The Power of Javanese Women in Damar Kurung Painting

Abstract

The Damar Kurung painting by Masmundari has a variety of objects and themes, one of which Masmundari often paints is the activity of women. Masmundari's Damar Kurung painting can be a vehicle to re-recognize oneself, especially as a Javanese society as well as a Javanese woman, such as his work entitled "Mbok Omah" (housewife). This cultural studies research focuses on a critical approach by a qualitative exploration of the expression of Damar Kurung's painting and its meaning in the search for the meaning of maternal power in Javanese society using the Bahasa Rupa method. The results of this study reveal that (1) the father is the head of the household who is wise and acts as a strong protector for his wife and children. Father provided a livelihood and became a strong support for the family. However, in Damar Kurung's painting, it is clear that the mother has a more important, strong, and dominant role. Mother Java is the center of the family. Mother is the manager who has control over the household. (2) The ideology of familialism places the father in the main role as the main ruler of the household who has the greatest privileges and authority in the family. This dominant gender ideology defines Javanese women as both mother and wife, releasing men from domestic obligations in the household, and being more involved in more prestigious public activities. This ideology is institutionalized in everyday life, legitimizing the absence of the responsibility of men to raise children and care for the household, while still justifying the highest authority in the family.