'Carving Reality' exhibition explores woodcut as a ‘democratic’ media in social movements

A woodcut banner (left) titled 'You Purchase Us As Labour, But We Are Human Beings' created by Taiwan's Print And Carve Department together with the migrant workers from Taiwan International Workers Association is seen on the balcony of the Zhongshan building in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: The Star/Muhamad Shahril Rosli

A series of woodcut posters which were hung up on street corners, draped on bridges and pinned unto traffic lights across Indonesian cities during the country’s general election last year has made its way to a group exhibition held at the Back Room KL gallery.

The DIY canvas posters were created by the artists from the Jogjakarta-based Taring Padi collective, which organised an outreach campaign named Terompet Rakyat in early 2019 to urge people to vote wisely in the Indonesian elections.