This talk will focus on batik textiles from Java, Indonesia and my experience traveling there for over 20 years. I will take you on a trip through central Java, and up along the north coast to visit many of the very old batik-making centers throughout Java. In former times, the origins of various batiks could be determined by their very distinctive regional or even village motifs. Batiks range from everyday wear to high formal wear for important occasions and ceremonies. Batik motifs tell stories, carry forth traditions, and express personal values. Batiks can be very simple to extremely complex.

I’ll show you images and tell stories of some of these fabled batik textile centers like Cirebon, Pekalongan, Lasem, and Tuban. I will also point out some the examples from the Textile Hive collection as well as bringing many samples from my own collection to look through. Touching and smelling batik, for me is as engaging as seeing pieces.

Come join us for a look at a still vibrant textile tradition that is alive and well in contemporary Java.

About Martha Banyas

I began serious studio work with enamels in the early 1970’s. I have taught college classes and workshops, and have exhibited widely both nationally and internationally to the present.

In 1985, I started Apa Ini, a folk art gallery in Portland, Oregon. For the next 20 years I traveled extensively in SE Asia and Turkey, and was a dealer in ethnographic and tribal arts/crafts. During that time my personal work evolved in many different directions from making masks and life-size puppets in Bali to continuing work in small scale sculpture and jewelry.

In 2005 I returned to full-time studio work in enamels and metals.