Dialectics Of Surakarta Society Perception Of Murals At Gatot Subroto Street, Surakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

The present study captured people's perception of murals at Gatot Subroto street (Gatsu), Surakarta, Indonesia. On the one hand, murals at Gatsu were viewed as attractive works since they presented positive expressions and did not contain any criticism. Moreover, they were viewed as capable of enlivening a creative urban atmosphere. On the other hand, some people viewed that these murals also represent an irony as murals are supposed to be the means for lower-class people to voice their criticism and protest and be utterly free from the government's intervention. This study finds it necessary further to explore the Surakarta people's perception of these works. This qualitative study was expected to capture the people's perception of the murals and how murals can influence people's views in this era. To this end, interviews, observation, and literature studies were conducted. Hegel's dialectics was applied to obtain the middle alternative for the contradictive views.