Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences
Netherlands
fellow
Theo Frids Hutabarat
2024-2025
Home institution
Parahyangan Catholic University
Country of origin (home institution)
Indonesia
Discipline(s)
Anthropology and ethnology
Arts and arts studies
History of ideas
Religious sciences
Theme(s)
Cultural Studies
Post-colonialism
Visual Arts
Fellowship dates
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Biography
Theo Frids Marulitua Hutabarat (1987) is an artist from Bandung, Indonesia. He has a Master’s degree in Fine Art from the Faculty of Art and Design at Bandung Institute of Technology. His work was part of exhibitions in Bandung, Bangkok, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Singapore, Turin, Yogyakarta and Amsterdam.
Theo Frids Marulitua Hutabarat was the winner of the Atelier KITLV-Framer Framed Artist in Residence open call (2021). During the residency period, Theo Frids Marulitua Hutabarat had access to the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) collections and engage with the research works of KITLV and Framer Framed staff to inform and inspire his work. The outcome of his residency Anonim (2023) was presented both in Leiden and Amsterdam, the Netherlands featuring several new commissioned works.
Research Project
Reimagining Pustaha, Re-imaging Batak Symbols
Research question: How can the pustaha be connected to the common Batak people today? Is it possible to comprehend the symbols in the pustaha through artistic means?
Theo Frids Hutabarat’s project focuses on the Batak manuscripts known as pustaha and how museums in the Netherlands preserve them. He aims to study the life of certain spiritual symbols within the pustaha and trace their connections to various cultures across the ages.
This project seeks to deepen the understanding of the past by exploring Batak spirituality—not just focusing on ancestors and rituals, but also on political, social, and environmental histories. The findings will serve as the foundation for future artistic research, re-imaging these symbols as lived experiences (such as through the aesthetics of masking and unveiling in painting practice), and viewing this as an alternative practice of care for a shared legacy of civilizations.
Research Interests:
Batak manuscripts and spirituality; museum decolonization; artistic knowledge production; spiritual symbols in visual art; cultural heritage and contemporary practice