On 21 Jun 2024, we held the fifth event of the project LEARNING FROM MANGUNWIJAYA. Dr. Revianto B. Santosa, M. Arch., Universitas Islam Indonesia, gave give a deep insight into Wastu Citra, Yusuf Bilyarta Mangunwijaya’s best-known architectural book.

An Indonesian priest, writer, political activist, and architect, Yusuf Bilyarta Mangunwijaya studied architecture at RWTH Aachen University in West Germany from 1960 to 1966, after which he returned to Indonesia. In his architectural projects, he sought to translate the universal principles of modernism into an authentic, indigenous expression. He can be seen as a forerunner in collaborative and sustainable architecture that responded specifically to the needs of the local environment.

Mangunwijaya received the Aga Khan Award in 1992 for his Kali Code River Redevelopment Project in Yogyakarta (1980–1985). In 1995, he was awarded the Ruth & Ralph Erskine Award in Sweden in recognition of his commitment to serving underprivileged sections of the population.

Besides his work as an architect, priest, and activist, Mangunwijaya was active as a writer, and authored countless newspaper articles, essays, short stories, and novels. Following his teaching career at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, he wrote the book Wastu Citra, regarded as one of Indonesia’s most significant works of modern architectural theory.

In his lecture, Dr. Revianto B. Santosa, M. Arch., Universitas Islam Indonesia, gav a deep insight into Wastu Citra.

The session was moderated by Abdul Robbi Maghzaya, M.Sc., Universitas Islam Indonesia.

The lecture was part of the workshop programme hosted by the Department of Architecture, Universitas Islam Indonesia, Yogyakarta.