Afif proud of his handmade batik

Afif proud of his handmade batik

Ridlo Aryanto, he Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

His political foes can say anything they want about former
president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid. But in the eyes of
handmade batik designer Afif Syakur, he helped revive the
classical handmade batik trend here and abroad.

The 37-year-old Yogyakarta designer praised Gus Dur for
donning handmade batik shirts at state functions, thus promoting
batik motifs of parang, ceplok or kawung and at the same time,
improving people's appreciation of handmade batik as part of the
country's rich haute couture.

"Gus Dur's taste for his dress shows his class," said the
chairman of the Indonesian Association of Batik Lovers.

His praises, however, might not be objective enough since he,
as well as noted designer Adjie Notonegoro, helped design a
number of Gus Dur's batik shirts, "particularly those in silk
with the ceplok motif".

Now, the man is not as happy as he used to be because,
President Megawati Soekarnoputri rarely wears batik at state
functions.

"I later learned that Ibu, or mother, President is reluctant
to don batik dresses because in her eyes, a batik dress is
identical with the uniforms of her aides and staff members. And
she is one of those who believes that as their superior, she
could never wear the same, of course.

"But as a handmade batik designer, I feel disappointed with
the president's way of thinking. Don't forget, batik can be made
of a variety of fabrics and unlimited designs, as well as classes
and quality. I dare to challenge the President that if she's
willing to wear batik, I can design handmade batik of pure silk
with an exclusive motif of a fat bull with elegant and exotic
coloring. If she is ready to wear batik, I can design a special
handmade batik for her," said Afif, the fourth generation of
Syakur, a name renowned in the batik craft dynasty in Pekalongan.

Born in the town of Pekalongan, famous for its batik, in
Central Java on Dec. 2, 1965, he has his own right to challenge
the President.

"I'm a batik shaman. My former friends at Gadjah Mada
University's School of Philosophy often teased me, saying that
after I failed to become a shaman, I turned out to be a
successful batik shaman. They are not wrong because my blood and
sweat do smell of malam (a wax material to make batik with). I
was born, raised and now live to develop Indonesia's handmade
batik. God willing, I will be faithful to this task to my last
breath," said the chairman of Indonesian Association of Fashion
Designers, Yogyakarta chapter.

As a handmade batik designer, Afif hopes to make Indonesia's
handmade batik designs become an international fashion trend.

He called on other designers to stop making batik with motifs
and materials like those used by their parents or grandparents in
their time.

"Create batik with the tastes of international art in mind.
The key to being internationally accepted and recognized lies in
designs which blend international and classical styles. Why don't
we try introducing a ceplok or truntum motif by inserting a tulip
or cherry blossom? Batik is a unique art form with natural
coloring. Not everyone can make it. Therefore, in designing
batik, I have my own motto: Easy to make, difficult to copy but
expensive when sold," said the designer who was named 2002 best
ethnic fashion designer during the Bali Fashion Week in June.

Apart from his local achievements, Afif has also earned
numerous accolades from various fashion shows abroad, such as in
Germany, Singapore and the Netherlands. But he never won
recognition for his handmade batik creations since, according to
Afif, there's no such event yet.

The upcoming International Batik Festival, which will be held
in Yogyakarta from Sept. 4 to Sept. 7, will show off Afif's
excellence as a handmade batik designer.

The organizing committee of the event, which will see the
participation of the world batik designers and lovers, has
challenged the man to display his latest creations.

"I will have a solo fashion show featuring 100 new designs,
none of which has ever been publicly exhibited. These designs are
the fruit of my imagination, inspired by some 2,500 ancient batik
cloths that I have collected since the 1980s from across
Indonesia," Afif said.

His love for patterns coming from different areas across the
country are shown in his designs. "Asmat motif is not strange in
my batik design. Since my batik designs have local influences,
people like Syahril Syabirin (Bank Indonesia Governor), ministers
and their wives are fond of my creations. Some of them have opted
for my designs since Pak Harto's (former president Soeharto)
era," he claimed.

As chairman of the Indonesian Association of Batik Lovers,
Afif also assists handmade batik makers in several areas of Java
like in Madura, East Java; Tasikmalaya in West Java; Pekalongan
and Surakarta, Central Java; and Yogyakarta. By assisting
handmade batik makers, he hopes they can help promote handmade
batik.

He realized that the country's rich motifs -- like motifs of
palaces that are rich in wise symbols, Pesisiran motifs with its
variety of colors, and Saudagaran motifs which blend the two
(palaces and Pesisiran motifs) -- would mean nothing if the
designers failed to follow international trends and manage modern
batik businesses.

"Local handmade batik makers need assistance. Once, they were
pioneers in the local batik industry but since they only stick to
classical motifs of their respective regions, they hardly made
any progress, and are now threatened with bankruptcy. Now we're
trying to help them so they can catch up with latest
developments, so they can sell a piece of batik dress at the
price of Rp 3.5 million like me. If the government doesn't care
about them, they will not survive."