Hand-drawn batik abstract motif, Suhairi Marlina Shamsudin.
Detail of the kepala of a 1950s block-printed sarong from Terengganu.
Published by Tuttle Publishing, an imprint of Periplus Editions HK Ltd
Copyright © 2011 Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher.
ISBN: 978-1-4629-0878-3 (ebook)
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Hand-drawn batik floral motif, Noor Arfa Batik.
Hand-drawn batik floral motif, Lembaga Muzium Negeri Terengganu.
Fatimah Chik, Entrance, batik, 123 x 164 cm, 1993, Collection: National Art Gallery.
Datin Paduka Seri Endon Mahmood (1940–2005, posthumously Tun Endon Mahmood), founder and chairman of Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia and patron of the ‘Malaysia Batik—Crafted for the World’ movement.
contents
Foreword
The Beauty of Malaysian Batik
1
The Story of Batik
Paths of Trade
Textiles as Shared Links
Traditional Attire
The Roots of Batik
Forerunners of Malay Batik
2
Malaysia’s Metal Block Batik
Materials and Methods
Motifs, Meanings and Colours
Regional Variations
The Uses of Stamped Batik
3
Malaysia’s New Stylus Batik
Towards a Malaysian Identity
Materials and Methods
Motifs, Meanings and Colours
The Uses of Stylus Batik
Stylus Batik Comes of Age
4
Sharing Malaysian Batik with the Nation
Festival Fun
Showing off Batik
Encouraging Competition
Batik in National Identity
5
Batik in Contemporary Fashion
Formal Wear
Informal Wear
From Contemporary to Couture
Up-and-Coming Designers
Fashion Accessories
Current Trends
6
Batik as Lifestyle
Soft Furnishings
Lifestyle Products
Current Trends
7
Batik as Art
Pioneering Paintings
A Modern Art Form
Contemporary Approaches
8
Sharing Malaysian Batik with the World
Creative Links
Malaysian Batik Goes Global
9
Moving Forward
A Meeting of Minds
Initiatives and Innovations
Teaching Batik
The Business of Batik
Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia
Further Reading
Directories
Index
Acknowledgements
Foreword
This book is a tribute to my late mother, Endon Mahmood, founder and chairman of Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia (Penyayang), who passed away in October 2005. She established Penyayang as a charitable foundation helping Malaysians to fulfil their potential, and as patron of the ‘Malaysia Batik—Crafted for the World’ movement initiated by the foundation and its subsidiary Batik Guild Sdn Bhd in 2003, she dedicated herself to what she believed was all at once a precious symbol of our cultural heritage, an indelible