Qatar Museums official team visited SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat in Klaten, a vocational school which its construction was supported by the Kingdom of Qatar through ROTA (Reach Out to Asia) and facilitated by Titian Foundation in 2009. This special moment has beautifully shown the richness of exquisite Indonesian artworks, certainly supporting cultural initiatives of Qatar Museums through Year of Culture programme showcasing various cultures of partners’ countries, including Indonesia.

This visit was held on Wednesday, 7th of 2023 and attended by Aisha Ghanem Al Atthiya (Director for Cultural Diplomacy and Board Secretary, Qatar Museums Chairperson Office), Faisal Adama (Cultural Diplomacy), Aljazi Al Khayareen (Cultural Diplomacy), Stephanie Cliffe (Director of Communications, Chairperson Office, Qatar Museums), and Anya Kotova (Cultural Diplomacy). Mr. Ali Murtado from the Indonesian Embassy in Doha and also Mrs. Lily Kasoem, Founder of the Titian Foundation were also present at this moment. The school greeted all attendees very warmly. Together with the students, Mr. Sriyanta, Principal of SMKN 1 ROTA, also played gamelan (Javanese traditional music instruments) to enliven the atmosphere.

Then, the Qatar Museums team visited the batik and ceramics workshop in SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat. They also took the time to try making batik and also playing the gamelan. There were several artworks created by students at SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat, including artworks by alumni of SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat who are also alumni of Titian Foundation scholarship recipients, Rekna Indri and Suryanti for batik creations and Sidik Purnomo for ceramics. The audiences were very impressed by the artworks made by the students and alumni of SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat and also by the speech delivered by Sidik Purnomo. Sidik told how his career journey evolved from the lessons he got at SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat.

A little bit of throwback. SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat was built as an effort to improve and expand access to education services in Klaten Regency. The Klaten Regency Government (Education and Culture Office) received support from the Kingdom of Qatar through Reach Out To Asia (ROTA) facilitated by the Titian Foundation. The groundbreaking of SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat took place in 2008 and the school was inaugurated in 2009.

This year the Government of Qatar through Qatar Museums together with the Government of the Republic of Indonesia through the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Indonesian Embassy in Doha are carrying out the Qatar-Indonesia 2023 Year of Culture program. Started in 2012, Qatar Museums under the leadership of Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, developed the annual “Year of Culture” initiative. The Year of Culture is a cultural diplomacy platform that celebrates cultural diversity and deepens mutual understanding between Qatar and other countries.

Source:
Sejarah SMKN 1 ROTA Bayat
Qatar-Indonesia Year of Culture