Batik bonanza for the taking on streets of Yogyakarta

By Tarko Sudiarno

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Yogyakarta is famed as one of the batik centers in the country. Its ornate, classically designed motifs, worn by Javanese royal families, is the city's cultural trademark.

The city is home to hundreds of accomplished batik makers. Rows of chic batik shops and art galleries along Jl. Malioboro and its surrounding areas, such as Jl. Urip Sumohardjo and Jl. Prawirotaman, are favorite shopping places for affluent visitors.

Street vendors catering to backpackers or those wanting to bargain provide a large variety of batik products, woodcrafts and leather souvenirs at competitive prices. Batik is everywhere in Yogyakarta, the soul of the city.

Beringhardjo traditional market, located 500 meters from the Yogyakarta Palace, is the most sought-after batik center. Hundreds of sellers offer a wide choice of batik products from traditional, classical batik to the more contemporary ones.

Visitors seeking to purchase the refined hand-drawn batik tulis are able to find them in one of the batik shops here. The market is a haven for batik collectors who sometimes find antique batik with rare, exceptional designs.

The market also has numerous shops and vendors selling a myriad of printed and stamped batiks.

Batik is sold in the form of long cloth, sarongs or tubular cloth, bedspreads, women's clothes and shirts. Materials available range from cotton to the more intricate silk batik, each worth from hundreds of thousands of rupiah to millions of rupiah.

Runi, a visitor from South Jakarta, said she was excited every time she visited the market.

"When I visit Yogyakarta, I have never skipped batik shopping in this market. Here, I can buy such a lot of quality batik at low prices," she said.

Suradi, a small-scale trader from Secang in Magelang, Central Java, said he obtained special discounts when he bought dozens of pieces of batik cloth.

Visitors are also able to buy batik from batik factories where people can watch the batikmaking process. They can even take part in a short-course on batik making.

Some of the factories are located on Taman Sari and Prawirotaman.

Yogyakarta also is home to numerous batik museums displaying rare and antique pieces.

A private batik museum on Jl. Dr. Sutomo, for example, displays more than 500 old batiks. The other batik museum is located in the Kaliurang holiday resort.

People can also view antique batik belonging to individual collectors.

Noted batik collector Afif Syakur, for instance, diligently collects 1,500 old batiks at his "museum" on Jl. Pandega Marta No 37A. His oldest piece in the collection dates back to 1880.

"I will build a museum one day to enable younger generations to learn more about the history of batik," said Afif.

Another important site that should be visited by batik lovers is the Research and Development Center of Batik and Handicrafts Industry on Jl. Kusumanegara 7.

The center provides detail information on the latest technology in the batik-making process, raw materials and equipment.

It also conducts research and development projects for environmentally friendly techniques of batik making.

Book that ticket, batik lovers, because Yogyakarta is your paradise.