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Indonesian Batik
| Article
# : |
10503 |
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Section : |
THE ARTS
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| Issue
Date : |
2 / 1986 |
2,035 Words |
| Author
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Marian H. Tatu
Marian H. Tatu is a writer and editor who lived fifteen years
in Southeast Asia with her diplomat husband. Currently living
in Washington, D.C., she frequently writes about the leisure
arts and travel. |
Imagine a fabric so artistically pleasing in design, so imbued with meaning, so adaptable that it can be worn, appropriately, to every occasion by anyone--young or old, male or female--or one so unique and beautiful that it is hung as fine art in a gallery.
In Indonesia, the magic material that lends itself to everything from wedding apparel to wall hangings, haute couture to bedcovers, is batik.
Considered an art form of great antiquity, batik is thought to be over a thousand years old. Its origins have been much debated. But if experts still do not agree where batik came from--China, India, Egypt, and Turkey are all considered possible sources--they do agree that the art of batik reached its highest form and finest hour in Central Java.
Today, Iwan Tirta is one of Indonesia's most recognized batik artists and designers. His designer collections of ready-made clothes are well-known, as are his boutiques, glitzy fashion shows, and fabric designs. He is often credited with helping to save Indonesia's batik industry. Even his critics admit he has worked for the past twenty-five years to bring Indonesian batik to the attention of the rest of the world.
An unlikely candidate for the distinction of batik savior, Mr. Tirta had originally studied law at the London School of Economics and Yale Law School. When he returned to Indonesia, it was supposed he would follow in the foot-steps of his father--a supreme court justice. But, to his friends' surprise and his family's dismay, Mr. Tirta became interested in the world of fashion, design, and art.
"It was quite a departure, and the family was horrified," Mr. Tirta remembers. "Of course, today…," he trails off with a small, satisfied smile.
His mother had a collection of old batiks. Intrigued, he began to study them, researching their designs and cataloguing them. He is fond of saying he rediscovered his heritage through this interest in the art and process of batik.
When people speak of fine batik, they are referring to batik tulis, or batik that is hand-drawn and hand-stenciled in molten wax and resist-dyed. Many believe, and Mr. Tirta is among them, that this type of batik is an art form that is becoming extinct. Its production is time consuming and tedious, requiring infinite
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