In about 1984 - 5 there was an exhibition of keris art held at the ASKI (Akademi Seni Karawitan Indonesia), in Surakarta. This institution later became the STSI, and then the ISI. All three were/are institutions for the teaching of Indonesian art.
A faculty of keris was created and the first people to attend this faculty of keris were Bagio, Bandi, Kamdi, Widodo, Yanto, Yantono. These people were known colloquially as the "Anak-Anak ASKI".
The driving force behind the formation of this keris faculty was Panembahan Harjonegoro (he had not yet been raised to the rank of panembahan at this time).Harjonegoro left this earth a few years ago, but for a very extended period he was widely recognised as the foremost connoisseur of Indonesian art.
The Anak-Anak ASKI had produced a number of keris that were very extreme interpretations of the form, they had approached the keris as an art form and had created objects that had the overall form of a keris but lacked the refinements of traditional form.
I was in the company of Harjonegoro when he saw these creations of the people whom it was hoped would become the new generation of Surakarta keris makers.
His comment was:-
"Yes, these are art, but are they keris?"
If the keris is approached as an art form then it is probably legitimate to produce objects of art in a keris-like form.
However, one is forced to question whether the people who produce these artistic keris-like objects have any idea at all of their heritage and the place of the keris in that heritage.
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