Big arse temple thingy being built in Bali

[kingwilly]

Garuda Wisnu Kencana temple site aka GWK

still being built!

A while ago I wandered around the Garuda Wisnu Kencana complex and was strikingly impressed. As a cultural park it is no doubt a centrepiece of tourism in Bali and well worth putting on your itinerary for your next visit.
The Garuda Wisnu Kencana complex, situated on a limestone hill in Jimbaran, is an integrated cultural centre with a 140 meter-high statue as its landmark.
Almost a decade after construction started in 1996, only 15 percent of the park's master plan encompassing 200 hectares in total has been realized due to budget constraints. Garuda Wisnu Kencana is the brainchild of Nyoman Nuart, a Balinese contemporary sculptor, who raised the idea in 1992.
When finished the park will have an entertainment hall, an exhibition centre, villas, a residential complex, theaters and a trade center as well as a spacious parking lot to accommodate visitors.
The complex's 140 by 45;meter monument consists of a 70 meter-tall base and a 70 meter-tall statue of the Hindu deity Wisnu astride the mythical bird Garuda. When it is fully realized the Garuda Wisnu statue will be the tallest statue in Southeast Asia.
As of today the artist has only completed Wisnu's torso and Garuda's head.
The statue is to symbolize a harmonious relationship between human beings and the natural environment as well as the spiritual life of the Balinese people. Although the project still has a long way to go it has been open to the public since 2000 drawing in a crowd of about 500 visitors daily.

this is some of the landscaping,





with bus in the pic for scale



this is the model of the finished sculpture


here, he is the garuda bird head, with CMN in the pic for scale





and this is wisnu who will sit on the garuda's back

[kingwilly]

The 15-hectare GWK cultural park is expected to be completed by the end of 2002, and is located at Ungasan hill, Jimbaran, Bali.

[kingwilly]

hmmm, wikipedia not much help, should i offer my services? in writing i mean?

Mandala Garuda Wisnu Kencana,

or Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) is a private cultural park on the Bukit Peninsula at the southern end of the island of Bali in Indonesia. Bukit is a limestone plateau with Uluwatu to the west and Nusa Dua to the eastern.


Garuda, King of Birds, and his mount


It is devoted to the Hindu god Vishnu, and his mount, Garuda, the mythical bird who is his companion.

Currently, the statue of Vishnu is 23 m high, although the original plan was for a 146 meter gold plated Vishnu riding Garuda on top of an 11 storey entertainment complex. The idea was not without controversy, and religious authorities on the island complained that its massive size might disrupt the spiritual balance of the island, and that its commercial nature was inappropriate.

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[kingwilly]

this indo travel blog has a lot more info...

Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park: Jimbaran, Bali | Indonesia Logue

The 50 or so visitors milling around the 20-hectare Garuda Winsu Kencana cultural park in Jimbaran looked small in comparison to their surroundings. “It’s like visiting a cemetery,” said a young girl watching the sunset from the park, which sits on a hill south of Denpasar.
The beautiful and serene park, overlooking Jimbaran Bay, was originally meant to be the best cultural park in Indonesia, and maybe, one day, the world.

But now it is just another remnant of the New Order regime, part of an ambition to build world-class landmarks to compete with iconic structures like the Statue of Liberty in New York.
Under the auspices of Soeharto, local artist I Nyoman Nuarta was commissioned to create a huge statue of Wisnu, the god of creation, sitting on Garuda, the mythical bird that carries him, with a final height greater than that of the Statue of Liberty.

The park was also to be equipped with a performance center with 7,500 seats, and ampitheather, a street theater, galleries, restaurants and other artistic attractions.
Problems began to emerge almost as soon as construction started in 1997, with the budget ballooning to hundreds of billions of rupiah.

The park was initially the idea of the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Foundation, a grouping that included then minister of tourism and telecommunications Joop Ave, then mining and energy minister IB Sudjana, along with Nuarta and several other influential individuals and businessmen close to Soeharto.

It was to be built in the rocky and hilly area of Jimbaran, which present new logistical problems. The hills had to be cut flat to create the area required for the statue, which is still not finished today. Only the head and torso of Wisnu have been completed.

Land clearing was also an early problem. A 250-hectare plot of land, 100 hectares of which belonged to Badung regency, and the rest to residents, was required. Ten years later, there are still disputes over the matter.

“The clearing program with the local residents has not yet been solved properly,” said Anak Agung Ngurah Rai Riauadi, the park’s public relations manager.
Management of the park’s construction was not effective because so many people shared their ideas and wanted to see them put in place, “which were of course very difficult to accommodate,” he added.

The monetary, social and political crises between l997 and l998 worsened the situation. The fall of the Soeharto administration badly affected the project badly.
Today, only 20 percent of the original project has been completed, and construction was halted entirely in September 2004.
Earlier this year, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised to fins investors to continue the project.
“I promise to you that we will finish the project. It is the pride of the nation,” the President said in a speech.

I Made Mangku Pastika, former head of the Bali Police, was then appointed chairman of the foundation, while Edi Sukamto, owner of the Kuta Galeria Shopping center, was made the park’s director.
“We will continue building the park in May 2008 to commemorate National Awakening Day,” said Mangku Pastika.
However, money will always be a lingering problem for the project. Only a very few investors are eager to invest in cultural projects.

Creative and innovative ideas are needed to enliven the park with various cultural activities, while business activities are needed to make shoppers comfortable.
“It is very sad to enter an empty gallery with no art objects and visitors,” said Anna, a visitor and art student.
Anton Muhajir

[Marmite the Dog]

in writing i mean?

Can you write, then?

[kingwilly]

Can you write, then?

Oh yes. Quite well, actually.

[Khun Custard]

I think the project was started in 1996-7 and came to an abrupt halt on the 14th of May 1998 when the Rp collapsed along with the government.

Interesting, if you study the surrounding infrastructure it looks as if it was destined to become a casino - Tommy Soharto was no fool!!!

If I had the money 20 years ago (and a Bali Bride) , I would have built a house in that area with views overlooking the Bay and airport - Rama's own country!!