Welcome, Welcome Statue: When The Capital Shows Off Its Hospitality

Welcome Statue (Photo of Achmad)

JAKARTA - Jakarta is a lighthouse, said Soekarno every time he described the Capital City in his eyes. For Soekarno, Jakarta was the personification of the new spirit of the Indonesian nation, which at that time had just become independent. Development in the capital was the main thing at that time. Not only infrastructure, but also identity development, such as statues and monuments.

For Soekarno, erecting statues and monuments was not only an effort to build an identity but also a way to grow and maintain a sense of nationalism in the Indonesian nation. It was this principle that guided Soekarno in realizing the idea of building one of the most famous monuments in Jakarta: the Welcome Statue.

The initial idea of building a statue that stood in the Hotel Indonesia (HI) Roundabout area was based on Soekarno's desire to show Indonesia's greatness and hospitality to the world. The right strategy from Soekarno. Soekarno's greatness was even shown to the world through the 4th Asian Games in Jakarta in 1962.

ASiang Games IV (Source: Kemenpora)

The planning for the construction of the Welcome Statue was initiated from 1959. And the image of the splendor of the Welcome Statue has been started since then. Quoted by Obed Bima Wicandra in the book Henk Nantung: I Am not the Governor of the PKI (2017), he explained that Soekarno immediately called the famous Indonesian artist from Yogyakarta, Edhi Sunarso.

Accompanied by Henk Nantung and Trubus, Edhi faced the State Palace. To the three of them, Soekarno immediately asked them to make a sketch of the Welcome Statue.

"Try to make a sketch for the Welcome Statue monument to welcome sportsmen and officials who will come to Jakarta for the Asian Games party. I asked for the statue to be nine meters high, which I wanted to place at the roundabout in front of the Hotel Indonesia, "said Bung Karno.

That morning, at 07.00 WIB, in a pajama suit, Soekarno demonstrated the model of the statue to be made. Soekarno raised his hand and asked the three of them to make a sketch based on these body gestures. Edhi was also confirmed as a statue maker. Soekarno then assigned Trubus to help Edhi and Henk Nantung to oversee the progress of making the statue.

"Brother Edhi has many friends in Yogyakarta. I think Edhi can contact friends in Yogyakarta at first. Later, when it is time to carry out the work, the statue can be assisted by Trubus, ”said Deputy Head of DKI Jakarta at that time, Henk Nantung.

Challenging work

On the one hand, Edhi is afraid and hesitant to accept the job. He felt that he was not experienced enough in metal sculpture, especially with the large and tall size. On the other hand, Edhy's artistic blood was immediately challenged by the job given by the number one person in Indonesia.

Edhi's level of seriousness was so high. In fact, since the beginning of the meeting with Soekarno, Edhi immediately recorded everything Soekarno wanted in detail in his head. Also related to everything that Soekarno showed. Edhi remembers very well. Regarding how Soekarno greeted his welcome with enthusiasm to an explanation regarding optimism for an independent nation. Entirely Edhi translated into a masterpiece.

"Welcome!" Bung Karno shouted excitedly. His figure was full of drama: his arms stretched out, his legs stretched out, his smile broad. And Edhi Sunarso, a young sculptor at that time, immediately caught the moment. He translated it into sculpture, then the statue of Selamat was born. Come who has been standing in front of the Hotel Indonesia roundabout, Jakarta, ”LN Idayani wrote in Tempo Magazine entitled Landmark Sepanjang Thamrin – Sudirman (2005).

Welcome Statue (Source: Commons Wikimedia)

For that, came the idea of making a Welcome Statue. Edhi described the bronze statue he made to represent two figures, namely a male and female figure. The two of them seemed to spread their arms as demonstrated by Soekarno. It is more interesting because Edhi improvises. He added a bunch of flowers carried by a statue of a woman in his left hand. This is a picture that emphasizes the hospitality of the Indonesian people in welcoming the participants of the 4th Asian Games. "Bung Karno is always like that. Expressive. We have to capture that dynamic movement," said Edhi.

The Welcome Statue is born

One year before the 4th Asian Games was held, the people of Jakarta were eagerly awaiting this monument which was predicted to become Jakarta's new icon. Because of its popularity, the mass media at that time never stopped discussing the development of sculpture making. One of them, as reported by the Indonesian newspaper Berita Indonesia in 1961.

"Deputy head of the special region for the Capital City of Jakarta, Henk Ngatung, in his speech said that the Welcome Monument is not only considered a manifestation in welcoming foreign guests, but also contains the main idea, which is the idea of the people in welcoming a fair and prosperous future," wrote the news. .

Inevitably, this has created a monument as high as 20 meters, with statues of a man and woman measuring six meters and weighing five tons, making Indonesians curious. Moreover, the monument area will be surrounded by a circular pool with a diameter of 78 meters.

Welcome Statue (Source: Commons Wikimedia)

As planned, the statue which was placed in the HI Roundabout, the heart of the capital city of Jakarta, was inaugurated by Bung Karno in 1962. For Bung Karno, the HI Roundabout was the most appropriate and ideal location for a landmark because it could be seen from all directions.

“The statue is surrounded by a pond that emits a line of red-orange water, adding to the beautiful surroundings of HI and its surroundings, exactly 50 years ago. The HI building and the Welcome Monument which have been in the HI Roundabout since 17 August 1962 are interconnected, because they were built on the idea of the first President of Indonesia, Ir. Soekarno, "wrote Arifin Pasaribu in the book Hotel Indonesia (2014).