Aliran seni Art Deco

Pengertian Art Deco 

Art Deco adalah gaya populer yang dimulai dari 1920 hingga akhir dekadenya di tahun 1939. Art Deco banyak gunakan pada design arsitektur, idustri, interior, seni grafis dan film, serta fesyen. Art deco sendiri berasal dari pameran pada tahun 1925 di yang berjudul “Paris exposition des Art Decoratifs et Industries” di kota Paris, Perancis. Dalam pengertian lain, Art Deco merupakan gabungan dari beberapa gaya dan gerakan pada awal abad ke-20, yang didalamnya terdapat Konstruktsionisme, Kubisme, Moderenisme, Bahaus, Art Nouveau, dan Futurisme. Art Deco sangat terkenal apabila dilihat pada design alat transportasi seperti mobil, pesawat terbang, dan kapal laut sehingga dianggap sebagai simbol modernitas. Meskipun banyak muatan politik  atau filsafat di dalam Art Deco, namun secara murni Art Deco memiliki sifat dekoratif. Pada eranya, gaya ini dianggap anggun , fungsional, dan ultra modern.

SEJARH ART DECO

Setelah Eksposisi Dunia 1900, berbagai seniman Perancis membentuk sebuah kelompok  seniman dekorasi resmi yaituh ,La Société des artistes décorateurs. Para pendirinya antara lain adalah Hector Guimard,Eugène Grasset, Raoul Lachenal, Paul Follot, Maurice Dufrene dan Emile Decour. Para seniman ini sangat mempengaruhi prinsip-prinsip Art Deco pada umumnya.  Art Deco adalah sebuah gerakan desain yang populer yang dimulai dari 1920 hingga 1939, Nama Art Deco diberikan sebagai nama lambang kemajuan peradaban yang popular antara tahun 1920 sampai dengan 1930. Maksud perhimpunan ini adalah memperlihatkan desain tempat terkemuka dan evolusi seni dekoratif Perancis secara internasional. Wajarlah bila mereka mengorganisir Exposition Internationaledes Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes (Eksposisi Internasional untuk Seni Industri dan Dekoratif Modern) pada 1925, yang menampilkan seni dan kepentingan bisnis Perancis. Gerakan awal ini disebut Style Moderne. Periode atau Gaya Periode Modern antara dua perang dunia inilah "Art Deco" sebuah langgam eklektik muncul dengan menyatukan kosa-kosa bentuk dari berbagai sumber. Dimulai dari Perancis kata Art Deco merupakan singkatan dari Art Decoratif yang muncul dalam nama penyelenggaraan pameran "Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes" 1 pada tahun 1925. Dalam pameran inilah ditampilkan langgam baru dalam desain untuk seni terap dan arsitektur yang kemudian menyebar ke seluruh dunia. Art Deco adalah sebuah kontradiksi yang terlahir diantara kegemilangan tahun 20-an dan depresi (tekanan) tahun 30-an. Ketika orang ingin melupakan trauma perang dunia, menikmati hidup dan melihat ke masa depan, tampilah Art Deco yang mewakili pola kehidupan keseharian dan gaya elegan, canggih dan modern. Langgam baru ini mewarnai dan terlahir bersamaan munculnya gaya hidup baru yang mengekspresikan kemakmuran hidup. Fashion, grafis, desain produk dan film menampilkan idiom-idiom yang sama pada saat yang bersamaan. Hiburan dan perjalanan menjadi berita-berita baru sebagai perayaan lahirnya era komersialisme dan teknologi baru seiring dengan munculnya kecepatan sebagai metafora pada era modern.  art deco sangat mempengaruhi seni dekoratif waktu itu yang berkembang seperti arsitektur, desain interior, dan desain industri, maupun seni visual seperti misalnya fesyen, lukisan, seni grafis,bangunan  dan film. Gerakan ini pada awal mulanya dalam pengertian tertentu, Popularitasnya memuncak pada 1920-an. Art Deco muncul dari sebuah periode  ketika industrialisasi yang pesat telah mengubah macam budaya. Salah satu atribut utama adalah pelukan dari  teknologi yang terbaru .Hal  Ini sangat berarti  membedakan Art Deco dari motif organik yang banyaknya disukai oleh pendahulunya yaitu Art Nouveau. Art Deco banyak mengunakan gradasi warna yang halus serta warna yang mengesankan efek kilauan atau lengkungan logam dalam sebuah karya seninya .Art Deco juga banyak menggunakan bahan-bahan mahal dan sedikit ornamen hias yang bisa lebih menarik banyak perhatian . Ornamen yang digunakan dalam Art Deco lebih beraturan dan banyak menggunakan garis-garis lurus atau persegi. Selama masa jayanya, Art Deco menggambarkan kemewahan, glamor, kegembiraan, dan iman dalam kemajuan sosial dan teknologi. Meskipun banyak gerakan desain mempunyai akar dan maksud politik atau filsafati, Art Deco murni bersifat dekoratif.

TOKOH ART DECO

Tokoh Art Deco dalam desain grafis yang terkenal, khususnya di Prancis diantaranya AM, Cassandre dan Jean Calu

CIRI KHAS DAN KARAKTERISTIK ART DECO

Art Deco sendiri tidaklah terwujud dengan sendirinya, melainkan dipengaruhi aliran kubisme dan Fauvisme serta juga gaya primitive Afrika, Mesir dan Indian Aztec, Maya di Amerika Selatan. Jeff Hoffman, Frank Lioyd, Adolf Loos yang merupakan pedisain Modernisme awal banyak diserap kedalam Art Deco. Tersebar di dipenjuru Eropa, Perancis sebagai pusat Art Deco telah memiliki sekolah seni dokaratif yaituh The Martine School yang berdiri sejak 1911. Gaya geometris Bauhaus dari Jerman dibangunkan dengan bentuk-bentuk yang ekspresif banyak dimanfaatkan oleh para desainer.

Art Deco dikarakterkan dengan penggunaan bahan-bahan seperti aluminum, stainless steel, pernis, inlaid wood (kayu hias) , kulit hiu, dan kulit zebra. Penggunaan yang tegas dari bentuk bertingkat, sapuan kurva (tidak berliku-liku seperti Art Nouveau), pola-pola chevron , dan motif pancaran matahari.

Istilah Art Deco berkembang sepanjang kemunculannya pada tahun 1925 tetapi tidak dipakai lebih luas sampai tahun 1960. Gaya art deco diangap sebagai gaya yang berwawasan luas tentang pandangan dekorasi modern yang dipengaruhi oleh berbagai macam sumber, contohnya: :

•      Awal pekerjaan arsitek Wiener Werkstätte; disain industri fungsional, dengan akar pada akhir abad ke sembilan belas.

•      Awal pekerjaan dan pikiran dari Weimar Bauhaus menyangkut tahap penunjukkan dirinya di dalamnya.

•      Pahatan dan keramik gaya Yunani jaman kuno perancangan semakin sedikit mendekati periode kuno

•      Bentuk fractionated, kristal dari dekoratif kubis dan futuristi

•      Fauve, warna palet

•      Bentuk yang menjengkelkan dari gaya radikal Neoklasik memacu terbentuknya gaya art deco: Boullée, Schinkel

•      Art deco sering dihubungkan dengan musik Jazz

•      Motif binatang dan bentuk daun-daunan tropis, ziggurats,  kristal,  sunbursts,  motif air mancur yang disesuaikan mode

•      Gaya art deco juga mempengaruhi penampilan wanita, yaitu gaya atletik luwes " modern" wanita,  rambut yang dipotong pendek menandakan gadis modern tahun l920-an

•      Tahun teknologi mesin dimana ditemukan radio dan pemancar.

ART DECO PADA SENI BANGUNAN

Kita dapat melihat maha karya Art Deco yang hingga kini masih berdiri kokoh di kota New York, Amerika Serikat. Tepatnya di timur dari pulau Manhattan pada persimpangan 42^nd Street dan Lexington Avenue yaituh  Gedung Pencakar Langit Crysler (Gambar Kiri) yang dibangun pada tahun 1928 hingga 1930 dengan tinggi 319 meter dan ditambahkan pada puncaknya menjadi 365.8 M untuk Bank of America. Dirancang oleh William Van Allen. Memiliki 1046 Lantai, hingga kini masih berfungsi sebagai perkantoran.

Ciri khas Art Deco yang berbentuk pola cevron atau zigzag dan motif pancaran matahari yang. Yang dapat kita lihat memiliki kesamaan dengan kaya tradisional suku Maya di Amerika Selatan. Pengunaan material Stainess Stell pada bagian luar gedung menegaskan karakter Art Deco yang tegas dan kuat yang mereprestasikan kemajuan peradaban Amerika Serikat dimasa perang.

Amerika Serikat dimasa perang dunia mencitrakan dirinya sebagai negara yang memiliki kemajuan peradabannya melaui Ibu Kotanya New York (sebelum dipindahkan ke Washington D.C) melalui desain bangunannya yang merepresentasikan AS yang tangguh, anggun dan megah.Selain gedung Crysler, dan gedung Empire State, masih ada tempat dimana menjadi daerah Bersejarah Art Deco yang berlokasi di ujung selatan pantai Miami, Florida (gambar kanan) yang juga berkembang dimasa perang dunia 1920-an hingga 1930-an.

ART DECO DALAM TEKNOLOGI OTOMOTIF

Streamlined

Dalam tahun 1930an, Art Deco dikenal sebagai sosok teknologi dan kecepatan di Amerika Serikat. Hal tersebut terlihat pada pengunaan bahan-bahan yang modern dan glossy, permukaan yang halus dan garis mendatar yang aerodinamis. Versi Art Deco yang lebih halus dikenal sebagai Streamlined Modern yang menggantikan detail pola geometris pada masa awal Art Deco.

Donald Beskey yang merupakan perancang asal Amerika Serikat menciptakan interior yang dilengkapi dan dipadupadankan dengan pengunaan material baru seperti Barkelit (suatu jenis plasstik), chrimeplated metal, batu bara dan linoleum. Perncang yang berasal dari Negara Paman Sam, Raymond Leiwy, membawa Art Deco kedalam perumahan masyarakat dengan desain garis yang ramping untuk coldspot refigenerator.

Di 1940-an gaya Art Deco cukup berpengaruh dan cukup diperhitungkan seperti banyak gaya desain klasik lainnya. Art deco mencerminkan suatu momen dalam budaya kultur modern-the-age-of jaz  yang divisualisasikan pada garis mobil yang ramping (mobil streamline).

ART DECO PADA DUNIA FESYEN

 Pengaruh Art Deco Terhadap dunia fesyen di Amerika dan Eropa sangatlah kuat di era 1920’an namun istilah “Art deco” sendiri tidak dikenal.

Beberapa brand ternama mengusung konsep “Art Deco” pada motif pakaian, perhiasan, sepatu, bandana, warna cat kuku, sepatu, dan lain sebaginya. Dari era “Art Deco” sendiri hinga kini dianggap sebagai gaya vintage namun dunia fesye mode dewasa ini mengangkan kembali trend mode zaman dahulu khususnya “Art Deco”.

ART DECO DI INDONESIA

Di Indonesia tentunya banyak bangunan bergaya Art Deco yang masih harus dicari dan diteliti.Berawal dari rasa ingin tahu lebih mendalam mengenai Art Deco, kami mencoba menginjakan kaki di kawasan Kota Tua Jakarta yang dimulai dari Stasiun Jakarta Kota atau yang lebih dikenal dengan istilah Stasiun Beos.Kata “Beos” sendiri diperkirakan berasal dari nama Bataviasche Ooster Spoorweg Maatschapij ( Maskapai Angkutan Kereta Api Batavia Timur). Versi lain, Beos berasal dari kata Batavia En Omstreken, yang artinya Batavia dan Sekitarnya. Stasiun ini diresmikan pada tahun 1928 oleh Gubernur Jendral JHR. A.C.D. de Graeff. Dirancang sebagai sebuah arsitektur bergaya Art Deco, oleh seorang arsitek Belanda kelahiran Tulungagung, FJL Ghijsels pada tahun 1928 dengan sebutan Stasiun Batavia Selatan (Batavia Zuid). Stasiun ini dianggap sebagai salah satu monumen terpenting dalam wacana arsitektur bergaya Indis (Indische Bouwen) – gaya yang memadukan unsur arsitektur modern Barat dengan nilai nilai lokal.

Museum Bank Mandiri

Dilanjutkan ke Gedung Museum Bank Mandiri (ex-Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij (NHM)) dirancang oleh 3 orang arsitek belanda yaitu J.J.J de Bruyn, A.P. Smits dan C. van de Linde. Gedung ini mulai dibangun tahun 1929 dan pada tanggal 14 Januari 1933 dibuka secara resmi Oleh C.J Karel Van Aalst, Presiden NHM ke-10. Gedung ex-NHM ini tampak kokoh dan megah dengan arsitektur Niew Zakelijk atau Art Deco Klasik.

Museum Keramik dan Seni Rupa

Dan destinasi terakhir kami yaitu Museum Keramik dan Seni Rupa yang terletak di Jalan Pos Kota No 2, Kotamadya Jakarta Barat, Provinsi DKI Jakarta, Indonesia. Museum yang tepatnya berada di seberang Museum Sejarah Jakarta. Disana kami menemukan perabot makan dan tanga bergaya Art Deco Klasik.

 

Beberapa bangunan di Indonesia yang bernuasa Art Deco

			Villa Isola Upi Bandung
	Kawasan                                                  Braga, Bandung

 

                   Bioskop Megaria, DKI Jakarta

Banyak warisan gedung-gedung bergaya Art Deco peninggalan bersejarah peralihan dari era kolonial hingga kemerdekaan di berbagai kota di Indonesia yang menjadi saksi bisu transisi sejarah dan kehidupan social. Indonesia sudah tidak asing dengan Art Deco.

KESIMPULAN

Bahwa Art Deco adalah sebuah maha karya yang dapat dikategorikan prestigius dan sama seperti aliran seni rupa lainnya Art Deco memiliki masa kejayaan dimulai dari tahun 1920 hingga 1930 –an. Yang dimulai dari Perancis yang hancur karena perang dan membangun ulang negaranya dengan mengunakan konsep baru. Konsep tersebut ingin menunjukan bahwa Perancis sebagai pelopor perubahan zaman yang dimulai dari seni desain bangunan hingga tata busana. Art Deco sampai ke Amerika Serikat dan melahirkan budaya baru yaitu budaya modern jazz dan meghasilkan broadway. Di Indonesia sendiri Art Deco pernah memiliki masa keemasannya dan mayoritas bangunan terdapat di Kota Bandung yang nota bene pernah sengaja dihancurkan untuk mengelabui para tentara Belanda yang ingin menguasai kota Bandung. Hal ini dapat kita lihat di area Braga, Villa Isola Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, dan banyak tempat lainnya. Dan di Ibu kota pun masih dapat kita jumpai bangunan jadul yang bernuasa Art Deco seperti dikawasan Kota Tua DKI Jakarta. Art deco sendiri memiliki ciri khusus seperti yang telah disebutkan didalam materi paper dan cenderung mengunakan warna halus dan menonjolkan kilauan. Dan Art Deco sendiri masih diterapkan pada desain bangunan rumah minimalis dan juga dalam pembuatan beberapa mobil sport

SARAN

Art Deco dapat dikatakan warisan sejarah yang berharga hingga saat ini, dan di republik ini banyak terdapat peninggalan seni art deco dalam bentuk bangunan yang memiliki nilai historis. Baiknya kita menjaga sisa peninggalan sejarah yang menjadi monumen perjalanan sejarah negera ini agar tidak lenyap dimakan zaman.

CATATAN KAKI

·         http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Deco,

·         Adityawan S, Arief, Tinjaun desain dari revolusi insdustri hingga postmodern, Jakarta: Universitas Tarumanagara, 1999, hal 67-72

·         http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/wonder/structure/chrysler2_skyscraper.html

·         http://www.ogletreedeakins.com/locations/index.cfm?fuseaction=Miami_FL

·         www.stylefrenchantiques.com/pages/table.htm

·         www.light-romance.on.ca/artdeco.html

·         www.houseoflime.com/dings/artdecomotif.htm

·         www.hgd.com/gallery/howie_green_ladies.htm

Nyethe, the art of Coffee Lovers and lovers of Smoking

Love Coffee?
Like smoking?
Like art or hand you guys never silent?
Or ... Even a mixture of all three, like me?

Then this could be a small toy for you..

NYETHE...

A new toy for yourself that creative

In the area of Tulungagung, get some coffee and nyethe whose names are things that can not separated. Nyethe own understanding is applying to smoking coffee deposits. This is called nyethe for coffee with coffee cethe. In Tulungagung, a menu offers coffee stalls cethe this much at all, so the city also famous Tulungagung coffee shop cethe.

The Origin Of Coffee Cethe And Nyethe
History of nyethe own actually began when peasants finish works from the rice paddies, a habit they will drop in to get some coffee and meet other fellow farmers to simply communicating and discussing things on their farm. Well, get some coffee and a chat, while occasional smoking is in the suction applied to the deposits of coffee is in the Cup. The coffee was not as smooth as that is what it is today or still rough. Coffee deposits dicethekan to smoking and burning caused a sensation by itself. This adds riding get some coffee while chatting at a coffee shop.

 

Types of coffee
Coffee used for this nyethe wears very fine coffee powder. To aggravate the delicate coffee dregs to smoking, added a bit of fresh milk.

In Tulungagung itself there are two types of regular coffee sold at coffee shops, namely black coffee and coffee-Ijo. Called black coffee because coffee is made from pure without mixture. While the Coffee is made from a mixture of Ijo coffee and green beans with a specific processing. Both types of coffee can be fine as long as the material of cethe.

Motive Nyethe
Usually smoking the cethe form motifs. His motives were different – sort, began to swirl, the writing, even tribal character puppet can also in cethe in smoking. So that nyethe can be also called batik smoking. Some examples of motofnya can be seen below.

Step Nyethe
In the manufacturing process, the materials need cethe we prepare is drenched, tisyu, coffee and milk cream. While the tool – a tool to draw it between the other toothpick and razor blade, sewing thread.

 

The Second Step
Let sit back coffee inside the drenched for 10-15 minutes, so that the Lees settles in the bottom of coffee-drenched. If you've seen the coffee dregs settles at the base of drenched, please copy poured slowly with care – hearts into glasses. Try not to shake when you pour it back into the glass so that the fibres are not mixed back slope, with so we can get quite a number of coffee dregs and smooth.

The Third Step
Pat dry deposition kopi drenched with tisyu or newsprint, but never once was mixed with milk cream. Purpose is to make easy cethe collected and that the resulting cethe later not too dilute. Because if dipekatkan or precipitated after coffee blended milk cream, coffee dregs will stick in the tisyu newspaper.

The fourth step

Gather the coffee dregs dried then add with a few drops of milk cream. Milk cream used is milk white cream. Then stir until blended, to coffee dregs and milk cream mixed in. Add a few drops of water to coffee to mengencerkannya. If you think it's pretty keencerannya, cethe is ready to use.

In menyethe, after the end of the tool (stick a toothpick razor blade) dipped into cethe, to note is don't be too stressed to smoking tool. If you want to get thin lines is quite a pasting and mengerakkannya or menggoreskannya carefully. If it is too pressed papers are torn or are at risk of

 

This culture only exists in our beloved country, Indonesia. So. .. not just our famous coffee!! but also every thing related to the coffee itself becomes very unique if we want to know.

How to ... been inspired?
want more ... just click here to be able to inspire you more ....

Batik, the Traditional Fabric of Indonesia

It would be impossible to visit or live in Indonesia and not be exposed to one of the country's most highly developed art forms, batik. On your first visit to a batik store or factory you will undoubtedly experience an overwhelming stimulation of the senses - due to the many colors, patterns and the actual smell of batik. Only through repeated visits and a bit of study will the types of designs and their origins become apparent. The word batik is thought to be derived from the word 'ambatik' which translated means 'a cloth with little dots'. The suffix 'tik' means little dot, drop, point or to make dots. Batik may also originate from the Javanese word 'tritik' which describes a resist process for dying where the patterns are reserved on the textiles by tying and sewing areas prior to dying, similar to tie dye techniques. Another Javanese phase for the mystical experience of making batik is “mbatik manah” which means “drawing a batik design on the heart”.

A Brief History

Although experts disagree as to the precise origins of batik, samples of dye resistance patterns on cloth can be traced back 1,500 years ago to Egypt and the Middle East. Samples have also been found in Turkey, India, China, Japan and West Africa from past centuries. Although in these countries people were using the technique of dye resisting decoration, within the textile realm, none have developed batik to its present day art form as the highly developed intricate batik found on the island of Java in Indonesia.
Although there is mention of 'fabrics highly decorated' in Dutch transcripts from the 17th century, most scholars believe that the intricate Javanese batik designs would only have been possible after the importation of finely woven imported cloth, which was first imported to Indonesia from India around the 1800s and afterwards from Europe beginning in 1815. Textile patterns can be seen on stone statues that are carved on the walls of ancient Javanese temples such as Prambanan (AD 800), however there is no conclusive evidence that the cloth is batik. It could possibly be a pattern that was produced with weaving techniques and not dying. What is clear is that in the 19th century batik became highly developed and was well ingrained in Javanese cultural life.
Some experts feel that batik was originally reserved as an art form for Javanese royalty. Certainly it's royal nature was clear as certain patterns were reserved to be worn only by royalty from the Sultan's palace. Princesses and noble women may have provided the inspiration for the highly refined design sense evident in traditional patterns. It is highly unlikely though that they would be involved in any more than the first wax application. Most likely, the messy work of dyeing and subsequent waxings was left to court artisans who would work under their supervision.
Javanese royalty were known to be great patrons of the arts and provided the support necessary to develop many art forms, such as silver ornamentation, wayang kulit (leather puppets) and gamelan orchestras. In some cases the art forms overlap. The Javanese dalang (puppeteer) not only was responsible for the wayang puppets but was also an important source of batik patterns. Wayang puppets are usually made of goat skin, which is then perforated and painted to create the illusion of clothing on the puppet. Used puppets were often sold to eager ladies who used the puppets as guides for their batik patterns. They would blow charcoal through the holes that define the patterns of clothing on the puppets, in order to copy the intricate designs onto the cloth.
Other scholars disagree that batik was only reserved as an art form for royalty, as they also feel its use was prevalent with the rakyat, the people. It was regarded an important part of a young ladies accomplishment that she be capable of handling a canting (the pen-like instrument used to apply wax to the cloth) with a reasonable amount of skill, certainly as important as cookery and other housewifery arts to Central Javanese women.

Selection and Preparation of the Cloth for Batik

Natural materials such as cotton or silk are used for the cloth, so that it can absorb the wax that is applied in the dye resisting process. The fabrics must be of a high thread count (densely woven). It is important that cloth of high quality have this high thread count so that the intricate design qualities of batik can be maintained.
The cloth that is used for batik is washed and boiled in water many times prior to the application of wax so that all traces of starches, lime, chalk and other sizing materials are removed. Prior to the implementation of modern day techniques, the cloth would have been pounded with a wooden mallet or ironed to make it smooth and supple so it could best receive the wax design. With the finer machine-made cotton available today, the pounding or ironing processes can be omitted. Normally men did this step in the batik process.
Strict industry standards differentiate the different qualities of the cloth used today, which include Primissima (the best) and Prima. The cloth quality is often written on the edge of the design. A lesser quality cloth which is often used in Blaco.

Batik Design Tools

Although the art form of batik is very intricate, the tools that are used are still very simple. The canting, believed to be a purely Javanese invention, is a small thin wall spouted copper container (sometimes called a wax pen) that is connected to a short bamboo handle. Normally it is approximately 11 cm. in length. The copper container is filled with melted wax and the artisan then uses the canting to draw the design on the cloth.
Canting have different sizes of spouts (numbered to correspond to the size) to achieve varied design effects. The spout can vary from 1 mm in diameter for very fine detailed work to wider spouts used to fill in large design areas. Dots and parallel lines may be drawn with canting that have up to 9 spouts. Sometimes a wad of cotton is fastened over the mouth of the canting or attached to a stick that acts as a brush to fill in very large areas.
For close-up pictures of canting.

Wajan

The wajan is the container that holds the melted wax. It looks like a small wok. Normally it is made of iron or earthenware. The wajan is placed on a small brick charcoal stove or a spirit burner called an 'anglo'. The wax is kept in a melted state while the artisan is applying the wax to the cloth.

Wax

Different kinds and qualities of wax are used in batik. Common waxes used for batik consist of a mixture of beeswax, used for its malleability, and paraffin, used for its friability. Resins can be added to increase adhesiveness and animal fats create greater liquidity.
The best waxes are from the Indonesian islands of Timor, Sumbawa and Sumatra; three types of petroleum-based paraffin (white, yellow and black) are used. The amounts mixed are measured in grams and vary according to the design. Wax recipes can be very closely guarded secrets. Varying colors of wax make it possible to disguise different parts of the pattern through the various dying stages. Larger areas of the pattern are filled in with wax that is cheaper quality and the higher quality wax is used on the more intricately detailed sections of the design.
The wax must be kept at the proper temperature. A wax that is too cool will clog the spout of the canting. A wax that is too hot will flow too quickly and be uncontrollable. The artisan will often blow into the spout of the canting before applying wax to the cloth in order to clear the canting of any obstructions.

Cap

Creating batik is a very time consuming craft. To meet growing demands and make the fabric more affordable to the masses, in the mid-19th century the . cap. (copper stamp - pronounced chop) was developed. This invention enabled a higher volume of batik production compared to the traditional method which entailed the tedious application of wax by hand with a canting.
Each cap is a copper block that makes up a design unit. Cap are made of 1.5 cm wide copper stripes that are bent into the shape of the design. Smaller pieces of wire are used for the dots. When complete, the pattern of copper strips is attached to the handle.
The cap must be precisely made. This is especially true if the pattern is to be stamped on both sides of the fabric. It is imperative that both sides of the cap are identical so that pattern will be consistent.
Sometimes cap are welded between two grids like pieces of copper that will make a base for the top and the bottom. The block is cut in half at the center so the pattern on each half is identical. Cap vary in size and shape depending on the pattern they are needed for. It is seldom that a cap will exceed 24 cm in diameter, as this would make the handling too difficult.
Men usually handle the application of wax using cap. A piece of cloth that involves a complicated design could require as many as ten sets of cap. The usage of cap, as opposed to canting, to apply the wax has reduced the amount of time to make a cloth.
Today, batik quality is defined by cap or tulis, the second meaning hand-drawn designs which use a canting, or kombinasi, a combination of the two techniques.

Dyes

Traditional colors for Central Javanese batik were made from natural ingredients and consisted primarily of beige, blue, brown and black.
The oldest color that was used in traditional batik making was blue. The color was made from the leaves of the Indigo plant. The leaves were mixed with molasses sugar and lime and left to stand overnight. Sometimes sap from the Tinggi tree was added to act as a fixing agent. Lighter blue was achieved by leaving the cloth in the dye bath for short periods of time. For darker colors, the cloth would be left in the dye bath for days and may have been submerged up to 8 - 10 times a day.
In traditional batik, the second color applied was a brown color called soga. The color could range from light yellow to a dark brown. The dye came from the bark of the Soga tree. Another color that was traditionally used was a dark red color called mengkuda. This dye was created from the leaves of the Morinda Citrifolia.
The final hue depended on how long the cloth was soaked in the dye bath and how often it was dipped. Skilled artisans can create many variations of these traditional colors. Aside from blue, green would be achieved by mixing blue with yellow; purple was obtained by mixing blue and red. The soga brown color mixed with indigo would produce a dark blue-black color.

Design Process

The outline of the pattern is blocked out onto the cloth, traditionally with charcoal or graphite. Traditional batik designs utilize patterns handed down over the generations. It is very seldom that an artisan is so skilled that he can work from memory and would not need to draw an outline of the pattern before applying the wax. Often designs are traced from stencils or patterns called pola. Another method of tracing a pattern onto a cloth is by laying the cloth on a glass table that is illuminated from below which casts a shadow of the pattern onto the cloth. The shadow is then traced with a pencil. In large batik factories today, men usually are in charge of drawing the patterns onto the cloth. Click here to see the step-by-step process of making batik.

Waxing

Once the design is drawn out onto the cloth it is then ready to be waxed. Wax is applied to the cloth over the areas of the design that the artisan wishes to remain the original color of the cloth. Normally this is white or cream.
Female workers sit on a low stool or on a mat to apply the wax with a canting. The fabric that they are working on is draped over light bamboo frames called gawangan to allow the freshly applied wax to cool and harden. The wax is heated in the wajan until it is of the desired consistency. The artisan then dips her canting into the wax to fill the bowl of the canting.
Artisans use the wax to retrace the pencil outline on the fabric. A small drop cloth is kept on the woman. s lap to protect her from hot dripping wax. The stem of the canting is held with the right hand in a horizontal position to prevent any accidental spillage, which greatly reduces the value of the final cloth. The left hand is placed behind the fabric for support. The spout does not touch the fabric, but it held just above the area the artisan is working on. To ensure the pattern is well defined, batik is waxed on both sides. True tulis batik is reversible, as the pattern should be identical on both sides.
The most experienced artisans normally do first waxings. Filling in of large areas may be entrusted to less experienced artisans. Mistakes are very difficult to correct. If wax is accidentally spilt on the cloth, the artisan will try to remove the unwanted wax by sponging it with hot water. Then a heated iron rod with a curved end is used to try and lift off the remaining wax. Spilled wax can never be completely removed so it is imperative that the artisans are very careful.
If the cap method is utilized, this procedure is normally done by men. The cap are dipped into melted wax. Just under the surface of the melted wax is a folded cloth approximately 30 centimeters square. When this cloth is saturated with wax it acts like a stamp pad. The cap is pressed into the fabric until the design side of the cap is coated with wax. The saturated cap is then stamped onto the fabric, leaving the design of the cap. This process is repeated until the entire cloth is covered. Often cap and canting methods are combined on the same piece of cloth.
Better quality batik may be waxed utilizing canting in one part of Indonesia and then sent to another part of Indonesia where the cap part of the process is completed. On better quality cap fabric great care is taken to match the pattern exactly. Lower grade batik is characterized by overlapping lines or lightened colored lines indicating the cap was not applied correctly.

Dyeing

After the initial wax has been applied, the fabric is ready for the first dye bath. Traditionally dying was done in earthenware tubs. Today most batik factories use large concrete vats. Above the vats are ropes with pulleys that the fabric is draped over after it has been dipped into the dye bath.
The waxed fabric is immersed in the dye bath of the first color. The amount of time it is left in the bath determines the hue of the color; darker colors require longer periods or numerous immersions. The fabric is then put into a cold water bath to harden the wax.
When the desired color has been achieved and the fabric has dried, wax is reapplied over the areas that the artisan wishes to maintain the first dye color or another color at a later stage in the dying process.
When an area that has been covered with wax previously needs to be exposed so that it can be dyed, the applied wax is scraped away with a small knife. The area is then sponged with hot water and resized with rice starch before it is re-immersed in the subsequent dye bath.
If a marble effect is desired, the wax is intentionally cracked before being placed in the dye bath. The dye seeps into the tiny cracks that create the fine lines that are characteristic of batik. Traditionally, cracks were a sign of inferior cloth especially on indigo color batik. On brown batik, however, the marble effect was accepted.
The number of colors in batik represents how many times it was immersed in the dye bath and how many times wax had to be applied and removed. A multicolored batik represents a lot more work that a single or two-color piece. Numerous dye processes are usually reflected in the price of the cloth. Nowadays, chemical dyes have pretty much replaced traditional dyes, so colors are endless and much more liberally used.

Special Treatments to the Batik Cloth

Prada or Gold Cloth

For special occasions, batik was formerly decorated with gold lead or gold dust. This cloth is known as Prada cloth. Gold leaf was used in the Jogjakarta and Surakarta area. The Central Javanese used gold dust to decorate their Prada cloth. It was applied to the fabric using a handmade glue consisting of egg white or linseed oil and yellow earth. The gold would remain on the cloth even after it had been washed. The gold could follow the design of the cloth or could take on its own design. Older batiks could be given a new look by applying gold to them. Gold decorated cloth is still made today; however, gold paint has replaced gold dust and leaf.

Batik Designs

Although there are thousands of different batik designs, particular designs have traditionally been associated with traditional festivals and specific religious ceremonies. Previously, it was thought that certain cloth had mystical powers to ward off ill fortune, while other pieces could bring good luck.
Certain batik designs are reserved for brides and bridegrooms as well as their families. Other designs are reserved for the Sultan and his family or their attendants. A person's rank could be determined by the pattern of the batik he/she wore.
In general, there are two categories of batik design: geometric motifs (which tend to be the earlier designs) and free form designs, which are based on stylized patterns of natural forms or imitations of a woven texture. Nitik is the most famous design illustrating this effect.
Certain areas are known for a predominance of certain designs. Central Javanese designs are influenced by traditional patterns and colors. Batik from the north coast of Java, near Pekalongan and Cirebon, have been greatly influenced by Chinese culture and effect brighter colors and more intricate flower and cloud designs.
High fashion designs drawn on silk are very popular with wealthy Indonesians. These exceptionally high-quality pieces can take months to create and costs hundreds of dollars.

Kawung

Kawung is another very old design consisting of intersecting circles, known in Java since at least the thirteenth century. This design has appeared carved into the walls of many temples throughout Java such as Prambanan near Jogjakarta and Kediri in East Java. For many years, this pattern was reserved for the royal court of the Sultan of Jogjakarta. The circles are sometimes embellished inside with two or more small crosses or other ornaments such as intersecting lines or dots. It has been suggested that the ovals might represent flora such as the fruit of the kapok (silk cotton) tree or the aren (sugar palm).

Ceplok

Ceplok is a general name for a whole series of geometric designs based on squares, rhombs, circles, stars, etc. Although fundamentally geometric, ceplok can also represent abstractions and stylization of flowers, buds, seeds and even animals. Variations in color intensity can create illusions of depth and the overall effect is not unlike medallion patterns seen on Turkish tribal rugs. The Indonesian population is largely Muslim, a religion that forbids the portrayal of animal and human forms in a realistic manner. To get around this prohibition, the batik worker does not attempt to express this matter in a realistic form. A single element of the form is chosen and then that element is repeated again and again in the pattern.

Parang

Parang was once used exclusively by the royal courts of Central Java. It has several suggested meanings such as 'rugged rock', 'knife pattern' or 'broken blade'. The Parang design consists of slanting rows of thick knife-like segments running in parallel diagonal bands. Parang usually alternated with narrower bands in a darker contrasting color. These darker bands contain another design element, a line of lozenge-shaped motifs call mlinjon. There are many variations of this basic striped pattern with its elegant sweeping lines, with over forty parang designs recorded. The most famous is the 'Parang Rusak' which in its most classical form consisting of rows of softly folded parang. This motif also appears in media other than batik, including woodcarving and as ornamentation on gamelan musical instruments.

Washing Batik

Harsh chemical detergents, dryers and drying of fabrics in the sun may fade the colors in batik. Traditionally dyed batiks should be washed in soap for sensitive fabrics, such as Woolite, Silky or Halus. Fine batik in Indonesia is washed with the lerak fruit which can be purchased at most traditional markets. A bottled version of this detergent is also available at batik stores. Be sure to line dry batik in a shady area and not in direct sunlight.

Modern Batik

Modern batik, although having strong ties to traditional batik, utilizes linear treatment of leaves, flowers and birds. These batiks tend to be more dependent on the dictates of the designer rather than the stiff guidelines that have guided traditional craftsmen. This is also apparent in the use of color that modern designers use. Artisans are no longer dependent on traditional (natural) dyes, as chemical dyes can produce any color that they wish to achieve. Modern batik still utilizes canting and cap to create intricate designs.
Fashion designers such as Iwan Tirta have aggressively introduced batik into the world fashion scene. They have done much to promote the Indonesian art of batik dress, in its traditional and modern forms.
The horizon of batik is continuing to widen. While the design process has remained basically the same over the last century, the process shows great progress in recent decades. Traditionally, batik was sold in 2 1/4 meter lengths used for kain panjang or sarong in traditional dress. Now, not only is batik used as a material to clothe the human body, its uses also include furnishing fabrics, heavy canvas wall hangings, tablecloths and household accessories. Batik techniques are used by famous artists to create batik paintings which grace many homes and offices.
Fine quality handmade batik is very expensive and the production of such works is very limited. However, in a world that is dominated by machines there is an increasing interest in materials that have been handmade. Batik is one of these materials.
During your stay in Indonesia, take advantage of your time here to learn more about the fascinating world of batik. Have a batik dress or men's business shirt made for you by a seamstress or tailor. Visit batik factories in Jogjakarta, Surakarta or Pekalongan to see for yourself how the intricate process is conducted or ask questions of batik artisans giving demonstrations in stores such as Sarinah or Pasaraya in Jakarta. You will come away with sense of wonder over the time, effort and patience put into the creation of each batik cloth. You too may soon grow to love the distinctive waxy smell of batik and your batik acquisitions will provide many memories of your stay in Indonesia. Your support of the batik industry will also ensure that this art form grows to even greater peaks.

Batik Home Furnishings

One of the distinct pleasures of living in (or visiting) Indonesia is the opportunity to purchase some truly magnificent home furnishings made of batik. As the fabric is truly unique to Indonesia, this is definitely the best place to purchase authentic batik! Batik factories can product batik to your order, with custom colors and designs in large rolls, ready to use for your home decoration projects. The 100% cotton fabric is usually preshrunk in the batik dying process and other fabrics are usually available with the batik design, should your design requirements warrant. Higher end shops also have design consultants who can help you with the layout of the room you are planning to design with your batik fabric and work with you on additional furnishings (pillows, bed covers, and cushions) to complete your color scheme.
If you are unable to visit Indonesia, but are still interested in batik fabric, the best place to start is by looking for batik prints in major fabric stores, or shop online for batik fabric. With the beautiful batik designs availabe, you wil be on your way to creating your own batik creations for your home. The timeless designs of beautiful batik motifs have been utilized by skilled fabric designers around the world who want to share the beauty of batik with an even wider audience across the globe. You'll soon be getting compliments from visitors to your home about the beautiful home furnishings made of batik, or your new wardrobe pieces!

Additional informaiton on Batik in Indonesia

Batik Designs: A Cultural Development Influenced by Changes in Time & Environment
Batik Canting - beautiful wall hangings from antique batik
Canting Batik - traditional hand batiking tool from Indonesia
Kebaya - Indonesian Traditional Dress for Women - read about the blouse that is worn with the batik kain (sarong) in much of Indonesian traditional dress.
Watch a You Tube video by Piet Verboven of the batik making process!
Links to other sites with good info on Indonesian batik.

New directions in wallpaper design & art

'Tits in Space', wallpaper (detail), Sarah Lucas, 2000. Museum no. E.832-2000 © Sarah Lucas, Courtesy of Sadie Coles HQ, London

Wallpaper in the 20th century had become very much associated with the 'country house' look, with chintzy florals, Morris revivals and historic patterns predominating. There was a brief flowering of new and original design directions in the 1950s and 1960s, when architects and artists revitalised the industry; designers such as Lucienne Day initiated a trend for adventurous patterns inspired by contemporary painting and sculpture, while John Line's Palladio and Modus ranges were characterised by bold large-scale contemporary designs, many by artists new to wallpaper. However, this confident phase was soon overwhelmed by a taste for nostalgic patterns, reproductions and pastiches. And as one journalist put it, wallpaper in the 1990s had been a 'no-no', out of fashion for so long 'we're almost scared to say its name.'

A renaissance of sorts has been underway since the 1990s, as 1950s, 1960s and 1970s furnishings were rediscovered as design classics and retro styles found a new and enthusiastic audience in the style-conscious generation, readers of the new aspirational interiors magazines, Elle Decoration and Wallpaper. Original 1960s and 1970s wallpapers got a new lease of life as collectibles, used on feature walls or framed as pictures and murals. At the same time, the very unfashionability of wallpaper, which had become associated with a certain kind of restrained middle-class 'good taste', prompted designers to reinvent it.

One of the most striking aspects of the best contemporary wallpaper design is its rejection of traditional imagery and motifs, or the radical reworking of conventions. The new wallpapers take their cue from the best of the Palladio and Modus ranges, and use strong, uncompromising designs and colours.

Wallpaper (detail), William J. Odell, 1951. Museum no. E.885-1978

'Prefab Stripe', wallpaper (detail), Sharon Elphick, 1998. Museum no. E.261-2000

David Oliver, who established a wallpaper range, the Paper Library, in 1998, claims he was inspired by the furore about 'the Chancellor's wallpaper' (the controversial refurbishment of the Lord Chancellor's apartments at the House of Lords in 1997). He said 'I just thought wallpaper was getting such a negative press, it was a wonderful time to do something new and fresh and funky.' Oliver deliberately avoided conventional motifs and certainly did not look to the history of wallpaper for inspiration. Instead, his first design, was based on a drawing he had made, tracing the white space between the columns, pictures and headlines in a copy of the French newspaper Libération. The result is a bold geometric pattern which has proved very popular; Oliver himself has used it in his hallway, where he says it has created a feeling of movement. It has since featured regularly as the backdrop to fashion and lifestyle features in magazines and newspaper colour supplements.

Minimalism, a decorating style which has largely coincided with an increase in 'loft-living' in converted industrial buildings or architect-designed urban developments, has tended to exclude the traditional use of wallpaper. Not only is there too much wall to cover, wallpaper itself still carries overtones of a cosy suburban domesticity which the urban loft-dweller is emphatically rejecting. However, artist and designer Sharon Elphick sees this shift towards living in larger open-plan spaces as an opportunity to use wallpaper in a new way. As she says 'People have got the space for an interesting paper without it dominating everything.' Again this is an acknowledgement of wallpaper's new place in the decorative hierarchy; it is not simply a background, but a feature which complements other furnishings and fittings, or serves as a talking point in its own right, much as a painting or poster might do. Inspired by her own photographic limited edition wall-panels, Elphick has designed the quintessential wallpaper for the inner-city loft - Prefab Stripe is an all-over repeat of an image of a 1960s prefabricated tower block. Printed in dull blues and greys with stripes of thinned colour veiling the image it perfectly captures the stained concrete façade, with its monotony and anonymity embodying the alienation of urban life; it also looks like a typical urban landscape viewed through a pall of rain - a neat replication of the likely view from the loft's picture windows!

Lunar wallpaper (detail), Michael Clarke, 1964. Museum no. E.952-1978

Several contemporary designs have been inspired by this idea that wallpaper should make some visual reference to the urban context, rather than reproducing the nostalgic fantasy of a rural lifestyle. In 1996 four wallpapers were commissioned by Glasgow's Centre for Contemporary Arts, and sold through the city's fashionable interiors store Nice House. These included David Shrigley's Industrial Estate, a cartoon vision of the anonymous uniformity of the contemporary urban landscape with everything from carpet warehouse to garage, church and sauna inhabiting the same brick box or blank walled shed. By his own admission, the paper would be 'very oppressive' to live with. Martin Boyce designed a geometric black, grey and white grid, From Now Until Night, intended to evoke the pattern of darkened office-block windows. He designed the paper for public spaces where people were simply passing through - hotel lobbies, waiting rooms, corporate foyers - rather than domestic settings. Domestic life itself provides the motif for Hayley Tomkins' design: a 'messy' collage of babies' heads in shades of pink, Cry Baby suggests that there can be a claustrophobic aspect to the domestic ideal.

Limited editions, commissions and unique prints have produced wallpapers with the kind of exclusive status previously enjoyed by flocks, Chinese papers and French scenics. One of the finalists in the Peugeot Design Awards for 2000 was Deborah Bowness with her Hooks and Frocks wallpaper. Each version of the design is unique to the client, whose furniture and possessions are photographed and reproduced in pictorial montages on lengths of wallpaper. When hung, real hooks are added, so the client can if they wish, hang the actual frock, shirt or bag over its two-dimensional counterpart. She has since produced a variety of trompe l'oeil papers with photographic imagery.

'Standard Lights', wallpaper, Deborah Bowness, 2002. Museum no. E. 824 to 826-2002

Ella Doran has also broken with the tradition of repeating pattern and conventional mural decoration in wallpapers such as Gloriosa, with its bold single image of a lily blown up to wall-size. She also produces more conventional repeating designs of photographed objects - shoals of fish, asparagus, artichokes and pebbles - but the images are manipulated on computer and can be printed so that every piece is different. This is expensive, about £700 ($1000) for one average living room wall, but the appeal lies in the fact that the decoration would be unique; as she says 'nobody else would have exactly what you've got.' And though these limited edition designs and one-off commissions are relatively dear, the cost is offset by using the paper on only one wall, in a corner or an alcove. Indeed, Doran sees her papers as being too assertive to be used for a whole room and says the result 'would be a nightmare.' In fact, the new generation of designs are generally limited to use on one wall - a 'feature' wall, as in the 1950s and 1960s. Advertising agency Mother has used original 1960s papers in this way in their Clerkenwell premises; textile designer Neisha Crosland likewise used her own wallpapers (for Paper Library) in her Fulham Road shop.

Wallpapers like these continue the trend which began in the late 19th century for the home and its furnishings to be seen as self-expression, an extension of the owner's personality and taste. 'Good taste' is no longer the issue - the kitsch, eccentric or ironic are all valid characteristics of personal taste, and are 'read' and appreciated as such by others.