VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

On the occasion of National Batik Day that took place in Canberra October 2, the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra held a seminar entitled ‘Sustainability of Batik as Indonesia's heritage for the world: Opportunities and Challenges’ as reported by Antara in Jakarta, Thursday (7/10). In the seminar, Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, Kristiarto S Legowo explained that Batik has two main meanings for the people of Indonesia. First, Batik is a cultural heritage from Indonesian ancestors, which has been passed down from generation to generation, with different models in each region and it containing unique values in each community. Second, Batik is a part of the Indonesian industry and is a source of livelihood or work for the community.

Ambassador Kristiarto also said that the demand for Batik has increased from year to year, not only in the domestic market but also in the international arena. Even Batik has entered the high fashion industry. He mentioned two international design houses, Dior and Louis Vuitton, who had integrated Batik motifs into their designs. According to Ambassador Kristiarto, the increasing interest and demand has encouraged the Batik industries to continue to develop in order to meet increasingly higher standards.

Another speaker at the seminar, Yan Sunarya from the Bandung Institute of Technology said that Batik is a collection of knowledge and diversity of beauty. In addition, Batik is also a national identity which later becomes a symbol to respect humans and their cultural achievements. He highlighted Sundanese Batik which is said to have a specific and unique character. According to his research related to Sundanese Batik, since the 16th century, the Sunda region has been familiar with Batik production.

Meanwhile, Speaker Maria Wornska Friend from James Cook University highlighted Javanese Batik in particular. According to Maria, Javanese Batik has made a huge contribution to the world since centuries ago. Its influence even reached India, Africa, Europe and even Australia. The woman, who has conducted research on Javanese Batik for more than 30 years, gave an example of the “Parang Rusak” motif from Central Java, which has inspired the “Fan” motif produced by Vlisco in the Netherlands.

Through the seminar, the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra hopes that people's love for Indonesian Batik will be even greater and there will be enthusiasm to promote Batik as a part of international fashion trends.