Since colonial times, Bali has been the target of a branding campaign focused on ensuring that all aspects of the island can be easily and quickly packaged for consumption. Among the most exploited resources have been those described by Indonesian artists as the so-called Mooi Indië trifecta: rice paddies, palm trees, and volcanoes.
Attracted by exotic images of earthly paradise, the first jetsetters began arriving in droves at the beginning of the 20th century, at the same time that the Balinese were forced to explain to their colonizers how to differentiate between religion, culture, and tradition –– concepts that previously did not exist in the Balinese vocabulary.
How to distinguish what was previously intimately intertwined? What is sacred and what is secular?
What was once reserved for temples and sacred ceremonies is now happily displayed to tourist groups or sold on an industrial scale in markets. The intricate subak system, fundamental to the functioning of the very rice fields acclaimed worldwide, has been progressively eroded in the name of progress and accelerated economic growth.
