Iwan Tirta projects ancient art of batik into 21st century

By Brigid O'Halloran

JAKARTA (JP): Although the intricate traditional art of batik tulis would seem to have little in common with the futuristic world of computers, acclaimed batik designer Iwan Tirta has fused the two in his latest venture.

On Friday Iwan will open a new batik factory equipped with the latest computer technology for the storage and manipulation of traditional and contemporary batik designs.

"It is more like a laboratory than a factory. It is here that I will experiment with the latest colorings, fabrics and designs," he said.

A former lawyer, Iwan is the country's leading batik designer and is renowned for his ability to create breathtaking handcrafted batik. Each of Iwan's batiks are based on an element or elements of a traditional batik pattern, which he then builds on to create a new design.

With the use of the latest computer technology, such as scanners and tailored software packages, the creation of these new designs will be much less labor intensive than the formerly painstakingly slow process.

"The computer system can be used to select a particular motif or pattern for enlargement or reduction and to produce new backgrounds, creating endless possibilities."

Iwan believes his work is distinguished from that of other batik designers primarily because of his consideration of the meanings behind the elaborate motifs in his designs. As part of this new project, he also hopes to establish a computer database to record the history and meaning of traditional batik designs.

"Indonesians are notorious for not documenting or cataloging their cultural heritage, relying instead on oral history. Modern technology is needed to preserve this art form because many of the people who once carried the designs and meanings in their heads are dying out."

Using computers, Iwan will be able to catalog the batik patterns by date, pattern or region, making the task of locating designs much easier and assisting in their preservation.

Since the opening of Iwan's first factory in 1972, he has accumulated over 4,000 batik designs, not including the new designs he created.

"Our basic weakness in the past has been storage. It was extremely difficult to keep track of such a large number of designs," he said.

Iwan believes that modern technology should be used to support the preservation of traditional art forms, not destroy them.

"Many people view modern technology as destructive, such as the use of machine-printing technology to produce batik which has led to a decline in the number of batik craftsmen. But I don't believe we can save our heritage without modern technology," he said.

Maintaining the country's rich heritage is largely the domain of Indonesia's cultural institutions. However, Iwan is concerned that the institutions are not doing enough to preserve and promote batik as an art form.

"Museums, for example, should be holding batik exhibitions to promote the craft instead of functioning solely as storehouses," he said.

When Iwan opened his first workshop over 25 years ago, he spent long hours searching through the batik collections of numerous museums because the items were not cataloged. Unfortunately, he said, very little has changed.

Another example is the lack of batik courses in the fine art faculties of Indonesian universities.

"How can we expect young people to develop an appreciation for batik if they are not exposed to it," he said.

"Somebody has to start somewhere and that is why I hope to be able to use computers to store as much information as possible, before it is lost."

Iwan's batik enterprise, PT Ramacraft, has so far weathered the economic crisis in which many other batik manufacturers have succumbed.

"The company is certainly not booming, but we are surviving," he said.

Business slowed last year when Iwan was evicted from his former factory in Jakarta, following the sale of the property. Despite the existence of another factory in Central Java, Iwan was left with nowhere to experiment with his new designs, until a private investor agreed to build another factory.

"It was like a gift from the gods!" he said.

Iwan will employ 25 specially trained batik artists in the new factory and his designs will be marketed throughout Indonesia and internationally.

He believes batik artists need to find new markets and applications for their art if they are to remain viable in the future.

"The design potential for batik has yet to be realized. As a design source batik is fantastic, we should be thinking about creating batik wallpaper, wrapping paper, tiles and ceramics, instead of relying on foreign designs."

As part of his efforts to preserve the ancient art of batik tulis, Iwan is also working to convince his peers and the authorities of the merits of establishing a batik trademark.

To date he has been unsuccessful, but this tenacious advocate of one of the world's most intricate and majestic art forms may one day succeed.