Batik

Batik painting is one of Southeast Asia's oldest traditions. Batik has been both an art and a craft for centuries. In Java, Indonesia, batik is part of an ancient tradition, and some of the finest batik cloth in the world is still made there.

Contemporary batik, while owing much to the past, is markedly different from the more traditional and formal styles. For example, the artist may use etching, discharge dyeing, stencils, different tools for waxing and dyeing, wax recipes with different resist values and work with silk, cotton, wool, leather, paper or even wood and ceramics.

Batik is a fascinating craft but many people hesitate to try making it because the old process is tedious and time consuming. Batik may be used for clothes, pillow tops, wall hangings, place mats or scarves. Big, bold designs in bright colors are most striking.

The word batik (pronounced Bateek) means "wax written" and this is basically what batik is. It is a way of decorating cloth by covering part of it with a coat of wax and then dyeing the cloth. The waxed area keeps its original color and when the wax is removed the contrast between the dyed and undyed area makes the pattern.

The exact origins of batik are unknown, but they are almost certainly in the Orient where the technique was used, long before printing, to enhance the appearance of fine garments. Batik became most deeply rooted in Indonesia, particularly the island of Java, where it was a highly developed art by the 13Th century.

Batik was considered a fitting occupation for aristocratic ladies whose delicately painted designs, based on bird and flower motifs, were a sign of cultivation and refinement, just as fine needlework was for European ladies of a similar position.

Java is still famous for batik and the traditional patterns, developed over centuries, are still part of Javanese dress, although very few are made by the traditional method of wax painting. This, instead, has been rediscovered and put to use by craftsman all over the world who find the freedom of working with liquid was, and the control of color possible through dyeing, makes batik an exciting and uniquely expressive medium to work in. Increasingly, the all-over patterns of Oriental batiks are being replaced by imaginative pictures and designs of all sorts, which are sued to make wall hangings and soft sculpture as well as decorations for clothing and household items.

Part of the attraction of batik is its simplicity and the fact that you don't have to be artistic in the conventional sense to produce beautiful results. Some of the best effects in batik are in fact the work of chance. This is particularly true of the way in which the wax cracks to let small quantities of dye through, adding an unexpected and interesting effect to any design. This hairline detail, or "crackling", is a special characteristic of most batik work.

Because batik wax is applied hot it is necessary to work fairly rapidly and this can produce a freedom (or loss of self-consciousness) that makes many people who think they cannot draw find, to their amazement, that they can. Of course, designs can be worked out beforehand and for many things, such as borders and trimmings, this is necessary; but designs drawn spontaneously in wax, or according to the briefest sketch, can bring surprising rewards.

Combined with the pleasure of drawing freehand is the fascination of working creatively with dyes-blending and mixing different colors-to get as vivid or as subtle as you want.

Fabrics

Natural or vegetable fiber fabrics, such as cotton, linen and silk, are the ones to use for batik.
Viscose rayon can also be used, but avoid all synthetic fibers, no matter how closely they simulate natural fibers. Their true nature is revealed in the dyebath, by which time it is too late. They will not dye properly with cold dyes, which must necessarily be used for batik; otherwise the wax would melt in the dyebath.

Silk is one of the best fabrics for batik - the finer the woven the better - and a finer waxed line can be drawn on silk than on any other fabric. To start with, however, silk is far from necessary, and the expense may inhibit your inventiveness since you will be less willing to "chance" a design.

Cotton is excellent, and some prefer it to silk on the grounds that the sheen of silk obscures the pattern.

In general, with coarser spun fabrics, more wax is absorbed and a fine sweeping line is harder to obtain, as the wax sinks rapidly into the cloth as it is applied. So, although you can batik canvas, calico and flannelette, these are only suitable for large, clear designs.

For intricate work and, in particular, pictures or wall hangings, fine linen or fine cotton is recommended. Especially delicate designs can be produced on batiste or cotton lawn - any thin cotton in fact which is not so transparent that your picture will look like an apparition.

Dye Batik dye must be a cold dye since hot water would cause the hardened wax to melt in the dye bath. Ordinary cold water dyes are best for beginners and all contain instructions for their use; but after some experience you may prefer to use special, fast-acting cold dyes or vat dyes, which involve the use of additional chemicals but which "take" a lot more quickly and, in the case of vat dyes, give exceptionally colorfast results.

Wax, the ideal mixture for batik work is 30% beeswax to 70% paraffin wax. Beeswax adheres well to fabric, whereas paraffin wax is brittle, cracking easily. So how you mix the two determines how much crackling you will get.

Crackling produces the fine lines that characterize most batik work. With pure paraffin wax there is the danger of it peeling off in the dye bath. A mixture of beeswax and paraffin wax therefore assures adherence, plus decorative crackling effects.

Equipment

The equipment is fairly simple, and most of it can be found around the house.

- Some old white sheets. Old, torn white cotton sheets have the advantage of being already free from chemical finishes (which would otherwise prevent the dye from penetrating).
Note: all new fabrics must be boiled to remove the finishing.
- Candles, at least one containing beeswax.
- Double boiler for melting wax.
- Good quality artist's paintbrush.
- Cold water dye and fixative.
- Charcoal, or pencil, for making preliminary sketch.
- Frame (Batik is normally worked on a special frame on which the cloth is tacked to keep it taut, but for beginners an old picture frame will serve just as well.)
- A double boiler or a boiling ring or chafing dish (such as a fondue dish with candles beneath) to melt the wax, and you will need access to a sink or bowl for dyeing.

Batik has been both an art and a craft for centuries. In Java, Indonesia, batik is part of an ancient tradition, and some of the finest batik cloth in the world is still made there.

Contemporary batik, while owing much to the past, is markedly different from the more traditional and formal styles. For example, the artist may use etching, discharge dyeing, stencils, different tools for waxing and dyeing, wax recipes with different resist values and work with silk, cotton, wool, leather, paper or even wood and ceramics.

(Source: Craftown Resource Center)

Thai Arts

From Classical to Popular Arts

Most classical Thai art originated in our under the patronage of the royal courts. It is an amalgam of the finest cultural traditions of Asia, blended and stamped into unique forms instantly recognizable as Thai. Classical art encompasses Buddhist art as represented in religious architecture, decorative murals, and Buddha images. The art reflected the complex formal structure and etiquette of court culture, with its heavy Indian influences, and expressed both religious and intellectual impulses. Entertainment was considered to be of secondary value in this category of art.

Another category is popular art, which arose from age-old village realities and the rites associated with birth, death, and the seasonal cycle of crop cultivation. When speaking of Thai art in general one is able to distinguish between these two groups. On the other hand, different as they are, they are complementary and mutually reinforce each other. Much classical or court-inspired art later evolved into simpler forms which found popular appeal. Classical drama, for example, moved into the realm of popular culture in the form of comic folk-operas.

Traditional Thai Manual Arts

During the Ayutthaya period, writers, painters, dancers, sculptors, architects, musicians, and skilled craftsmen came under the royal patronage of kings and the nobility. Thai architects and artists were responsible for building and decorating palaces, monasteries, and shrines in conventionally acceptable forms and styles. Unlike their Western counterparts, they were not expected to display revolutionary originality or inventiveness. Thus art and craftsmanship were transmitted from generation to generation according to rigid discipline.
In an attempt to provide general training to Thai craftsmen, especially those who worked in the palaces, the Krom Chang Sip Mu (Organization of the Ten Crafts) was established. According to Prince Pradit Worakarn, who was given charge of the Chang Sip Mu Department during the reign of King Rama V, the original organization in fact covered at least 13 different craftsmen: drawers, paper-makers, engravers, figure-makers, modellers, plasterers, lacquerers, metal beaters, turners, moulders, wood-carvers, sculptors, and carpenters.
In the Bangkok period, these were grouped into 10 divisions: drawing (which included draughtsmen, painters, muralists, and manuscript illustrators), engraving (woodcarvers, engravers on metal, precious metal inlay), turning (lathe-workers, carpenters and joiners, glass mosaic workers), sculpting (paper sculptors, decorative fruit and vegetable carvers), modelling (beeswax moulders and bronze casters, mask and puppet makers), figure making (dummy and prototype makers), moulding (craftsmen in bronze and metal casting), plastering (bricklayers, lime plasterers, stucco workers and sculptors), lacquering (masters of lacquerware and mother-of-pearl inlay), and beating (metal beaters and finishers of metal articles).Contemporary Thai arts and crafts, though modernized to some extent through improved technology, are still very much inspired by tradition. Ranging from delicately wrought silverware to numerous utilitarian items of everyday life, they are part of the kingdom's rich cultural heritage.

Painting of Thailand

Classical Thai painting was confined to temple and palace interiors and book illustrations. Mural painting was developed to a high degree in the belief that walls should enhance the beauty of the religious and royal objects they surrounded.

Traditional Thai painting was typically Asian in that conventional perspective was ignored and figures were large or small depending on their importance. Shadows were unknown and space was neutral rather than atmospheric. Figures were two dimensional and landscapes were merely sketchily- treated backdrops for detailed action. A technique of pictorial composition called "apportioning areas" was employed, comparable to the "bird's eye view" of Western painting. By this method, the positions of the key scenes were assigned first and then closed off with "space transformers" that effectively isolated them from considerations of perspective by doing away with any surrounding intermediate or middle ground.

The traditional Thai painter had five primary pigments, the close equivalents of scarlet lake, yellow ochre, ultramarine blue, pipe-clay white, and pot-black. With these he was able to produce as many other colors. All were tempura colors, finely ground powders that were stirred into bowls containing a glue binder, using sticks to work it to the desired strength and consistency. With these colors the traditional artists from uniquely beautiful compositions in form to temple murals, cloth banners, and manuscript illustrations.

The earliest surviving murals are characterized by earth colors made from natural pigments. They depicted excerpts from the Jataka stories, episodes from the Buddha's life, scenes of Buddhist heaven and hells, rows of gods, and scenes of contemporary Thai life. The murals in Bangkok's Wat Suthat and Thon Buri's Wat Suwannaram are particularly fine examples.

The traditional Thai painting technique continued into the Bangkok period, when colors became richer thanks to pigments imported from China. Around the middle of the 19th century, artists began using chemical pigments and Western perspective. Spatial values were eschewed for atmospheric effects, and opulent gold leaf and bold primary colors radically altered the delicate harmony of the old subdued earth colors.

Thai painters at present, through trained in the traditional style, have been influenced by Western styles and techniques. However, some have been able to integrate the various styles and produce significant art. Chakrapan Posayakrit, for example, while best know for his portraits, is also a painter of scences and characters based on Thai literature which manage to convey a flavor that is at once modern and traditional.

(Source: -Thailand in the 90s, Office of the Prime Minister, Bangkok, 1991, P. 91.
-SunSITE Thailand at Assumption University)

Art in Bali

The Balinese, though famous throughout the world for their dance, painting, and sculpture, never had the word 'art' in their own vocabulary.

Likewise, the word 'artist' or 'craftsman' didn't exist in Balinese. The people who do these things are known as 'workers', just like those in the rice fields. In fact, most of these artists, even today, still work in the rice fields.

Sculpture is a good example of art in Bali. It's everywhere. It's in the temples, in the hotels, in the gardens, on the houses, along the roads.

Sculpture is created on public buildings, for the gods. It's considered functional, as a part of life, not as something separate. Artists are rarely identified. Much of the carving work is shared among numerous craftsmen.

The carvings are done in volcanic rock, known as paras, which is excellent for detail, because of its' softness. Because of this softness, however, the carvings don't last long in the tropical weather. This means the sculptures must be redone every 20 or so years. Far from being a disadvantage, the result is that the art of sculpting has never had an opportunity to die.

With the growth of tourism and hotels, carvings are more prolific than ever. Artists have expanded from purely religious themes, to more commercial ones, like dogs and lanterns.

Painting is another famous art of Bali. Before the 1920, there were very few paintings that were not religious in nature.

Since the advent of tourists, however, many schools of painting have developed.

Hindu themes are still popular, as are scenes of nature and village life. Ubud and its neighboring villages, Peliatan and Penestanan, are well-known for their concentration of artists.

Balinese carving and painting skills are also applied to wood. Statues, furniture, ornamentation, and masks are seen everywhere in Bali.

In particular, the masks of Bali have become world famous. Many Balinese dances require masks, such as this Barong, carved from wood, then painted and decorated.

The Balinese have never bothered to compartmentalize their lives. Art, then, is not something that is hung on a wall or put in a cabinet. Art is always functional, and the functional is always art.

Offerings, cloth, and architecture fit in this mode of thinking, as well.

It's difficult to find any phase of Balinese life that could not, by western standards, be called 'art'. This offering to the gods, for example. Or the sculpted rice fields of rural Bali. While created for the utility of irrigation, there is no denying the beauty of the result.

This is probably the great lesson that Bali offers to the world:Beauty and function, in all phases of life, are one.

Art Painting

Bali painting was also subject to outside influences, particularly form Western painting, during the late 1920s in Ubud, Gianyar, Bali. While some foreign influences on traditional painting already were being used since the late 19th century, major changes occured due to the fluence of Walter Spies (German, 1895-1942), who emphasized light, shadow, depth & perspective in his works. Rudolf Bonnet (Dutch, 1895-1978), on the other hand, focused on anatomy & portraiture. Both of them came to Bali in the late 1920s and built their studios in Ubud with the assistance of the local prince Cokorda Gede Agung Sukawati (1910-1978), a patron of Balinese art. At the time, Ubud was not known as a centre for the visual arts, although there was a style of wayang / puppet painting.

It was natural for Bali artist to notice the talents of Spies and Bonnet, who in turn urged some of the local Bali painters to use broader themes and encouraged them to paint with more freedom. While very few Balinese artists were directly taught these new aesthetic concepts, other Bali artists simply copied what they saw and like which was a tradition in the Bali culture. Most of them turned to themes already familiar to them in traditional astrological charts and earthquake almanacs, using the Bali agricultural scenes as ideas for the new genre style of painting. These were compositions free of religious or ceremonial value.

Although the new paintings were innovative, the beauty of the lines and the strength of style and focus clearly show connections to Balinese culture because the artists did not completely abandon their traditional methods of painting. They used tempera and watercolors, and later oil and acrylic paints became popular. Some of the common themes were of farmers in ricefields, women at marketplaces, religious ceremonies, and Bali musican & dancer. The traditional Bali painting artists also found a ready market for their works by supplying tourist demands for Bali souvenirs.

(Source: Ubud Artist Community)

The Southeast Asian Art, The 20th Century - Present

Mainland Southeast Asia

Most of Southeast Asia continues to be colonized during the first half of the twentieth century: Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos by the French; Malaysia and Myanmar (Burma) by the British; Indonesia by the Dutch; and the Philippines by the United States. Only Thailand remains independent. During World War II, the colonizing powers relax their grip on the region, and the Japanese encourage nascent independence movements to push for freedom. Though the Japanese occupation of Thailand, Vietnam, Burma, Malaysia, and Indonesia proves Japan's propaganda to be self-serving, Southeast Asia is not prepared to resume the colonialist yoke when the war ends. Between 1945 and 1957, all of Southeast Asia gains its independence.

With independence, several Southeast Asian countries turn to democracy or constitutional monarchy. However, struggles between communist and anticommunist factions plague the region for much of the 1960s and '70s. After the Vietnam War, Vietnam is united under communism and Laos also becomes communist. Cambodia suffers under the Khmer Rouge's genocidal communism in the late seventies. Indonesia has a strong communist party, which is influential under its first president, Sukarno (1901–1970). However, the military purges thousands of suspected communists in 1965. As for Burma, the country enjoys almost fifteen years of democracy, before a military coup installs a repressive and highly isolationist government. Overall, Southeast Asia faces economic difficulties, social and ethnic unrest, and political struggles through much of the mid-twentieth century. By the 1980s, conditions have improved, but the "Asian financial crisis" in the late 1990s is a serious setback for the region.

In the early decades of the twentieth century, Southeast Asian art is highly influenced by European art. Realism, Impressionism, and Expressionism are the favored styles. Landscapes and scenes of daily life are highly romanticized, while naturalistic portraits exalt the region's elite. Artists study in the West throughout the twentieth century, and embrace elements of Western modernism, particularly Cubism and abstraction. With the rise of nationalism, however, artists and critics in several countries turn to increasingly political subject matter, and, in some cases, begin to question their dependence on Western techniques and idioms. Often artists turn nostalgically to traditional and folk arts in the search for new, non-Western styles. Mid-century, the dominant debate in the arts is over the relationship between East and West: modernism is equated with Westernization and the erosion of indigenous values, while tradition is embraced in the search for authentic national idioms. Naturally, many artists and intellectuals are critical of these simplistic formulations. Giving a national character to modern art remains a concern, but by the 1980s and '90s, artists are less anxious about Westernization. Borrowing freely from a wide range of sources, many artists succeed in creating imagery that is at once personal and worldly, savvy of global trends while rooted in local concerns.

The arts develop much more slowly in communist Southeast Asia, and under Burma's repressive military regime. Under communism, artists in Vietnam and Laos practice Socialist Realism in the service of the state. Greater freedoms are given to artists in the 1980s, but neither country encourages a sense of the avant-garde in the arts. In Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge put a decisive end to the arts, along with all forms of intellectual life. Following their reign, however, the country begins to develop a vibrant cultural life. In Burma, there is still a very limited art scene

Island Southeast Asia

Among Southeast Asia's indigenous peoples, missionary activities continue to increase in scope and intensity and by mid-century most groups have been converted to Christianity. This conversion often has a devastating effect on local sculptural traditions as people cease to create, and in some instances destroy, images of ancestors and supernatural beings, which conflict with their newly adopted Christian beliefs. The region's textile traditions, however, continue to flourish, although weavers increasingly employ artificial dyes and other introduced materials.

Beginning in the 1970s, the broader Western interest in the art of the world's indigenous peoples results in greater attention to and collecting of works from the indigenous cultures of Southeast Asia. Much of the region's surviving sculpture and large numbers of textiles are acquired by dealers and collectors and enter Western museums and private collections.

(Source: The Met. Museum of Art).

Southeast Asian Art, The 19th Century

Mainland Southeast Asia

Over the course of the nineteenth century, Southeast Asia is colonized by Britain, France, and Holland. In 1799, the Dutch government takes over the Dutch East India Company's rule of parts of the Indonesian archipelago. Over the next hundred years, it extends control throughout the entire archipelago, including Sumatra and Bali. The modern boundaries of Indonesia are established at this time. Starting in 1824, Britain fights for control of Burma, finally incorporating it into its Indian empire in 1886. It gradually takes over peninsular Malaya as well, and, by 1874, effectively rules the area that will become modern-day Malaysia. By strengthening central authority over local chiefs and opening trade to Europe, Thailand remains free under a stable and strong monarchy. But France colonizes Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia to proclaim the French Indochina Union in 1887.

Colonization has an enormous impact on the populations and economies of the region. The British favor Indian and Chinese immigrants for skilled positions in Malaysia, and dismiss the general Malaysian population as peasantry. Education policies deepen ethnic divides. In Cambodia, the French favor the Vietnamese over the local population, while the British encourage widespread immigration of Indians and Chinese into Burma, a policy that leads to political division felt into contemporary times. The Burmese economy, long based on subsistence farming, shifts drastically to a large-scale export economy. A policy called Cultuurstelsel, applied in Indonesia, forces farmers to grow export crops. Though successful in some ways, the policy causes famine and impoverishment. The desire to sell European goods in colonial markets erodes traditional crafts, such as the production of batik and ikat textiles in Indonesia. Regular wars waged to gain control further damage the region.

Under colonial domination, however, ancient monuments and texts are closely studied, preserved, and restored. Angkor Wat, for instance, is rediscovered in the mid-nineteenth century, and the monuments of Cham, in Vietnam, come to public attention in 1885. Photography aids in the documentation of these monuments: Angkor Wat is photographed for the first time in 1866. From the mid-nineteenth century onward, colonial governments begin to open museums and found archaeological surveys. While knowledge of the past is gathered in the service of power, it also generates respect for and pride in Southeast Asian cultures, and becomes an important source of inspiration for local artists in the twentieth century who strive to create modern, non-Western arts.

Many traditions continue to thrive in the nineteenth century. Religious imagery tends to be conservative and relatively immune to Westernization. Many indigenous courts patronize a high level of craftsmanship in textiles, metalwork, jewelry, and ceramics. Manuscript paintings remain largely traditional, though some reveal European influences and resemble the Company School paintings of India. During the early nineteenth century, China is a dominant cultural influence in mainland Southeast Asia. However, elite culture becomes increasingly Westernized as colonial powers expand their control. In Burma, for instance, European pictorial conventions dominate the frescoes at the Kyauk-Taw-Gyi Temple (1849–50), while the Altumashi Monastery in Mandalay (1857) mixes European and indigenous architectural structures and motifs. The Javanese painter Raden Saleh (ca. 1807–1880), considered the "father" of Indonesian modern art, travels to Europe to study painting in 1829. Western art makes an impression much later in Vietnam, beginning with a few painters like Le Van Mien (1873–1943) who work in oils in the late nineteenth century. Despite Thailand's independence, the passion for things Western hits its elite at this time as well. The architecture of King Mongkut (r. 1851–68) incorporates Greek orders and Chinese ceramics into a Thai stylistic rubric. Over the next half century and well into the early twentieth, photography and naturalistic painting and sculpture dominate Thai court art.

Island Southeast Asia

While the great majority of the population in this period are Muslim, Buddhist, or Christian, Southeast Asia is also home to a diversity of indigenous peoples, who share aspects of their language, art, and culture with the Polynesians, Micronesians, and other Pacific Island groups. Often living in isolated enclaves separated by hundreds, even thousands, of miles, the region's indigenous peoples nonetheless exhibit remarkable similarities in their art and cultures, indicating that these groups share a common ancestry. One of the most striking similarities is in their conception of the human form, which is typically depicted in a seated or crouching position with the legs drawn close to the body and the hands or forearms resting on the knees.

Sculpture in indigenous Southeast Asian societies serves as a means of honoring and communicating with the supernatural beings believed to ensure the safety and prosperity of the village community. Most images depict local ancestors or fearsome supernatural guardians. Southeast Asia's indigenous peoples, particularly in Indonesia, also create a rich variety of textiles. However, by the mid-1800s, the colonial powers begin to send Christian missionaries to convert indigenous peoples from their local religions and many artistic traditions, particularly the creation of figural sculpture, begin to decline.

(Source: The Met. Museum of Art).