Indonesian Embassy In Hague Holds Batik-Making Workshop

LONDON, May 19 (Antara) - Some 60 participants comprising members of the Indonesia Diaspora Network and the Women and Children Empowerment Integrated Service Center as well as Dutch citizens and Indonesians residing in the Netherlands attended a batik-making workshop. The workshop, held at the Nusantara Hall of the Indonesian Embassy in the Hague, was facilitated by representatives of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Design of the Sebelas Maret University. The Sebelas Maret University had held a workshop at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, First Secretary of Information, Social, and Cultural Affairs of the Indonesian Embassy in the Hague Barbara Noira B. Solani informed Antara London on Thursday. The workshop was inaugurated by Deputy Head of the Indonesian Embassy in the Hague H. A. Ibnu Wiwoho Wahyu Utomo. On the occasion, Utomo elaborated on the cultural philosophy of batik propagated by Ki Hadjar Dewantara called tridaya, covering the three elements of creativity, taste, and passion. In addition, Utomo shed light on the history of the development of batik that tends to be more practical and is demonstrated by the use of various items, such as household ornaments, shirts, blankon or Javanese traditional hats, and bags. Ratna Endah Santoso, a woman lecturer at the Sebelas Maret University in Indonesia, explained that batik is part of Indonesia's cultural heritage that was recognized as the world's wealth by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Santoso also spoke at length about the definition, process, type, origin, and history of batik. Participants at the workshop had to make batik starting from creating patterns on fabric by imitating the existing designs, embedding wax on cloth or other mediums using a canting board as the main tool, coloring, boiling the fabric in a mixture of water and soda ash, and then drying the cloth. During the learning process, all participants were assisted by students of the Sebelas Maret University. At the end of the activity, all participants were proud of their works of batik made with homemade motifs and designs.