story".
We can boost up the younger generation‘s pride as a nation which rose to its independence through the blood and tears of its heroes, who courageously fought against the Dutch with all that they had -- and contrary to our neighbouring countries which gained their independence merely by receiving it as a gift from the British, without any bloodshed.
Vastenburg fortress is clearly an icon of the historic identity of Surakarta and has been acknowledged into the cultural heritage category according to the Law on Cultural Heritage. Thus, it is our obligation (with an emphasis on Surakarta‘s local government) to conserve it, due to its high cultural significance.
To borrow the wise words of John Ruskin, which inspired the foundation of The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings in England in 1877, "Destroying a historical ancient building is a colossal and unforgivable social sin."
Many people confine the meaning of maintaining ancient buildings and historical areas to merely preserving them, simply taking care of or returning such buildings to their original state without giving way to change.
The way we interpret "maintaining" must not stop at static preservation, but should continue into dynamic conservation. Within the discipline of conservation, there is a term "Adaptive Reuse": An infusion of new functions for historic buildings.
In the case of Vastenburg fortress, this could mean the erection of a new building within the old historic district. A phenomenal example here is the modern Glass Pyramid designed by architect Ioh Ming Pei in the confinement of the Louvre museum in Paris, which has grown to become a popular and distinguished attraction. The ancient and new buildings merge into an agreeable harmony.
What we should be aware of in this case is to keep the new building from ruining the spirit of place, image, scale and unique ambiance which have become characteristics of ancient sites.
If a 13-story hotel is built next to Vastenburg fortress, the modern hotel would surely dwarf the fortress. The historical fortress would regress; looking like it is merely a fence for the hotel.
An alternative, which the late Prof. Sidharta and I once recommended a few years ago, is an infusion of new functions in the fortress in the form of two-story buildings which could be utilized as shopping centers selling traditional arts and crafts.
By limiting the height of the buildings to two stories, the scale and atmosphere of the surrounding environment would be preserved. Characteristic arts and crafts like batik, lurik, wayang (Javanese puppets), gamelan (traditional musical instrument), masks, knick-knacks etc, would be appropriate for the place. It would even be more attractive if the canal surrounding the fortress is reconstructed, and a walkway over the fortress is made available so visitors can enjoy the view from the top.
It is time for all the artists, historians, architects, town planners and other related parties to get together and ponder the alternatives to the planning and construction of the city to avoid the loss of its historic identity.
There was once a saying in the military, "A war is much too important to be left to Generals alone."
In the case of building a city, there should be a saying "A city is much too important to be left to Mayors alone."
The writer is Professor of Architecture and Town Planning at Diponegoro University, Semarang.
Source: TheJakartaPost.com
