The ALAM & GURU Exhibition aims to be a prestigious exhibition peculiarly meant to function as an arena for amateur artists, particularly educators, expressing their artworks and skills. This long-awaited exhibition has received positive response among the participants for it provides space and opportunity to the educators community to actively produce artworks and display them to the viewers.

This exhibition offers 67 artworks by the participants among educators which includes lecturers and retirees of local higher learning institutions and from the Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI) Tasikmalaya, as well as teachers and ex-teachers from primary and secondary schools all around the country.

“Nukilan” or “Piece” is a form of creative expression that embodies the agent’s narrative, idea and emotion. It can include poetry, short stories, essays or any form of writing that reflects an individual’s expression. In light of this, artwork is also a creative piece of an artist of visual art. “Sarwajagat” or “Universe” on the other hand refers to a common or universal nature and the universe itself. The terms marry with the exhibition’s theme which is to nurture awareness, understanding, and reflection on the universe within the context of visual art, among visitors and society at large.

The theme “Nukilan Sarwajagat” or “Universe’s Piece” became the foundation for artistic expression in this exhibition that offers the viewers discourses inspired by narrative or intuition from the universe in every part of the world, especially from artists of various backgrounds. Not to mention the love for the universe painted in the artwork expresses a manifestation of love of a teacher or educator towards the world around them. This note echoes the opinion of Sidi Gazalba, who relates to Herbert Read, on the meaning of art as ‘balance art’ and often meant as an effort to create forms that are pleasing. The forms should give an aesthetic contemplation, and the contemplation enables expression and appreciation on the uniqueness and peculiarity of artworks.

To recap, “Nukilan Sarwajagat” is the result of artists’ creative artwork that relates the universe and slots a peculiar meaning or narrative.