Did You Know?

Batik very likely originated in Java (Indonesia). It's a place where all the raw materials are available from ancient times. These are cotton (another traditional material is silk), plants with vibrant and durable pigments, and beeswax. It is about 25 centuries old. Other locations where batik may be independently developed are Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, India, and Nigeria. Very old samples were also found in China, Egypt, and Turkey. The oldest Batik textile was discovered on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia.

The word batik has Malayan and Javanese roots. It roughly translates to 'to dot' or 'to write'. Javanese word 'amba' means 'to write' and 'tik' means 'dot' ('titik' means 'repetition of dots').

The main principle of making batik is divided into the next steps:

Batik is the national dress of Malaysia and parts of Indonesia. Both types of batik differ in colors and patterns. Due to its creative and spiritual value batik is often worn for generations, being passed from elders to their offspring.

Beeswax is a traditional choice for batik. The best alternative is paraffin with some pros and cons. Different resins and fats can be also added to one or the other or to a combination of both. The recipes of some popular mixes are well-guarded secrets. Wax is useful just at the right temperature. Too cold will make clogs, and too hot will run out of the desired area.

Hand-painted batik became popular only in the last quarter of the 20th century. It combines traditional techniques with modern art and is often used in art therapy.

Apart from floral patterns and geometric designs, batik is decorated with animals, trees, scenes from traditional life, and different abstract patterns. Traditional colors of batik are blue, brown, and red. The oldest color is very likely blue, made of an Indigo plant.

There are numerous popular motifs used for batik:

(example of Mega Mendug Pattern)

The colors of batik are much more durable than colors of painted or printed fabrics. The reason is the technology - batik demands complete immersion of the fabric into dye, which leads to much more absorbed pigment and lesser possibility of fading. High-quality densely woven textiles, used for batik, add to the quantity of absorbed pigment.

Traditionally batik was used for dresses and tailord garments. Only recently it became popular in other areas, such as household linen, wall hangings, or paintings. There are two main techniques for making batik differing by the way of applying wax, with metal stamps called caps, or small tools, like brushes, pens, or strips for drawing patterns. The method with stamps (mostly made of copper) was developed later due to rising demands. It's faster and the end product is less costly.

While some believe that batik was reserved for royalties only at first, others claim that batik is a traditional dress for the majority of the population and skillfulness in batik is one of the traditional skills (like cooking, for instance), expected from women before they married. Only in the 19th century when the technique with metal stamps was developed due high demand for batik the creation of it became interesting for males because stamps can be pretty heavy.

Batik is part of UNESCO Cultural Heritage since 2009. It demands creativity, craftsmanship, meticulously, skillfulness, and time. This labor-intensive eco-friendly alternative to mass-produced textiles can demand from a few hours over a year for the creation of one single piece. Especially darker colors need a longer time of soaking, often exceeding a week with up to ten submerging per day to guarantee even distribution of pigment.