Champion of vocational training<\/p>\n
Marilyn August, Associated Press\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesia's most renowned fashion designer has taken up a greater
\nchallenge than dressing stars and socialites, presidents and
\nprincesses.<\/p>\n
Harry Darsono plans to clothe the children of tsunami-ravaged
\nAceh province, not with handouts or hand-and-me-downs, but
\nthrough vocational training in the fast-disappearing handicraft
\ntechniques -- embroidery, needlework, patchwork and weaving among
\nthem -- unique to the northern Sumatra province.<\/p>\n
\"Give them skills, teach them to be productive and they'll be
\nable to clothe and feed themselves,\" Darsono said after returning
\nfrom the area devastated by the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunami.<\/p>\n
This is the lesser-known side of the impish, bespectacled
\nIndonesian superstar -- a term he despises -- whose multiple
\ntalents have been woven into a highly successful career spanning
\nnearly four decades.<\/p>\n
Eccentric, Darsono requires visitors to his newly renovated
\n\"hands-on,\" private textile museum in South Jakarta to wear all
\nblack or white -- so as not to clash with the designs on display.<\/p>\n
Flamboyant, he carries a US$27,000, gem-studded cell phone
\nwhen he entertains wealthy clients. Versatile, he is a concert
\npianist, cellist and practiced Balinese dancer. Funny, he holds
\naloft a round, fluffy hat inspired by, in his own words, \"a heap
\nof cow dung!\"<\/p>\n
Other famous creations include an elegant, floor-length gown
\nmade from hand-woven, 22 carat gold silk threads.<\/p>\n
\"You can squeeze it. It doesn't crumple,\" enthuses Darsono,
\n55, as he leads a group on a tour of the museum. Housed in a
\nthree-story Baroque-style mansion inspired by the designer's
\npassion for European style and detail, it boasts a wide marble
\nstaircase, ornate moldings, gilded mirrors and chandeliers and
\nperiod furniture attesting to his eclectic taste.<\/p>\n
But for Darsono fabric is magic. Visitors are urged try on
\ngowns, jackets and hats worn by the rich and famous, including
\nseveral items worn by the late Princess Diana that he managed to
\nbuy back at auction.<\/p>\n
Darsono's love affair with textiles began when he was a
\n\"naughty\" young boy in the grip of dyslexia and Attention Deficit
\nHyperactive Disorder. By age nine, he'd been thrown out of seven
\nschools, finally landing in a French boarding school where he
\nremained mute for two years, communicating with staff and
\nteachers through drawing and sign language.<\/p>\n
A twin and the fifth of eight children, Darsono says he was
\nlucky to have enlightened parents who recognized his learning
\ndisabilities, and who could afford proper treatment abroad. Music
\ntherapy helped calm the aggressive behavior that virtually
\nvanished when he learned to use a spinning wheel.<\/p>\n
\"When I touched that spinning wheel, I started my destiny. It
\nwas an introduction into a different world. My aggression
\ndisappeared. I had to be gentle and patient to use it,\" he said
\nin an interview with The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Darsono went on to attend the prestigious Ecole des Beaux Arts
\nin Paris, studied clothing technology at the London College of
\nFashion and at the London Film and Television Academy for Stage
\nProduction where he developed a lifelong passion for theater and
\nopera costume design. He later earned a doctoral degree in
\nhumanistic philosophy at Oxford.<\/p>\n
Today, he opens his doors to disturbed, impoverished children
\nto teach them a trade such as batik work, beading, embroidery and
\nweaving.<\/p>\n
\"I put the most difficult cases in the spinning room,\" he
\nsays. A museum tour includes a stop at the studios where young
\ngirls with tiny, practiced fingers sew sequins onto silk and
\nwhere young boys carefully transfer Darsono's designs to fabric
\nthat will then be hand-painted and crafted into one-of-a-kind
\ncreations demanded by his illustrious clients -- international
\nbeauty contestants and Arab princesses among them.<\/p>\n
The tour inevitably ends with tea and pastry in a cozy, third-
\nfloor lounge where Darsono accompanies an opera singer on a baby
\ngrand piano.<\/p>\n
Darsono has long been committed to vocational education as an
\nalternative -- not only for problem children but for street kids
\nwho can't pay school fees. In Indonesia, public school is
\nsupposedly free, but the requirement that children wear uniforms
\nand buy their own school supplies and books makes it too
\nexpensive for millions.<\/p>\n
He claims to have \"saved\" some 4,600 street children and has
\nnow set his sights on helping Acehnese orphans recover from the
\ntsunami. He traveled to Aceh in January, working with local non-
\ngovernmental organizations to help distribute money, food and
\nclothing his foundation gathered in the early days of the
\ntragedy.<\/p>\n
More than 128,000 people died and half a million were left
\nhomeless in the earthquake and tsunami that struck Aceh on Dec.
\n26.<\/p>\n
Darsono -- who also is chairman of the National Council for
\nVocational Education -- said his foundation is working with
\nauthorities to set up training centers that will teach thousands
\nof children traditional Acehnese textile techniques, including a
\nspecial type of embroidery using bright colors and designs
\nheavily influenced by centuries of trade with India, Arabia and
\nChina.<\/p>\n
His most recent project is working with the Rotary Club to
\nimprove hygiene and health for some of Jakarta's poorest
\nresidents.<\/p>\n
\"You wouldn't believe that in some of the wealthiest
\nneighborhoods, you have enclaves of people who live without
\nrunning water,\" Darsono said. \"Our fund-raising will help finance
\nproper toilets.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/champion-of-vocational-training-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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