Dhidot is a master Wayang Kulit puppet maker who lives in his workshop with his family. Like his father and his father's father before him, he carries on a legacy of craftsmen. Each puppet he makes is unique and takes weeks to months, and his puppets are requested by people all around the world. There is a deeply rooted pride among the performers and makers that has transcended centuries. These are the people keeping this story alive.
Tap by tap, the mallet drives the chisel through the leather.His hand searches the box of chisels while the half-carved puppet waits on the block.
Mallet in one hand, chisel in the other, the leather turns to lace.Dhidot, a master shadow puppet maker, meticulously hammers designs into a new puppet. His knowledge has been passed down for generations, and each puppet takes weeks to months to make.
From above, the pattern emerges one small cut at a time.
Dhidot bends to the leather, mallet raised, the pattern already half cut.He works alone at a small table in the courtyard, the light falling through the woven wall.
Head bowed under his batik headcloth, he strikes the chisel again and again.
Through the leaves, the painter bends over his table of colors.Two puppets hang on the bare wall of an empty room, the door left open.
Painted puppets and their rods lie in a tangle, waiting to be joined.
Sunlight through the bamboo blind stripes the puppets as he sorts them.Dhidot paints a new puppet. Like his father and his father's father before him, he carries on a legacy of craftsmen.
Dhidot works color into the carved leather, pots of paint crowded at his elbow.
The wooden mallet rests on its block between cuts.Every inch of the painted leather is crowded with dragons, fish and flame.
Up close, the gold and the painted petals catch the window light.
Dhidot throws his head back and laughs, the wall behind him hung with wayang paintings.He sits down at the bonang and lets the kettle gongs answer his mallets.
Dhidot plays the gamelan while his wife relaxes in the back groundA scooter parked in the front room, sandals left at the door.
