Winner announced - Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2012 Poster Competition

UBUD WRITERS & READERS FESTIVAL 3-7 October 2012

The theme of the UWRF 2012 is Bumi Manusia: This Earth of Mankind, taken from the title of one of the great Indonesian writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer's epic works.

The theme proved an inspirational stimulus to artists spread across Indonesia while entries were also received from Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Canada. A record number of 46 beautifully conceived and detailed submissions were recorded and the interpretations of the theme were diverse and moving. Said Janet de Neefe "Making decisions of this kind always involves passionate debate and energetic argument. I was aided in this process by Cuban illustrator and beloved guest of the UWRF 2011 program, Edel Rodriguez and our own Executive Producer, Jane Fuller. Happily, the decision was unanimous and I am overjoyed to announce that the winner of the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2012 Poster Design Competition is Torro (ruang imagi). We thank all the brilliant artists and designers who opened their hearts and their imaginations to embrace our theme. We fell in love with every page turned, with every vision shared, but ultimately there was one that took or breath away." If the name ruang imagi seems familiar, it may well be because he was the winner of the 2011 competition and the lyrical and compelling graphic created for that event will remain as the hero image in 2012. Now it will be joined by a figure of surpassing   beauty and grace, combining intricate traditional motifs with an intensity of colour and at the centre, the book, the symbol of storytelling that lies at the heart of Pramoedya's iconic work.
Torro is a 27 year old illustrator/graphic designer from Bantul , Jogjakarta. He studied Visual Communication in Institut Seni Indonesia, Jogjakarta. He and his wife are on the way to make their dream into reality, making an art foundation for children in his hometown. His haunting submission captures the gaze of the viewer. Torro describes his artwork as Nyai Ontosoroh's face, a character from Pramoedya Ananta Toer's book, This Earth of Mankind. The winning design may be viewed via the UWRF's Facebook and Twitter accounts and the posters will dominate Ubud's streetscape from August 2012 The winning design may be viewed via the UWRF's Facebook and Twitter accounts and the posters will dominate Ubud's streetscape from August 2012.