Batik

Batik is a dyeing technique using wax resist. The term is also used to describe patterned textiles created with that technique. Batik is made by drawing or stamping wax on a cloth to prevent colour absorption during the dyeing process. This creates a patterned negative when the wax is removed from the dyed cloth. Artisans may create intricate coloured patterns with multiple cycles of wax application and dyeing. Patterns and motifs vary widely even within countries. Some patterns hold symbolic significance and are used only in certain occasions, while others were created to satisfy market demand and fashion trends.

Resist dyeing using wax has been practised since ancient times, and it is attested in several world cultures, such as Egypt, southern China (especially among hilltribes like the Miao, Bouyei, and Gejia peoples), India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, and Sri Lanka. The technique developed in Indonesia (especially in Java) is among the most sophisticated, although its antiquity is difficult to determine. It first became widely known outside of Southeast Asia when it was described in the 1817 History of Java, leading to significant collecting efforts and scholarly studies of the tradition and crafts. Javanese batik was subject to several innovations in the 19th to early-20th centuries, such as the use of stamp printing of wax to increase productivity. Many workshops and artisans are active today, creating a wide range of products and influencing other textile traditions and artists.

Etymology

The English word batik is borrowed from Javanese Template:Lang (Javanese script: Template:Lang, Pegon: Template:Lang).Template:Efn<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> English dictionaries tend to define batik as a general dyeing technique,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Batik">Template:Cite web</ref> meaning that cloths with similar methods of production but culturally unrelated to Javanese batik may be labelled as batik in English.Template:Efn Robert Blust traces the Javanese word as a reflex of Proto-Austronesian Template:Lang and its doublet Template:Lang which means decorations and patterns in general.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Efn In Java, the word is only attested in sources post dating the Hindu–Buddhist period, from the 16th century onward.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Efn Outside of Java, the word first appears in a 1641 merchant ship's bill of lading as Template:Lang.Template:Sfn The term and technique came to wider public notice beyond Southeast Asia following Thomas Stamford Raffles's description of batik process in his 1817 book The History of Java.Template:Sfn Colonial era Dutch sources record the word in various spellings, such as Template:Lang, Template:Lang, Template:Lang, and Template:Lang.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Ancient to early modern periods

• Ancient pieces and representation of Resist dyeing using wax
• Fragment of dyed textile from Niya (Tarim Basin), China, 3rd to early 4th century
  Fragment of dyed textile from Niya (Tarim Basin), China, 3rd to early 4th century
• Fragment of hanging with Biblical scenes, from Byzantine period Egypt, early 6th century
  Fragment of hanging with Biblical scenes, from Byzantine period Egypt, early 6th century
• Ceremonial banner from India, possibly 14th century
  Ceremonial banner from India, possibly 14th century

Batik-like resist dyeing is an ancient art form. It existed in Egypt in the 4th century BC, where it was used to wrap mummies; linen was soaked in wax, and scratched using a stylus. It continued to be used to the medieval Byzantine era, although surviving pieces are rare.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In Asia, the technique is attested in India, the Tang dynasty in China, and the Nara Period in Japan. In Africa it was practiced by the Yoruba people of Nigeria, as well as by the Soninke and Wolof of Senegal.Template:Sfn

File:Prajnaparamita clothes detail.JPG

Clothing detail of 13th-century East Javanese Prajnaparamita statue, National Museum of Indonesia, Jakarta

The art of batik is highly developed on the island of Java, Indonesia, although the antiquity of the technique is difficult to determine since batik pieces rarely survive long in the region's tropical climate. The Dutch historians G. G. Rouffaer & H. H. Juynboll argue that the technique might have been introduced during the 6th or 7th century from India or Sri Lanka.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The similarities between some traditional batik patterns with clothing details in ancient Hindu-Buddhist statuaries, for example East Javanese Prajnaparamita, has made some authors attribute batik's creation to Java's Hindu-Buddhist period (8th-16th century AD).<ref name="Volkenkunde">Template:Cite web</ref> Some scholars cautioned that mere similarity of pattern is not conclusive of batik, as it could be made by other non-related techniques.Template:Sfn Since the word "batik" is not attested in any pre-Islamic sources, some scholars have taken the view that batik only developed at the end of Java's Hindu-Buddhist period, from the 16th century onward following the demise of Majapahit kingdom.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn However, this view has not taken into account the oldest surviving physical Javanese batik piece, which was only identified in 2022. It is a blue-white valance carbon dated to the 13th or 14th century, which correspond to early Majapahit period. The batik's quality and dating suggest that sophisticated batik techniques already existed at the time, but competed with the more established ikat textiles.Template:Sfn

Batik craft further flourished in the Islamic courts of Java in the following centuries. The development of prominent batik types was partly motivated by the desire to replicate prestigious foreign textiles (such as Indian patola) brought in by the Indian Ocean maritime trade.Template:Sfn When the Dutch East Indies Company began to impose their monopolistic trade practice in 17th century Indonesia, batik cloths was one of the product which stifled their textile sales. Dutch imports of chintz from the Coromandel coast could not compete with locally made batik due to their robust production and high quality.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Modern period

• Modern pieces and representation of batik cloths
• Depiction of early 19th century Javanese citizen wearing batik sarong, from The History of Java
  Depiction of early 19th century Javanese citizen wearing batik sarong, from The History of Java
• Sarong in the Template:Lang "coastal" style from northern Javanese coast, early 20th century
  Sarong in the Template:Lang "coastal" style from northern Javanese coast, early 20th century
• Contemporary inland batik from Solo, Indonesia, with sidha drajat pattern.
  Contemporary inland batik from Solo, Indonesia, with sidha drajat pattern.
• Waxprint fabrics in Togo, a modern African adaption of Javanese batik
  Waxprint fabrics in Togo, a modern African adaption of Javanese batik

Batik technique became more widely known (particularly by Europeans outside of southeast Asia) when the Javanese version was described in The History of Java, starting the collecting and scholarly interest in batik traditions. In 1873 the Dutch merchant Elie Van Rijckevorsel gave the pieces he collected during a trip to Indonesia to the ethnographic museum in Rotterdam. Examples were displayed at Paris's Exposition Universelle in 1900. Today the Tropenmuseum houses the biggest collection of Indonesian batik in the Netherlands.Template:Sfn

In the 19th to early 20th century, Dutch Indo–Europeans and Chinese settlers were actively involved in the production and development of Javanese batik, particularly Template:Lang "coastal" style batik in the northern coast of Java. Scholars such as J.E. Jasper and Mas Pirngadie published books extensively documenting existing batik patterns.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> These in turn were used by Dutch and Chinese artisans to develop new patterns which blended several cultural influences, and who also introduced innovations such as Template:Lang (copper block stamps) to mass-produce batiks and synthetic dyes which allow brighter colours. Several prominent batik ateliers appeared, such as Eliza van Zuylen (1863–1947) and Oey Soe Tjoen (1901–1975),Template:Sfn and their products catered to a wide audience in the Malay archipelago (encompassing modern Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore). Batik skirts and sarongs for example were widely worn by indigenous, Chinese, and European women of the region, paired with the ubiquitous kebaya shirt. Batik was also used for more specialized applications, such as peranakan altar cloth called Template:Lang (Template:Zh).Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

It is in this time period as well that the Javanese batik production spread overseas. In Subsaharan Africa, Javanese batik was introduced in the 19th century by Dutch and English merchants. It was subsequently modified by local artisans with larger motifs, thicker lines, and more colours into what is now known as African wax prints. Modern West African versions also use cassava starch, rice paste, or mud as a resist.<ref name="BGAfrica">Template:Cite web</ref> In the 1920s, Javanese batik makers migrating to the eastern coast of Malay Peninsula introduced batik production using stamp blocks.Template:Sfn

Many traditional ateliers in Java collapsed immediately following the Second World War and Indonesian wars of independence,Template:Sfn but many workshops and artisans are still active today creating a wide range of products. They still continue to influence a number of textile traditions and artists. In the 1970s for example, batik was introduced to Australia, where aboriginal artists at Ernabella have developed it as their own craft.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The works of the English artist Thetis Blacker were influenced by Indonesian batik; she had worked in Yogyakarta's Batik Research Institute and had travelled in Bali.<ref name="independent">Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref>

Techniques

Production begins by washing the base cloth,Template:Efn soaking it, and beating it with a large mallet. Patterns are sketched with pencil and redrawn using hot wax, usually made from a mixture of paraffin or beeswax, sometimes mixed with plant resins. The wax functions as a dye-resist which prevent colour absorption during the dyeing process. This creates a patterned negative when the wax is removed from the dyed cloth.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Using this mechanism, artisans may create intricate coloured patterns with multiple cycles of wax application and dyeing.

File:Resist dyeing.svg

Principle of resist dyeing used in batik: a wax negative is created, enabling an area of any desired shape to be coloured.

The wax can be applied with a variety of tools, including writing with a pen-like Template:Lang tool, printing with a Template:Lang, or painting with a brush.Template:Sfn The canting is the most basic and traditional tool, creating what is known as "written batik" (Template:Lang). It allows the creation of very fine, minute patterns but the process is very labour-intensive. Stamped batik (Template:Lang) allows more efficient production for larger quantities at the expense of detail.<ref name=UNESCO>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn

Written batik

Written batik or Template:Lang (Javanese script: ꦧꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠꦸꦭꦶꦱ꧀; Pegon: باتيق توليس) is made by writing molten wax on the cloth with a pen-like instrument called a Template:Lang (Template:IPA, old spelling Template:Lang). It is a small copper reservoir with a spout on a wooden handle. The reservoir holds the resist which flows through the spout, creating dots and lines as it moves. The cloth is then dipped in a dye-bath, and left to dry. The resist is removed by boiling or scraping the cloth. The areas treated with resist keep their original colour; when the resist is removed the contrast between the dyed and undyed areas forms the pattern. The process is repeated as many times as the number of colours desired.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

• Written batik using Template:Lang
• A Template:Lang in use to draw a resist pattern in molten wax
  A Template:Lang in use to draw a resist pattern in molten wax
• Written batik, drawing patterns with wax using Template:Lang in Java
  Written batik, drawing patterns with wax using Template:Lang in Java
• A Template:Lang variant called ladao used by the Miao people of Guizhou
  A Template:Lang variant called ladao used by the Miao people of Guizhou
• A Template:Lang variant used in Sri Lanka for thick outlines
  A Template:Lang variant used in Sri Lanka for thick outlines

Stamped batik

Stamped batik or Template:Lang (Javanese script: ꦧꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦕꦥ꧀; Pegon: باتيق چڤ) is batik whose manufacturing process uses a Template:Lang (Template:IPA; old spelling Template:Lang) stamp with carved motifs to print an area of the cloth with the resist. The material of the stamp can vary. Medieval Indian stamps tend to use wood. Modern Javanese stamps are made of copper strips and wires, the manufacture of which is a highly skilled process. The rest of the dyeing process is the same as for written batik. The replacement of the Template:Lang with the Template:Lang reduces the effort needed to make a batik cloth, and hence the cost, but still requires skill.<ref name="Ajie 2018">Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn

• Stamped batik using Template:Lang
• A handmade Javanese Template:Lang for stamping patterns, made of copper strips and wires
  A handmade Javanese Template:Lang for stamping patterns, made of copper strips and wires
• Hand-stamping batik using a Template:Lang in Java
  Hand-stamping batik using a Template:Lang in Java
• Hand-stamping batik using a Template:Lang tool in a Bamako workshop, Mali
  Hand-stamping batik using a Template:Lang tool in a Bamako workshop, Mali

Painted batik

Painted batik or Template:Lang (Javanese script: ꦧꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦭꦸꦏꦶꦱ꧀; Pegon: باتيق لوكيس) is a technique of making batik by painting (with or without a template) on a white cloth using a combination of tools such as the Template:Lang, brush, cotton, or sticks to apply the resist, according to the painter. Brush application is especially useful to cover large areas of a cloth. Batik painting is a development of traditional batik art, producing contemporary (free) motifs or patterns. It may use more colours that are traditional in written batik.<ref name="Nafiun">Template:Cite web</ref>

• Painted batik using brushes
• A craftwoman in Yogyakarta making a Rangda wax motif using a brush.
  A craftwoman in Yogyakarta making a Rangda wax motif using a brush.
• Craftswoman brush painting with wax in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Note the large cover area of the wax
  Craftswoman brush painting with wax in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Note the large cover area of the wax

Dyeing

The dyeing process is similar regardless of the wax application technique. Waxed cloths are dipped in vats of dye according to the desired colour. Wax is then scraped off or removed by boiling water, leaving a patterned negative on the cloth. The wax application and dyeing are repeated as necessary. Before the invention of synthetic dyes, dyeing is one of the more technically complicated production stages, for several reasons. Natural dyes, mostly vegetal, do not always produce consistent colours between batches. Dyers must take into account how different dye shades interact when cloths go through multiple stages of dyeing with different colours. Many dyers use proprietary dye recipes for this reason, using locally sourced plant materials. Natural dyes also take longer to produce deep shades of colour, extending the dyeing process.Template:Sfn Synthetic dyes greatly simplify the process, but produce chemical waste that may be harmful for the environment. Eco-friendliness is one reason some batik producers opt to use natural dyes, despite the availability of synthetic alternatives.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Patterns and motifs

The patterns of batik textiles are particular to the time, place, and culture of their producers. In textile scholarship, most studies have focused on Indonesian batik patterns, as these drew from a wide range of cultural influences and are often symbolically rich. Some patterns are said to have loaded meanings and deep philosophies, with their use reserved for special occasions or groups of peoples (e.g. nobles, royalties).Template:Sfn However, some scholars have cautioned that existing literature on Indonesian textiles over-romanticises and exoticises the purported meanings behind relatively mundane patterns.Template:Sfn Some batik patterns (even if they are technically demanding and intricate) were created to satisfy market demand and fashion trends.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Cultural influences on Indonesian batik patterns<ref name="SMH">Template:Cite web</ref>

Cultural influences	Batik patterns	Geographic locations	Sample
Native Indonesian	Template:Lang (combination of motifs) and other decorative motifs such as of Javanese, Dayak, Batak, Papuan, Riau Malay.	Respective areas with their own patterns	File:Batik pattern - kawung.jpg
Hindu–Buddhist	Template:Lang or Template:Lang	Java	File:Batik pattern - garuda.jpg
Islamic	Template:Lang or Arabic calligraphy, Template:Lang	Bengkulu, Cirebon, Jambi	File:Batik Besurek Bengkulu.jpg
Chinese	Template:Lang (Chinese phoenix), Template:Lang (Chinese dragon), Template:Lang (Chinese-style cloud), Template:Lang	Template:Ill, Cirebon, Pekalongan, Tasikmalaya, Ciamis	File:Batik pattern - qilin.jpg
Indian	Template:Lang, peacock, elephant	Cirebon, Garut, Pekalongan, Madura	File:Batik pattern - bangau.jpg
European (colonial era)	Template:Lang (floral bouquet), European fairytale, colonial images such as house, horses, carriage, bicycle and European-dressed people	Java	File:Batik pattern - buketan.jpg
Japanese	Template:Lang, Template:Lang, chrysanthemum, butterfly	Java	File:Batik pattern - sakura.jpg

Cultures

Africa

African wax prints were introduced during the colonial era, through the Dutch textile industry's effort to imitate the batik-making process. The imitation was not successful in Indonesian market, but was welcomed in West and Central Africa.Template:Sfn<ref name="kroese">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="lagamma">Template:Cite book</ref> Nelson Mandela was a noted wearer of Template:Lang during his lifetime. Mandela regularly wore patterned loose-fitting shirt to many business and political meetings during 1994–1999 and after his tenure as President of South Africa, subsequently dubbed as a Madiba shirt based on Mandela's Xhosa clan name.Template:Sfn There are many who claim the Madiba shirt's invention. According to Yusuf Surtee, a clothing-store owner who supplied Mandela with outfits for decades, the Madiba design is based on Mandela's request for a shirt similar to Indonesian president Suharto's Template:Lang attire.Template:Sfn

China

File:Fabric - Yunnan Nationalities Museum - DSC04148 (cropped).JPG

Miao baby-carrying quilt

Batik is made by ethnic peoples in the South-West of China, and in neighbouring countries including Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, especially by hill tribes. The technique requires a ladao knife with two copper triangles mounted in a bamboo handle. Molten wax is held between the triangles, and can then be dripped from the knife to form a resist pattern on the cloth. Some ladao knives have more than two triangles, holding more wax and creating thicker lines.Template:Sfn The Miao, Bouyei and Gejia people use a dye resist method for some of their traditional costumes. Almost all the Miao decorate hemp and cotton by applying hot wax, and then dipping the cloth in an indigo dye. The cloth is then used for skirts, panels on jackets, aprons and baby carriers. Like the Javanese, their traditional patterns contain symbolism; the patterns include the dragon, phoenix, and flowers.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

India

Indians use resist-dyeing with cotton fabrics. Initially, wax and even rice starch were used for printing on fabrics. Until recently Template:Lang was made only for dresses and tailored garments, but modern Template:Lang is applied in numerous items, such as murals, wall hangings, paintings, household linen, and scarves, with livelier and brighter patterns. Contemporary Template:Lang making in India is done by the deaf women of Delhi, who are fluent in Indian Sign Language and work in other vocational programs.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Indonesia

• Batik as worn in Indonesia
• Dancers of Bedhaya, a royal dance from the palace of Surakarta, wearing costume with prescribed batik patterns
  Dancers of Bedhaya, a royal dance from the palace of Surakarta, wearing costume with prescribed batik patterns
• Batik sarongs with a variety of patterns worn freely according to individual taste
  Batik sarongs with a variety of patterns worn freely according to individual taste

Batik plays multiple roles in the culture of Indonesia, especially in Javanese culture. The wax resist-dyeing technique has been used for centuries in Java, where certain motifs had symbolic meaning and prescribed use, indicating a person's level in society.<ref name="unnes.ac.id">Template:Cite journal</ref> It is an essential component in the attires of Javanese royal palaces,<ref name="Government of West Java">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> worn by monarchs, nobilities, abdi (palace staff), guards, and dancers.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn On the other hand, there are non-ceremonial batik which has long been treated as a trade commodity, with usage that are determined by taste, fashion, and affordability. Today in Indonesia, batik pattern is commonly seen on shirts, dresses, and other everyday attire.<ref name="SMH"/>Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn

On 2 October 2009, UNESCO recognized written batik (Template:Lang) and stamped batik (Template:Lang) as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity from Indonesia.<ref name=UNESCO/> Since then, Indonesia has celebrated a Batik Day (Template:Lang) annually on 2 October. In the same year, UNESCO recognized education and training in Indonesian Batik as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Malaysia

File:Malaysian Batik.jpg

Craftsman in Malaysia creating a typical floral motif with light colouring

Trade relations between the Malay kingdoms in Sumatra and Malay peninsula with Javanese coastal cities have thrived since the 13th century. The northern coastal batik-producing areas of Java (Cirebon, Lasem, Tuban, and Madura) have influenced Jambi batik,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which, along with Javanese batik, subsequently influenced the craft in the Malay Peninsula.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Later, in the 1920s, a new influx of Javanese batik makers introduced stamped batik to the peninsula.Template:Sfn The batik industry today provides significant benefit to the Malaysian economy, and the Malaysian government supports efforts to promote their own artisans and their products abroad.Template:Sfn

Fiona Kerlogue, of the Horniman museum, noted several differences between Malaysian batik and traditional Indonesian batik. Malaysian batik patterns tend to be larger and simpler, making only occasional use of the Template:Lang for intricate patterns. They rely heavily on brush painting to apply colours to fabrics. The colours are usually lighter and more vibrant than the deep-coloured Javanese batik popular in Indonesia. The most popular motifs are leaves and flowers; Malaysian batik often displays plants and flowers to avoid the interpretation of human and animal images as idolatry, in accordance with local Islamic doctrine.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Despite these differences, confusion between Malaysian and Indonesian batik has led to some disputes in the Indonesia-Malaysia bilateral relations.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn

Sri Lanka

Over the past century, Template:Lang making in Sri Lanka has become firmly established. The Template:Lang industry in Sri Lanka is a small scale industry which can employ individual design talent. It mainly deals with foreign customers for profit. In the 21st century, it has become the most visible of the island's crafts; galleries and factories, large and small, have sprung up in many tourist areas. For example, rows of small batik stalls can be found all along Hikkaduwa's Galle Road strip. Mahawewa, on the other hand, is famous for its Template:Lang factories.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=SundayObserver>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

• Bagh print
• Balinese textiles
• Folk costume
• Tenun
• Ikat
• Malong
• National costume of Indonesia
• Screen printing
• Songket
• Textile printing
• T'nalak
• Tsutsugaki, Japanese resist-dyeing using starch, not wax

Sources

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External links

• Template:Commons category-inline
• UNESCO: Indonesian Batik, Representative of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity – 2009
• Early Indonesian textiles from three island cultures: Sumba, Toraja, Lampung, exhibition catalogue from Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries
• Batik, the Traditional Fabric of Indonesia, an article about batik from Living in Indonesia
• iWareBatik |Indonesian Batik Textile Heritage A website devoted to Batik, Indonesian Textile enlisted by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. It links Batik production with Tourism and Fashion in Indonesia
• Batiks, and how to make them (1919) by Pieter Mijer through New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, Inc.