While translating and copyediting texts for Dipl.-Ing. Artisek: German-Trained Indonesian Architects from the 1960s, published by DOM in July 2023, I explored the fascinating, little-known history of Indonesian architects who studied in Berlin and later shaped the built environment of newly independent Indonesia. The book accompanies an exhibition of the same name, initiated by Berlin-based curators and urbanists/architects Sally Below, Moritz Henning, and Eduard Kögel. This project is part of Encounters of Southeast Asian Modernism, a long-term research and exchange program that I have also supported through translation and editing in collaboration with the curators.
From the publisher’s website:
In 1960 and 1961, a group of young Indonesians completed their studies in Berlin and Hanover with a degree in architecture (Diplom-Ingenieur Architektur; in Indonesian: Dipl.-Ing. Arsitek). Most of these graduates returned to Indonesia. At that time, the country sought independent forms of built expression to represent a modern civil society with contemporary structures that would reflect the culture and accommodate the climate. During this highly dynamic period, those who returned soon became influential architects in their homeland. Around a third of the graduates remained in Europe, where they pursued successful architectural careers in Germany, Switzerland, or the Netherlands.
