Models on the runway at the Bateeq fashion show during Jakarta Fashion Week 2015 at Senayan City, Jakarta last month. (Femina Photos/Irvan Arryawan)
Batik has become an ongoing phenomenon in Indonesia. Since the traditional art was established as the world’s intangible cultural heritage from Indonesia by Unesco, batik is a feature throughout Indonesia, from state ceremonies to malls and elite nightclubs.
“Everybody wears batik these days,” Efrata Retailindo chief executive Michelle Tjokrosaputro said. “But it doesn’t necessarily mean that everybody truly loves and understands batik.”
Michelle, who inherited a batik and garment industry from her parents, openly admits that she did not really like batik in the beginning.
“Somehow, batik seemed so old-fashioned and stiff,” the 34-year-old said.
Michelle graduated from business communication studies at the American University of Paris in 2002. In 2004, she returned to her hometown of Solo, Central Java, to manage her parents’ batik and garment industry.
Sensing her dislike of the traditional art, her parents sat down with her.
“They said that, as a young person, I should do something, rather than just complain about it,” she said.
Michelle took the advice and started to look into old batik motifs and learn about their history and philosophical meanings.
“It turns out that there is an interesting history and philosophical meaning behind every batik motif,” she said.
Besides exploring traditional batik motifs, Michelle also experimented with different fabrics and colors in order to make batiks look fresh and young.
In 2013, Michelle launched her own pret-a-porter label “Bateeq.”
“It’s my re-definition of batik,” the mother of three young boys said with a beaming smile.
For Bateeq’s first full collection, which was launched earlier this year, Michelle collaborated with up-and-coming Indonesian designer, Peggy Hartanto.
The collection was themed “Kawung,” after the traditional batik motif by the same name.
Kawung, a geometrical batik design portraying a blooming lotus, represents a well-balanced spiritual and physical lifestyle.
Rather than simply applying the traditional batik motif on the fabric, Bateeq translated the traditional batik motif into the shape of cocktail dresses, which resembled an opening lotus. Small Kawung prints in dark indigo hues adorned the dresses.
According to Michelle, all batik used by Bateeq are prints.
“For me, batik has two meanings, which are the drawing by hand and the motifs,” she said. “And I’m more interested in developing the traditional batik motifs in a modern way [prints].”
Efrata Retailindo employs approximately 11,000 workers in its factory in Solo. Besides producing printed batiks for Bateeq, its also produces men’s shirts for a several top international fashion brands, including DKNY, Marks and Spencer and Tommy Hilfiger.
(Femina Photos/Irvan Arryawan)
Bateeq’s fresh and unusual designs in its first collection won the hearts of many customers. Its business is growing rapidly.
Within a year, Bateeq already owned and operated 21 boutiques in 13 cities in Indonesia, including Jakarta, Medan (North Sumtra) and Denpasar (Bali).
Its second collection was released at the recent Jakarta Fashion Week 2015.
Themed “Tumaruntum,” the collection was inspired by the traditional “Truntum” batik motif.
“Tumaruntum [in Javanese] means everlasting love that continues to blossom,” Michelle said.
Historically, the Truntum motif was created by Kanjeng Ratu (Queen) Kencana, the consort of Sunan (King) Paku Buwana III, who ruled Solo in mid-1700s.
At that time, the king, who had many wives and concubines, was forgetting his first wife, Queen Kencana. He never visited her in the palace.
Feeling sad and forsaken, the queen prayed. She was then inspired to draw a batik motif of small intertwined vine flowers, which she called Truntum.
Thus, the queen drew the batik night after night, while praying that her husband would return to visit her.
Then, one night, her husband, passing by her room, saw her drawing the beautiful batik motif by the window. He was dumbfounded with the beauty of the motif and the patience and loyalty of his forsaken wife.
“The king then fell in love with her again and never left her side until he died,” Michelle said.
Until now, the truntum batik motif is still used in traditional Javanese wedding attires.
Truntum, being dainty and adorable, is also one of the most popular batik designs in the country.
“But I see it from the eyes of the young people,” Michelle said. “They can also express their romantic feelings by
wearing Truntum.”
In the fashion show, Bateeq presented 26 new looks for its Spring/Summer 2015 collection.
The show started with several evening gowns in dark indigo hues.
“The blue color represents the sadness of the queen when her husband abandoned her,” Michelle said.
The dresses are gorgeous. Made of silk chiffon and polyester, they have a billowy and graceful feminine silhouette.
Some of the dresses are adorned with inconspicuous floral motifs along the hemlines. Some others are adorned with prominent floral motifs designed to resemble a mosaic.
“Some of them can be worn as Muslim women’s attire with additional hijabs,” Michelle said.
In the sequence, Bateeq presented light daily wear for women in soft pastel colors, such as baby-pink and sky-blue.
All the models in this sequence wore beautiful floral tiaras.
“They represent the love that blooms again between the king and his queen,” Michelle said.
Some of the dresses are modelled after Michelle’s own preferences as a young mom and businesswoman.
“As a young mom and businesswoman, I am so busy during the day, such as meeting with clients, social gatherings with friends, picking up my kids from school and social functions in the evenings,” the chief executive said. “I don’t want to be constrained by my clothes.”
(Femina Photos/Irvan Arryawan)
The items presented in the second session were loose-fitting and easy to mix-and-match with everyday items in your wardrobe. With additional accessories and different styling, these dresses can easily be transformed into elegant evening wear.
“Women these days are very busy,” Michelle said. “We have to wear clothes that can easily cater to all situations.”
“The designs are so fresh and stylish,” said Nindya Putri, 22-year-old student and self-proclaimed fashionista who came to the Bateeq fashion show at JFW 2015. “They are not like the batiks that I used to know. I can easily wear them everywhere and look good.”
Bateeq plans to open two more stores in Bangka Belitung.
“There are absolutely no batik shops in Bangka Belitung these days, while the people there also love to wear batiks,” Michelle said.
It seems like batiks, in all sorts and forms, will remain a darling on the Indonesian fashion scene.
More info visit www.bateeqshop.com
The post Bateeq Brings New Allure to Traditional Batik Motifs appeared first on The Jakarta Globe.