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BatikIn Mexico the “Pareo” has become very popular for many uses, besides as a beach cover-up, shawl for the evening, home furnishings such as pillow covers, curtains are only a few of the uses of this versatile piece of fabric. “Pareos” are sold in shops, stalls and by beach vendors all day long every day in a wide variety of designs and colors. The word “Pareo” comes from the French word used in the French Polynesian Islands, but the correct word we should be using is Sarong which originates from Malaysian. Sarong is the original name for this garment worn by both men and woman and has been used for centuries in So. East Asia; mainly Malaysia and Indonesia and then continents away in Africa.The batik that you see in Africa today and that is part of the Africana customary wear originally was brought to Africa by Muslim traders from Indonesia, again centuries ago. The Africans have adapted this art form of batik into their culture. The exact origins of this amazing art form are unknown, but it has been around for more than 2,000 years. Batik has been most prevalent in Java, an island in Indonesia, which is renowned for having some of the best Batikers in the world. The technique handed down from father to son for generations. Batik pronounced “bateek” has many possible meanings. Some say it means “to dot” while others translate it as “wax writing” or tulis, which is a wax pen or canting with a copper tube to pour in the hot wax as we would put in ink. Batik is the art of waxing a surface to make it resistant to dyeing. The wax is then removed by being submersed in hot water, for another color, more wax is applied with a stamp or cap (chop) that has a specific repeated design or the tulis method which is laid over a pre-drawn design or scene, thus the design is created. For each color in the design that you see there is another stamping process of hot wax, then color and then boiling hot water is used to remove the wax each time. Some of the finer collector pieces on silk or cotton may take up to one year to complete. In Java, Batikers utilized traditional deep indigo blues and browns from natural sources such as roots, flowers, vegetables, minerals. These colors along with the white cloth of cotton or silk originally represented three Hindu Gods: Shiva (righteousness) Vishnu (wisdom) and Brahma (strength). Sarongs with certain designs and patterns were strictly reserved for royalty. If anyone imitated these designs and wore them in public, they could be punished by death. These designs also identified a person’s family and geographical location on the island. Particular designs, such as the butterfly, or peacock motifs are thought to bring the wearer good luck, health and prosperity. Overtime, the Islamic religion which moved into the Indonesian Hindu and Animists society’s centuries ago influenced changes in Batik motifs which became more geometrical and botanical, due to Islam’s prohibition on the depiction of humans or animals in any art form. During the occupation of Indonesia by Japan during World War II, the batik designs at that time reflected the occupation, showing airplanes in the sky and tanks on the ground. Rayon is the most common fabric for export and which we see more commonly here in Mexico. This rayon fabric is made from thread woven from bamboo pulp in China. The imported thread is then woven in Indonesia. The original batiking method takes much time and concentration. Now, for export the Indonesians are using the quick method of printing screens to duplicate the original batik designs as well as the other more fashionable non Indonesian designs, that you will find more commonly sold in Mexico. One way you can check for the originality of the batik piece is to smell the fabric; most times you can detect the odor of the wax. Gracias,   |