I have always wanted to write about Batik. Batik is a wax-resist dyeing technique used on textiles. Most of Javanese patterns labor through the tedious and detailed work of “dotting”, thus the name “batik,” which in Indonesian means “to dot”. (Java is one of Indonesia’s province).
On Oct. 2, 2009 UNESCO~ United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, has announced the recognition of batik as a unique hallmark of Indonesian heritage. Batik is finally listed by the world cultural body as Indonesian cultural heritage after a long and complex process of UNESCO's Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Indonesia experienced the same schemes when Keris, a Javanese traditional dagger, was added in 2003 and when Wayang, a Javanese leather shadow puppet, was added to the list in 2005.
Batik itself is a cultural artifact with a wide spectrum of meanings. The Javanese traditional batiks, as quoted from Wikipedia, “have designs meant to depict the three major Hindu gods (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva) in the traditional colors of indigo, dark brown and white. The patterns of batiks not only signify religious meaning, but sometimes indicate rank, as certain nobility are classified by certain batik designs. As a general rule, wider stripes or wavy lines of greater width indicated higher rank. This is why, during Javanese ceremonies, it's never difficult to tell the royal lineage of a person simply by observing the batik cloth he or she wears.”
My look on today? This lovely Batik cardi on top of my plain black t-shirt and short jeans,
While Java was deeply influenced by the Hindu culture, other regions of Indonesia have unique patterns of batik from different influences. Some popular patterns are inspired by flowers, nature, animals, folklore or people. Majority of Indonesia's 33 provinces have their own unique patterns of batik, made by hand in a process quite different from the industrialized mass-printing process.
Process of Batik goes like this:
The center of batik artistry is in cities on the island of Java, including Solo, Jogyakarta, Pekalongan or Cirebon. Finely detailed designs are first drawn freehand with a pencil on the fabric. Then hot liquid wax is applied to the designs, to protect the fabric underneath from dyes and create a multi-hued final product.
A Javanese woman applies wax in intricate patterns with a “canting,” a small copper container with a long slender spout. From time to time, she must blow on the tip of the canting to secure the easy flow of the wax.
Areas not slated for coloring are covered with wax. The fabric is then put in a vat of dye. After the fabric is dyed and dried, the wax is removed with hot water, scraped from the portions of the dried material still to be dyed. Next, other areas are waxed over; this is repeated during each phase of the coloring process, up to four or more times, until the overall pattern and effect are achieved.
This other technique is stamping technique, but I don't want to make you all sick and tired and bored to read my post, so I will leave it for next time...
thank you all for stopping by and viewing the post...
xxx
[all the other images were googled]
