Batik-Textile

Batik

Batik is a wax resisting dyeing technique applied partly or as a whole in any textile fabric.

According to Oxford Dictionary;
Batik is a noun which means method of printing patterns on fabric using wax(=a solid substance made from fat or oil)on the parts that will not have any colour; a piece of fabric printed in this way.

The batik was first introduced by Javanese(natives of an island called Java in Indonesia).
The Indonesian batik includes deep dark colours with patterns created by canting or stamping patterned copper or such materials.
Canting is a tool that holds the wax.It is used by the batik artist to write or draw motifs on the fabric. Canting has metal holder for the wax and bamboo holder.
Patterns are also made by stamping the patterned copper or such other materials on the fabric.

At present age, Indonesia is the most sophisticated batik producer as they have continued producing batik for generations. The Indonesia batik is recorded as intangible cultural World Heritage.

Batik is a work of art and is recognized world wide. It is very expensive as it is very time consuming to produce and there is a lot of work of hands which means most of the work is done manually.
Batik uses a lot of colours. Batik artists should have proper control on their hands as they need to draw patterns and use wax.
The Indonesian Batik is almost recognized by different fashion sectors. The Batik is sold all over the world and is imported by France, USA, India etc.

The Indonesian Batik includes the patterns motifs of leaves and flowers. Most of the people follow Islamic religion and do not make animal patterns. However, they use butterfly patterns and it is an exception.

Batik was used first in sarong which was a fabric of cotton or silk. The length of sarong was 2 metres. The sarong is Malay term, Pelangi is Indonesian and Bandhani is Indian which means the same.
The native women would wear sarong as their regular dress or as a headdress.
In present days, Sarong is considered a fashion wear which can be styled any way for any occasion. It can be used as a versatile dress. For example, you can style it into a beach wear, a cocktail dress, a t-shirt and a tube under your coat and skirt etc and these are just not the only ways you can style it as you want it to be.

People all over the world know the importance and history regarding the batik. Most people are aware nowadays through social medias. There are other several countries which produce batik and have a history with themselves.

The different batik are as follows:

1.Malaysian Batik

The Javanese people migrated to Malaysia and shared their culture of batik.
They kept on producing batik and soon Malay people learned it as well. The Malaysian Batik uses several light and vibrant colours which reflect their culture and traditions.
The Malaysian Batik includes the motifs of leaves, flowers and butterflies too; excluding animal prints due to Islamic doctrine. Their Batik also has geometrical and abstract patterns.

The Malaysian Batik highly depends on the use of brush rather than canting. It is created with great effort and is very expensive. The batik is done in 100% cotton or 100%silk. The fabric needs to contain majority of natural yarn making it very comfortable to wear.

There are several Batik Fashion Shows held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia which includes the showcase of batik from different countries like India, Srilanka, China and,Africa.
The batik was used as a Traditional Attire. The Government encourages the government workers to wear batik dress on 1st and 15th of the month. In schools, the teachers are made to wear batik attire on Thursdays. The batik clothes are tailored and made similar.

The other remaining batiks are;

2.India

The India batik uses a lot of vibrant colors and pattern details. The India batik is produced mostly by the deaf women in Delhi. The batik is a vocational work which can be done by audio disabled people. India produces a lot of batik and is used in mostly Sarees and Dhotis. The patterns motifs are floral, animal, geometrical and abstract.

3. Srilanka 

The Srilanka batik uses a lot of motifs and colors. The batik may be contemporary or individual. The batik tradition was influenced in Srilanka by the Dutch like in Indonesia and Malaysia.

4.China 

The China Batik includes variety of colors and motifs as well. The average pattern that is used in chinese batik are phoenix and dragons. Their batik is used to make different traditional attire for formal purpose to casual.

5.Africa

The Africa Batik mostly used rice paste or mud instead of wax. They created batik and used in sarong like attires that could be light, easy to wear and airy.

5.Japan

The Japanese also produce batik. Their batik is known as Japan Hokokai. The batik includes patterns like cherry blossom, hokokai and chyrsanthemum.

In ancient times, the batik was used only in sarongs, head clothes, sashes for men or as bodice wrapper for royal women folk but now the batik is used to make hand bags, clutches, paintings, beach wear, interior designing themes, shirts for men, t-shirts for the young people, caps and hats, handkerchief etc.

Let's get a batik dress. Now we know, we really need one.