Reinventing the Visuals of Surakarta Style Wayang Purwa

Wayang is defined as a performing art that uses Wayang puppets made of leather. As an artefact, Wayang stands as a symbol that connects various cultures throughout the archipelago. However, even though Wayang has succeeded in adapting to the modern era, the reality that is happening now is that Wayang as one of the Indonesian traditional arts is increasingly losing its audience. This article explores the idea of reinventing the visual elements of Wayang Purwa in Wayang creations with superhero and anime characters. This research uses a qualitative descriptive research method with the ATUMICS approach to see the strongest visual elements that are maintained. Research data was collected through literature study, observation, and in-depth interviews with the craftsmen and puppeteers of Wayang Kulit Purwa. Data analysis was carried out using the stages of data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions. The idea of reinvention provides an opportunity to produce works of art such as Wayang creations so that they can adapt to modernity. The result shows that in reinventing Wayang Purwa into Wayang creations based on superhero and anime characters, the changes occur in utility, concept and shape, while technique, materials and icons are maintained. Thus, this article concludes that in reinventing a cultural artefact, not all elements are changed. There are important elements that are needed to be maintained in order for the modern reinvention to retain the identity posed by the traditional cultural artefact

Anime · Art · Linguistics · Visual arts · Cultural and Artistic Studies · Cultural Identity and Representation · Digital Storytelling and Education · Philosophy