ruangrupa · @Jakarta · Discussion on Economy
Lumbung: pooling the surplus, sharing the decision
Lumbung is a working method to share resources, referring to the Indonesian agriculturally vernacular rice-barn — the surplus of a harvest gathered into a common store, and redistributed by collective decision. ruangrupa, the collective that runs this table, has carried that principle across a series of experiments in the field of culture: Gudang Sarinah Ekosistem (2015–18), Gudskul, their collective learning space (2018–ongoing), and Lumbung 1, also known as documenta fifteen (2022) — and continues to practise it today. Connecting these experiences to the economy of the commons, the conversation asks what it means to sustain culture through sharing rather than competition, how far a method grown in one context can travel to others, and what the difficulties are in implementing it.
The session takes place in person at Gudskul (Jl Durian Raya no.30A, Jagakarsa, South Jakarta), with some speakers connected online.
farid rakun
Art Curator and member of ruangrupa
farid rakun, trained as an architect (B.Arch from Universitas Indonesia and M.Arch from Cranbrook Academy of Art), wears different hats dependent on who is asking. He is a part of the artists’ collective ruangrupa with whom he co-curated TRANSaction: Sonsbeek 2016 in Arnhem NL and provided a collective Artistic Direction for documenta fifteen (Kassel, 2022).
David Bollier
Writer and activist
David Bollier is an American activist and scholar whose work studies and promotes the commons as a paradigm for re-imagining political economy, culture, and society. Director of the Reinventing the Commons Program at the Schumacher Center for a New Economics, he is the author of more than a dozen books on the commons.
Gertrude Flentge
Cultural operator
Gertrude Flentge is a cultural operator working for the commons. She co-developed various collaborative interlocal ecosystems such as the RAIN Artists' Initiatives Network, Arts Collaboratory and Lumbung - documenta fifteen.
See Also
2025 | International Forum on the Sustainability of Culture
The Forum is a global initiative dedicated to rethinking the role of cultural institutions in building sustainable futures.
