Preamble
For your interest, I have listed below, other posts on this blogspot that center on the use of Batik to create artworks:
Nothing Is The Same I & II (Els van Baarle, The Netherlands)
Batik ArtCloth from South-East Asia
Batiks from Kintore
Batiks From Warlpiri
Historical Israeli Batik ArtWorks
A History of Javanese Batik - Hindu Influence
A History of Javanese Batik - Hindu Influence [1]
The word 'batik' is thought to be derived from the name of the still older drip technique. The stem of the word 'tik' means 'drop' or 'spot.' Batik as a written word dates back to sources from the 16th century.
The history of Indonesian batik can be traced relatively clearly, especially Javanese batik, which is the most important. Batiks were also worked on Sulawesi (Celebes), throughout the Torajas, in Sumatra in the cities of Jambi and Palembang and on Madura. While the bulk of Sumatra and Madura batik is closely related to Javanese, whereas that of Torajas is not related to Javanese.
Map of South-East Asia.
The Toraja make their own textiles, and hand-woven cloths are an essential part of their traditions. Sometimes local designs are produced on imported cotton fabric. Different types of textiles are used in various rituals. Family groups have sets of sacred cloths, such as scarfs and headdresses as well as wall hangings displayed at ceremonies. Some of the distinct types include sekomandi, sarita, pori lonjong and poté. The traditional symbolic motifs have the wax resist applied by a primitive bamboo container. The Torajas bury their dead in such cloths.
The sekomandi signifies the brotherhood of the villagers. The abstract zigzagging pattern represents the human life journey. These cloths are the largest and most valuable ikats of the Toraja. Now very rare, they were woven only in the villages of Ronkong and Kalumpang and traded south to the Sa'dan Toraja. The sekomandi shrouds are handed down within families, and must be kept separate from other personal objects at home, because of their use as a wrapping for corpses. Recently they are also used as wedding gifts and decorations in marriage ceremonies.
A black and white image of the detail from a shroud (cawat cindako) used by the Torajas of Central Sulawesi. Batiked decorative pieces are inserted in red, white and black striped cloth. The traditional symbolic motifs have the wax resist applied by a primitive bamboo container. The Torajas bury their dead in such cloths.
There are two theories about the origin of Javanese batik. According to the Indologist G.P. Rouffaer, its origin lies on the south coast (Coromandel and Malabar coasts) of India. During the early centuries of the Christian era, there was growing contact between South India and the islands of Southeast Asia, both by the way of trading contacts, and perhaps small scale immigration. Some of these migrants settled in Java. Until the 15th century they exercised great influence there. Their Hindu religion and culture became absorbed by the Javanese population. In this way, according to Rouffaer, a batik process known to the immigrants was accepted into Javanese culture. This occurred around 1200 AD, that is, only in a later period of Hindu influence, and apparently coincided with the import of batik materials by sailors and traders from the Coromandel and Malabar coasts.
A black and white image of a contemporary child-carrying cloth from Tonking in Vietnam is decorated with a large inserted batik piece. The upper part is woven and has pompoms, made of wool sewn on it. The Miao tribe carry their children on their backs in these cloths while walking and working. Batiking such decorative pieces and also the pleated skirts is carried out with a triangular waxed pen. in this method the motifs are built up on one side of the cloth using short wax strokes following a strict pattern. The diagonal lines are always drawn in the same direction, from upper left to lower right. The loose, wooden, underlay, as well as the cloth, is turned ninety degrees after each row. Indigo is used exclusively for the dyeing.
Our knowledge of Batik, which presumably has not changed much in centuries has its source in a report by the French Jesuit priest, Coeurdoux (1742). Iron pegs were fixed in a ball of cotton yarn with a bamboo handle. After the cotton was saturated by dipping into a liquid wax, slight pressure was exerted by the fingers so that the wax ran along the pegs onto the material.
Wax drawing pen from the Coromandel coast of India.
In India it was the men who carried out the drawing onto material and who could only execute rough patterns with this instrument used as a pen. For this reason according to Rouffaer, the Javanese developed the canting (tjanting) for their womenfolk, who could draw extemely fine lines and dots using the canting in the batik method.
In his description of the indian wax decoration techniques used in the art book illustrations, A. Loeber Jr., presumed in 1914 that the positive ornamentation with wax onto paper represents the original form of batik and has its origins in Melanesia.
Melanesia.
From Melanesia this technique is thought to have spread through the Malay-Polynesian tribes and was later taken over again by the people of Asia. The negative wax ornamentation technique is thought to have developed from the positive, where the wax itself is used as a means of design. Here the wax application is removed after the dyeing process. This technique in the art of book illustration is then thought to have led to the much more difficult negative title wax ornmentation technique to batik.
On the other hand, J.E. Jasper, who together with Javanese artist Mas Pirngadi wrote a description of the skilled craft of the island, claimed that the origin of Javanese bakit lay in Egypt or Persia. Originating from these countries it became known in Java as a primitive drip-technique with wax or paste, quite a long time before Hindu culture exercised any influence there. According to Jasper, the decorations and symbolism of the batik motifs were then fully developed by the Hindus. This development took place in palaces of the Hindu or Buddist rulers who reigned from the 7th century A.D. over several kingdoms on Central Java. These residences were the centres for a variety of skills, among them the time-consuming batik process. Servants were called upon to help with the dyeing. In later periods they were charged with the application of the wax. They passed on their acquired skills and knowledge to the village people, so that in time the skills of the court became the craft of the people.
Mengenal Mas Pirngadi, Asisten J.E. Jasper dari Purbalingga (Museum National, Indonesia).
Reference:
[1] M. Spée, Traditional and Modern Batik, Kangaroo Press, Kenthurst (1982).
For your interest, I have listed below, other posts on this blogspot that center on the use of Batik to create artworks:
Nothing Is The Same I & II (Els van Baarle, The Netherlands)
Batik ArtCloth from South-East Asia
Batiks from Kintore
Batiks From Warlpiri
Historical Israeli Batik ArtWorks
A History of Javanese Batik - Hindu Influence
A History of Javanese Batik - Hindu Influence [1]
The word 'batik' is thought to be derived from the name of the still older drip technique. The stem of the word 'tik' means 'drop' or 'spot.' Batik as a written word dates back to sources from the 16th century.
The history of Indonesian batik can be traced relatively clearly, especially Javanese batik, which is the most important. Batiks were also worked on Sulawesi (Celebes), throughout the Torajas, in Sumatra in the cities of Jambi and Palembang and on Madura. While the bulk of Sumatra and Madura batik is closely related to Javanese, whereas that of Torajas is not related to Javanese.
The Toraja make their own textiles, and hand-woven cloths are an essential part of their traditions. Sometimes local designs are produced on imported cotton fabric. Different types of textiles are used in various rituals. Family groups have sets of sacred cloths, such as scarfs and headdresses as well as wall hangings displayed at ceremonies. Some of the distinct types include sekomandi, sarita, pori lonjong and poté. The traditional symbolic motifs have the wax resist applied by a primitive bamboo container. The Torajas bury their dead in such cloths.
There are two theories about the origin of Javanese batik. According to the Indologist G.P. Rouffaer, its origin lies on the south coast (Coromandel and Malabar coasts) of India. During the early centuries of the Christian era, there was growing contact between South India and the islands of Southeast Asia, both by the way of trading contacts, and perhaps small scale immigration. Some of these migrants settled in Java. Until the 15th century they exercised great influence there. Their Hindu religion and culture became absorbed by the Javanese population. In this way, according to Rouffaer, a batik process known to the immigrants was accepted into Javanese culture. This occurred around 1200 AD, that is, only in a later period of Hindu influence, and apparently coincided with the import of batik materials by sailors and traders from the Coromandel and Malabar coasts.
Our knowledge of Batik, which presumably has not changed much in centuries has its source in a report by the French Jesuit priest, Coeurdoux (1742). Iron pegs were fixed in a ball of cotton yarn with a bamboo handle. After the cotton was saturated by dipping into a liquid wax, slight pressure was exerted by the fingers so that the wax ran along the pegs onto the material.
In India it was the men who carried out the drawing onto material and who could only execute rough patterns with this instrument used as a pen. For this reason according to Rouffaer, the Javanese developed the canting (tjanting) for their womenfolk, who could draw extemely fine lines and dots using the canting in the batik method.
In his description of the indian wax decoration techniques used in the art book illustrations, A. Loeber Jr., presumed in 1914 that the positive ornamentation with wax onto paper represents the original form of batik and has its origins in Melanesia.
From Melanesia this technique is thought to have spread through the Malay-Polynesian tribes and was later taken over again by the people of Asia. The negative wax ornamentation technique is thought to have developed from the positive, where the wax itself is used as a means of design. Here the wax application is removed after the dyeing process. This technique in the art of book illustration is then thought to have led to the much more difficult negative title wax ornmentation technique to batik.
On the other hand, J.E. Jasper, who together with Javanese artist Mas Pirngadi wrote a description of the skilled craft of the island, claimed that the origin of Javanese bakit lay in Egypt or Persia. Originating from these countries it became known in Java as a primitive drip-technique with wax or paste, quite a long time before Hindu culture exercised any influence there. According to Jasper, the decorations and symbolism of the batik motifs were then fully developed by the Hindus. This development took place in palaces of the Hindu or Buddist rulers who reigned from the 7th century A.D. over several kingdoms on Central Java. These residences were the centres for a variety of skills, among them the time-consuming batik process. Servants were called upon to help with the dyeing. In later periods they were charged with the application of the wax. They passed on their acquired skills and knowledge to the village people, so that in time the skills of the court became the craft of the people.
Reference:
[1] M. Spée, Traditional and Modern Batik, Kangaroo Press, Kenthurst (1982).
