Ruangrupa's Videozoom: Indonesia at Sala 1 in Rome Preceded Their Documenta 15 Curation

The Indonesian collective ruangrupa, founded in 2000 in Jakarta, was appointed curators of documenta 15 in Kassel in 2022, marking the first time a collective has curated the exhibition. Prior to this, in 2016, ruangrupa collaborated with Sala 1 – Centro Internazionale d’Arte Contemporanea in Rome on the project 'Videozoom: Indonesia', curated by Mahardika Yudha and promoted by Cecilia Bevilacqua. The project featured video works by Ade Darmawan, Anggun Priambodo, Raslene, Otty Widasari, Mohammed Fauzi, and Hafiz, and was initially funded by the Indonesian government, which later withdrew support due to political sensitivities regarding the Suharto era. Mary Angela Schroth, director of Sala 1, explained that the project was part of Sala 1's ongoing Videozoom series, which since 2001 has focused on video art from different countries. The collaboration was the first in Italy for ruangrupa and provided a rare opportunity to view Indonesian video art. Schroth noted that ruangrupa was already known for their work in video art, particularly for organizing the OK. Video – Indonesia Media Arts Festival. After the documenta announcement, Sala 1 reached out to congratulate the collective and offer support.