Fashion Show Exposes A New Breed Of Batik

Jakarta - Brightly colored clothes bearing geometrical shapes took center at a recent fashion show held by Tetet Cahyati, the multitalented poet, painter and batik producer.

With a name taken from one of her poems, "The Spirit of Growth" aimed to show the audience that in this life the heart always has the drive to grow and develop.

Pouring out her ideas and thoughts in poems, paintings and later on fabric, the daughter of the late artist R.H. Popo Iskandar has injected new vigor into the batik industry by creating unique, contemporary patterns.

Tetet was originally a poet but later decided to put her words into paintings. After gaining praise for her paintings she decided to transfer their designs into batik.

In general, traditional batik patterns usually bear indigenous flora and fauna or natural phenomenon. For example, in West Java‘s Cirebon batik, clouds are a common feature.

Unlike other Indonesian batik patterns, the ones created by this Bandung-based artist have no rules.

She does not pick traditional batik patterns such as Sidomukti or Kawung, but rather takes contemporary shapes and patterns such as triangles, rectangles and cubes.

Tetet plays with lines, shapes and spaces, as well as mixed colors on the silk fabric, with colors found in nature.

She has created more than 50 patterns, all taken from her paintings, including Setangkai Bunga Patah (A Broken Flower), Senja Di Kota Tua (An Evening in The Old Town), Bulan Kemarau (Drought Moon), Cahaya Jiwa (The Light of the Soul), Rinduku (My Longing), and Di Sudut Lorong Hati (On the Corner of my Heart).

While Tetet‘s paintings bear two general characters: Daily objects and emotional moods, the way she puts them into paintings is different as people can not trace the form of flower or old town in the paintings.

Take the example of Cahaya Jiwa‘s batik pattern. Expressing lights in its widest explanation, Tetet created new colors by mixing red, blue and yellow. As a result, the hues are quite unique.

She describes the batik as a reflection of the modern, dynamic and active characteristics of Bandung. Working on batik since 2007, Tetet has already patented her designs.

"I hope that the contemporary batik will give new vitality and stimulate the batik industry. I think people will like the colors, because not only do I create the bright colored batik but also the calm colored ones," she said.

She is also optimistic that her products will be able to make their mark amid the looming global financial crisis, as consumers turn to domestic products.

She explained that the batik process involves one-day of transferring the concept from paper to fabric and two-weeks of painting it on. The patterns are painted on 1.5-by-2-meter silk fabric.

Tetet‘s designs are applied to all kinds of apparel, from long scarf selendangs, to sarongs, skirts, shirts and evening dresses.

Producing her batik by employing local women, Tetet said that she can manufacture between 50 and 100 pieces of batik in one month. Each batik fabric is unique as she never reproduces the pattern in the same color.

While Tetet is relatively new to the batik industry, her products have already reached neighboring countries including Singapore and Brunei Darussalam. She plans to pursue other markets in Japan, Australia, the United States and European countries.

Also present during the fashion show was Ary Sudarsono, a sports presenter, who said that he was interested in promoting Tetet‘s batik because, as an Indonesian product, it has a unique style.

"I‘m interested in wearing this batik because I know it‘s one of its kind. Unlike traditional batik, the contemporary batik has the air of youth," he said.

Source: TheJakartaPost.com (March 8^th, 2009)
Photo: Halo-Bandung.com

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