Hieperdepiep hoera! Today we celebrate Batik is 10 years the official Unesco Intangible Heritage of Indonesia. I already started celebrating early this year, but now here on Java the celebrations have started. I already had a great opening & event at Museum Tekstil and now I will be part of the celebrations at Museum Batik in Pekalongan. You will definitely see some pictures on Social Media later!
Since 2009 Hari Batik, Batik Day, is being celebrated on Java. When I arrived last time, it was just a few days after the first time. So my ‘journey to Batik’ & my blog are also 10 years old today.
And that’s not all, today is my 35 birthday. I feel so happy that I can celebrate my birthday surrounded by people wearing, sharing & enjoying Batik!
To stay with my traditions, I prepared some Batik Statements in the Netherlands before I left. I took this in the bicycle parking-lot at the Central Station in my hometown Utrecht. It is the biggest bicycle parking-lot in the world. Since I started my Research Associate position at RCMC I take me bike to the station and go by train to Leiden. Often I have to park on the third floor, but I do not mind because the green floors match my green bike very well. For the photoshoot I am wearing Batik Cap I bought in 2016 in Jember at Batik Rolla. It is with classic Dutch bikes & tobacco leaves. The entrepreneur of Batik Rolla wanted to put her own family history within the Batik, her father worked in Tobacco and her Dutch grandfather would ride a classic bike (we call ‘grandma bike’ in the Netherlands actually). The cloth I wear as a cape is a limited edition Vlisco Super Wax Print, so from Helmond in The Netherlands. It was actually a gift. The design is newly made and shows mountain-bikes going over a hilly underground. Pretty funny considering how flat the Netherlands is. I wanted to make a statement with these two pieces for a long time. I think this statement is maybe more about addressing how we can move to a more sustainable way of living, by supporting local & handmade products and by riding a bike - I see the traffic here in Jakarta and I just fantasize how it would be if the city center was car-free, just like in my hometown Utrecht. You would be able to ride your bike safely and in fresher air. The public transport can bring you much faster to your work or home - Wouldn’t it be amazing! And of course in this dream of mine everyone is wearing real Batik, Cap or Tulis, no Fast Fashion printed textiles ‘Batik Print’!
Have a wonderful Hari Batik! And don’t forget to share photos with me & use #batikstatement
No comments:
Post a Comment