While on holiday, let's play at Kiaracondong Ceramics Village!

Until now, it is the third generation that manages this unique clay craft. Dikdik, the name of the owner of the Kiaracondong ceramic setra, tells the story of the ups and downs of his business conditions.

"In the past, there were 30 craftsmen here. But now there is only one remaining, I am alone. Maybe because we are weak in competition or don't understand the production," said Dikdik.

In a month, he can produce 15 cubic ceramic products. Ranging from large jars to small souvenirs.

"The large size per day is about 8 pieces. While the small diameter is 4 pieces. But there are many more small rooms filled with even smaller ones," he said.

The interesting thing during his journey in the world of pottery was during the pandemic. At a time when most businesses laid off their workers and even went out of business, Dikdik's ceramics business took off rapidly.

The demand for ceramics was booming. Until there is no stock of goods in the production house. In fact, ceramics that are slightly defective are still being sold.

"Maybe it was because during the pandemic that people were looking for other activities. One of them became a lot of people who like to plant. That's why the sales of pots are increasing. This has been my whole life in the ceramics business, this has never been the case," he said.

He said that in the past, the most requests were orders for jars and souvenirs. However, now there are many requests for flower pots with a trending motif in the form of flowers.

"There are those who order from Brazil. They buy directly here. Then we send the goods in containers," he said.

For sales are still done offline or in store windows.

"We are still offline. If you are online, you are assisted by relatives," he explained.

In addition, the unique thing about this ceramic setra is the oven that he made himself. Not many people can manufacture oven stoves.

"I can make a stove myself. It takes Rp. 200 million to make a stove," he admits.

According to him, there is no difficult process in making pottery. However, the biggest obstacles are weather and raw materials.

"If the weather is sunny, we can dry it for a week. If not, it can take 2-3 weeks. If the raw materials are bad, it will have an impact on the results," he said.

Meanwhile, the Secretary of the Kiaracondong District Head, Amin Jarkasih stated, his party would continue to support the ceramic craftsmen in Kiaracondong.

"The sub-district government will continue to push to preserve this culture. There is only one survivor left to continue ceramic art," said Amin.

In fact, the Governor of West Java, Ridwan Kamil, also asked Dikdik to continue producing at Kiaracondong. To become a characteristic and can be used as an art tourism location.

"Even though it's been a long time, we can bring it back to life. Students from ITB also often come here. They learn ceramic art directly at our setra," he added. (din)**

Head of the Bandung City Communication and Informatics Agency

Yayan A. Brilyana