Also the first video of the Batik Consultation we did in May 2020 is now on YouTube with Dutch & English subtitles.
This digital consultation with nobody less than Dido Michielsen, author of the book ‘Lichter dan ik’. In this episode we discuss different themes from the book, zoom in on the Batik and take a look at Dido’s own Batik collection. This Batik Consultation was released online on Instagram in May as part of our Batik Stand Online Program for Tong Tong Fair 2020. The Batik Stand online is a collaboration between Guave, Tong Tong Fair & Sabine Bolk.
The beginning of the ‘intelligent lockdown’, as the Dutch like to call it, started for me with writing the first of two articles for the magazine ‘Tribale Kunst’. I was asked by my supervisor of my research project to write on the upcoming exhibition at Wereldmuseum, and specifically on the Batiks that will be on display. Thank you, Francine Brinkgreve for asking me to write this and your guidance! The exhibition at the Wereldmuseum in Rotterdam (NL) will be the first in a long time with many beautiful and interesting Batiks on display. Some of the pieces were already included in my research project, so it is great to have this opportunity to put some of what I found (out) into words.
The article in Dutch is available for members of ‘Tribale Kunst’, you can see the magazine on their website tribalekunstencultuur.org or send me email at sabine@sabinebolk.nl to request it as a PDF. Later this year I hope to publish the second part in which I will mostly write about the Batiks donated by Dr. Elie van Rijckevorsel. In this first article I explain how Batik developed in the 19th century, in both the technique and in the appreciation for it, in Indonesia and in the Netherlands.
Click the download below for the PDF or for a JPG. You can print them either on A4 or A3. Share with me if you made one of them, reach out on Social Media and tag me!
Het is bijna eind mei en dat betekent dat we ons nu aan het voorbereiden zouden zijn om weer 11 dagen alles over batik te delen op de 62e Tong Tong Fair (TTF) in Den Haag. Omdat dit helaas anders is gelopen, en de TTF dit jaar niet plaatsvindt, hebben we iets anders bedacht!
Samen met de TTF hebben we achter de schermen gewerkt aan een mooi batik programma voor het TTF publiek. Dit gaan we hopelijk allemaal bij de komende editie in 2021 uitvoeren.
Omdat we heel veel rondom batik hebben om met jullie te delen, en eigenlijk niet willen wachten, organiseren we vanaf 28 mei de Batik Stand Online! We nemen jullie o.a. mee in de geschiedenis van batik op de TTF in onze stories, gaan in gesprek met de TTF en hebben Dido Michielsen gesproken over de rol van batik in haar nieuwste boek ‘Lichter dan ik’.
Daarnaast hebben we de succesvolle ‘batik spreekuren’ in een digitaal jasje gestoken en zullen we hier ook een live sessie voor organiseren op Instagram.
Wat zou jij te weten willen komen over batik? Stuur ons jouw batik-vragen, dan zullen we deze tijdens onze Batik Stand Online zoveel mogelijk beantwoorden!
Afbeelding links: Rogier Boon tekende deze door batik geïnspireerde cover van Tong-Tong (nu: Moesson). Op moesson.pictura-dp.nl vind je het complete archief van Tong-Tong en Moesson, hét Indisch maandblad. Rechts: Batik Stand 2019 met Sabine Bolk, Myrthe Groot en Romée Mulder
What started as a simple looking into things, ended up in an intens research of already 3 years. When I make the mistake to type in some search words in online archives at morning coffee, it can end up in a full day deep dive. This short video shows a little insight into my research process. I called this one ‘Staal 100’. About a year and a half ago I came across a note in a travel-journey describing a Batik that had been bought, actually an imitation based on the style of Von Franquemont, the Batik entrepreneur I am researching. The author send a piece of it to be put into a sample book, naming it ‘Staal 100’, sample 100. Ever since reading this note, when I come across any samples, in books, letters or anywhere else, I always check the number 100, hoping it is this one. Many similar other little hints, clues and writings go through my mind, trying to connect them to physical evidence. Evidence that can help me to re-tell the history of the (Indo-)European influence on Batik between 1840-1890.
My research position as a Research Associate at the Research Center of Material Culture in Leiden has been extended till end 2020. With the current situation, I have now not the possibility to access any archives or go to my researchspot at the Museum Volkenkunde in Leiden. Luckily I already gather a lot of info, photos and sources these last few years, so I will be working on processing that and working on how to share the re-telling online. I’ll keep you posted here and through my blog The journey to Batik.
posted 18 May 2020 on my Research Center of Material Culture Research Associate position being extended till 2020
In December 2020 my Research Position has been extended until June 2021
On Wednesday 29 April 2020 Tony of aNERDgallery, Singapore, invited me for an Instagram Live interview. It was so great to talk from afar about Batik, Colonial history, my sometimes weird Art and more. You can re-watch it on IG tv on the instagram page of aNERDgallery, enjoy!
aNERDspective is a light-hearted talk with artists, artisans and entrepreneurs to learn about their practices and how they profess their love to Indonesian textile arts Batik and Tenun.
In this second episode, we had a great time with visual artist and batik blogger Sabine Bolk discussing about her latest project digging up artefacts about Indo-European batik makers, what is exactly being taught in Dutch schools about colonising other countries, including Indonesia, and the chicken that ate the rice. Watch it, listen to it and let us know what surprised you about Batik from Sabine!
End of last year Maureen Tan contacted me if I was able to help her with an idea for her upcoming, and now published, Indonesian Cookbook. The cookbook ‘Bijbel van de Indonesische keuken‘ is part of a series by Carrera Culinair and although the format is similar for every book each author makes the book trully their own. Maureen Tan explained she was making the book with recipes written down by her mother and complimented with recipes by others. Her wish was to include Batiks in the book. When I heard it was a book on almost all Indonesian islands, I thought it would be nice if it would not be just Batiks featured in the book as decoration, but that the textiles used for the book would actually match with the location of the recipes. With an list of possible places of recipes that would make the book, I started looking for the best matches. Because I do not own textiles of all Indonesian islands, I asked my dear friends Rachma Sri Mulyani Saloh and Ine WawoRuntu if they had textiles I could borrow. Ibu Rachma is very active as a dancer in the dancegroup Wahana Budaya Nusantara, gives wonderful workshops to mostly Indonesian students in both dance and cooking. She is from Kalimantan and lives already many years in the Netherlands. Her knowlegde on places in Indonesia and their traditional wear is really remarkable. She had so many nice pieces and a small selection made it into the book. Ibu Ine is very active in promoting Indonesian culture in the Netherlands and does great work with her Stichting Hibiscus in Indonesia. I know her for many years and we try to help eachother when possible. I was so happy she could lend me some textiles, I or Ibu Rachma did not have.
Photographer Sven Benjamins checking the photos he took. The endresult is shown in the next photo, page 207 in the book
Thank you Maureen for including me in your wonderful project :))) It was also a great learning experience exploring different textiles from all over Indonesia. You can now buy ‘Bijbel van de Indonesische keuken’ by Maureen Tan, check out your local bookstore on or offline.
For more behind the scene and info on the Indonesian textiles used in the book, go to my blog The journey to Batik
Book open on page 349 – 351, Chapter ‘Bali’, showing a Batik Tulis with the Goddess of Water and a Karbouw, made by an artist on Bali in the 70’s, on top of a Batik by the same artist with Dewi Sri, the Goddes of Rice. Both Batiks were gifted to me by a lady who lived on Bali and wore these to the beach
Batik Statement series ‘Colonial Mirror’ Dia-slides made by Koen de Wit Concept and looks by Sabine Bolk 2020
I started making Batik Statement already 8 years ago. The first one I made was a Batik-fashion-tribute-to-fashion-bloggers in 2012. Being a blogger, but not at all a fashion blogger, I thought it would be fun to explore this world of pretending-to-be-fashion-while-being-at-home and create looks with Batik. I got a great response to it and kept making and sharing Batik Statements. I also got Batik Statements from others and even did four Batik Statement events. However I never really used it in an Art-type of way.
When Pieter Vastbinder asked me and Koen de Wit for his yearly Spiegelhol event at the BelcrumWatertoren during the Cultuurnacht, I had the idea of exploring the ‘colonial mirror’, or better my view in that mirror. Looking for ways of addressing colonial history and how we reflect on this past, I got inspired by ‘Bigi Spikri‘ and the selfie-culture of Indonesia. ‘Bigi Spikri‘ is a Surinamese word which translates into ‘Big mirror’. During big festive parades dressed up people would walk the streets of Paramaribo seeing themselves reflected in the shopwindow. These shopwindows functioned as big mirrors to admire yourself in. The ‘Bigi Spikri’ parade is closely related to ‘Keti Koti’. ‘Keti Koti’ celebrated on 1 of July that marks the date when slavery was abolished in Suriname and the Dutch Antilles in 1863. The parade is a returning part of this remembrance and it is not only a way of admire beauty in diversity, but also to invite others to reflect on this past. In the BelcrumWatertoren I created a shopwindow in which I displayed books, objects and textiles that I use to learn from and reflect on our colonial past. Next to that I showed a slide-show of photos I made in the Netherlands and Indonesia showing how we deal with this past. During my last visit to Indonesia in October, I was much more focussed on our shared history and visited more old sites. The cellphone-culture which I already encountered from 2009, is now transformed into a full on selfie-culture. Next to being asked a lot to pose for photos, people pose everywhere. Places for me filled with heavy feelings are now popular for the youth as pretty backdrops for their Insta-shots. Old Dutch places even got fixed up, and re-used. Before these colonial memories were literally falling apart. So an interesting development which allows us to reflect better on this past even if it is through a filter with someone making a peace sign.
To bring this inspiration together and make my ‘colonial mirror’ even more visible, I made a Batik Statement series. With the great help of Koen de Wit, we made analog dia-slides on 30 December 2019. It was very cold, but with a beautiful blue sky and we found a great spot with water in the background. I made 5 different looks using clothing and textiles from my own collection. I am especially proud of the iPhone-headpiece we created based on the ear-irons worn in Dutch Traditional wear. It was good for many laughs and the result works so well. Also very happy with how my koto-skirt turned out using a Vlisco Java Print and a lot of pins. The Java Print has a motif of a big standing mirror. It was designed in 2016 for the Vlisco ‘Woven Wisdom’ collection. For me immediately it was linked with the reflection we should make with our past, and I sheepishly thought Vlisco refer to that with this collection…However I instantly thought of this fabric for this photoshoot and was happy it was still available.
Without going in much further detail, I just want to share the series here with you. During the Cultuurnacht 2020 it was projected in a loop. These are digital scans of the dia-slides. We had multiple of each look and I picked my favourites to share here with you, enjoy!
Free to download, 5 colouring pages drawn by me based on different Batik motifs. Click download or click the image to go to the PDF. You can print them either on A4 or A3. Share with me if you made one of them, reach out on Social Media and tag me!
The project consist of three parts:
Part I - Research at RCMC, from June 2019 until December 2020, extended until June 2021
Part II - Exchange on Java - Re-telling the history, in October 2019
and (hopefully) Summer 2020 in collaboration with Museum Batik in Pekalongan, Museum Tekstil in Jakarta and Indonesian Pluralisme Institute (IPI)
Part III - Sharing, throughout the project on an online-platform and in partnership
with Modemuze the project will be shared in a blogpost-series and with meet-ups
In the literature, some sources state that Batik entrepreneur Carolina Josephina von Franquemont was swept away in a landslide, while others state she died after a long illness. I became intrigued with this discrepancy in Batik history, which made me wonder about other existing literature we have accepted as fact, when there is still more research to be done. Talking with experts in the field; Batikmakers and researchers, it became clear to me that the history of how the Batik-style changed between 1850 and 1890 needed to be re-examined and re-told. Not by one person, or from one point of view, but as inclusive as possible. Including views of today’s makers with ideas from both sides, the Dutch and the Indonesian perspective.
In this Time lapse I recreated my research process. With a voice-over in Dutch, I explain why I started this research and introduce my plans. With subtitles you can read my explanation in Dutch & English. To ge more info view the video on YouTube. In the description box you’ll find a time-line for every time I show something in the frame; a book, article or textile.
In May 2017 my article about Carolina Josephina von Franquemont was published on Modemuze ->click the image to read the article in English
With this project the goal is re-telling the history of the (Indo-)European influence on Batik between 1850 and 1890 on the North- coast of Java, Indonesia, together with Batikmakers, researchers, museums, collectors and Batik fans within a Post-colonialism framework. Answers are given in words and images to the following question: How was Batik influenced by Europe? Can this influence truly be traced back to one or two individuals, Indo- Europese Batik entrepreneurs Carolina Josephina von Franquemont(1817-1867) and Catharina Carolina van Oosterom-Philips (1816-1877)? And what other factors played a role in this development? How is this evident in Batik designs from before 1890, from before Batiks were signed, and what can actually be considered as an (Indo-) European influence? During the project what is collected in the Netherlands is connected to today’s Batikmakers on Java. In the form of a Summerschool for Batikmakers and with an open access online platform.
To create a base on which the re-telling is done, the research starts with collecting (digital) material from collections in the Netherlands and Indonesia; i.a. National Museum van Wereldculturen, Rijksmuseum, Textielmuseum Tilburg, KITLV, University Library Leiden, Vlisco archive, Museum Tekstil in Jakarta and Museum Batik in Pekalongan.
The research is done in the form of a Research Associate position at the Research Center for Material Culture (RCMC). With Francine Brinkgreve, Curator Insular Southeast Asia and Daan van Dartel, Curator Popular Culture and Fashion as my supervisors.
National Museum van Wereldculturen holds an important collection of Batiks from this era, including Batiks collected by G.P. Rouffaer and Batiks from the World fairs in 1878 and 1883. The collection also holds 21 Batiks attributed to Von Franquemont and 15 attributed to Van Oosterom, the so called ‘Mothers of Batik Belanda’. This is almost half of all Batiks attributed to them.
All gathered material will be compared to and connected with Batiks in the NMvW collection. Hopefully it will provide more concrete information on the makers and the owners/collectors. Next to collecting material, I would also like to interview researchers, collectors and other experts on this influence and how it was interpreted before and how they think about it now.
All gathered material will be compared to and connected with Batiks in
the NMvW collection. Hopefully it will provide more concrete information
on the makers and the owners/collectors.
Next to collecting material, I would also like to interview researchers,
collectors and other experts on this influence and how it was interpreted
before and how they think about it now.
Batik has inspired me for 10 years now. Not just the technique, but the language of patterns, the philosophy of Batik. The last two years I have been fascinated by this particular history. A history from which the maker of today is far removed, yet they are intertwined with this history since the process of learning Batik is passed on from one generation to another. With this project I want to re-connect the makers to what is stored in depots with a Summerschool on Java and though the online- platform. At the same time this re-connecting functions as a re-telling, adding the story of contemporary makers to written history and replacing assumptions with facts. The last 10 years I researched Batik by myself. Luckily I have all this access to information from both sides, but I have come to a point where I need institutional support to make the next step, in getting this project to the level it needs to be. So I am very happy I can collaborate and work with RCMC, Modemuze, Museum Tekstil, Museum Batik and IPI. I see myself as the initiator of this project. Together with the collaborations here and on Java, I believe the re-telling can be done in a way not done before and thus creating a fuller truth.
In November 2017 this magazine of VVAK got published. Jan Dees wrote an article on the collection they donated to the Rijksmuseum which include a Batik possible made by Carolina Josephina von Franquemont. Part of my research is featured in it.
If this project resonates with you and you want to contribute to it, please contact me. Maybe I already reached out to you in these past years. Any research, thoughts and ideas on this topic are welcome. If you have a paper/thesis on this subject you would like to make available. Or if you have Batiks or family photos of people wearing Sarong and Kebaya from before 1900. This project is about sharing and making this history available, so looking forward to your stories!
When I started this researchproject in June 2019, and actually much earlier in the beginning of 2017 when I first starting looking at the Von Franquemont story, I didn’t imagine still working on it now and also I could not have foreseen finding so many angles/story lines/Batik pieces that needed to be re-examined, even needed to be documented at all. These next 6 months I am working on wrapping up my findings in the NMvW collections as a Research Associate at RCMC. This doesn’t mean my research is done or finished, but it will give me room, starting June 2021, to work out stories that are outside of this collection. Keep up-to-date through my website, blog and social media! And for any info or questions, please contact me at sabine@sabinebolk.nl
Tijdens de 61ste editie van de Tong Tong Fair (TTF) in Den Haag is er voor het eerst een kraam die helemaal in het teken staat van batik. Batik is een uitsparingstechniek waarbij met hete was patronen worden aangebracht op o.a. stof. Dit jaar is batik 10 jaar UNESCO immaterieel cultureel erfgoed van Indonesië. Dit moet natuurlijk gevierd worden, maar daarnaast behoeft batik ook nog steeds de nodige promotie.
Van 23 mei t/m 2 juni zijn Romée Mulder & Myrthe Groot van het merk Guave en Sabine Bolk, de batik-hosts van de ‘The Batik Stand, A Stand for Batik’ op de Grand Pasar van de Tong Tong Fair.
‘The Batik Stand’ is de plek voor alles rondom batik. Het is een expo, winkel en ontmoetingsplaats om alles te weten te komen over; hoe een handgemaakte Batik Tulis of Cap te herkennen, waar het verkocht wordt, hoe een batik het beste verzorgt kan worden. U kunt er terecht om er kleding van te laten maken of om meer te weten te komen over een batik die wellicht al jaren in de familie is. Kortom een plek waar ze voor & achter batik staan.
UNESCO immaterieel erfgoed
Sinds 2009 is batik UNESCO immaterieel cultureel erfgoed van Indonesië. Batik is een uitsparingstechniek waarbij met hete was patronen worden aangebracht op o.a. stof. De Javaanse batik is nu bijna 10 jaar beschermd erfgoed, en dat moet gevierd worden! Ondanks het jubileumjaar staat het ambacht zelf nog altijd onder druk. Dit komt o.a. door imitatiebatiks, goedkoop geprinte stoffen met batik-motieven. Deze zogenoemde ‘Batik Print’ heeft helaas weinig te maken met de prachtige handgemaakte Batik Tulis. ‘Batik Print’ bereikt helaas gemakkelijker de Europese markt en ook de Tong Tong Fair.
Romée, Myrthe en Sabine zetten zich met hun ondernemingen in voor het in stand houden van het batik ambacht en willen het tijdens de TTF het podium geven wat het verdient.
The Batik Stand
Tijdens de Tong Tong Fair kunt u bij ‘The Batik Stand’ terecht voor alles rondom batik. Dagelijks is er een batik spreekuur tussen 14u en 15u voor al uw batik-vragen. Laat uw eigen meegebrachte doeken bekijken door een van de experts of maak kennis met de andere batik-gasten die zich bezighouden met deze stof. Kom batiks bekijken, passen en shoppen of ga ermee op de foto.
Voor meer over de gasten en andere activiteiten rondom om batik, hou de websites in de gaten van Guave of Sabine Bolk of zie het Facebook event
Gedurende de Tong Tong Fair ontvangt ‘The Batik Stand’ verschillende gasten met verschillende expertise.
Op 24 mei is onze gast Rens Heringa. Ze zal enkele doeken meebrengen uit haar uitgebreide verzameling. Rens Heringa is een internationaal gerespecteerd kenner van batik. Zij groeide op in Twente tussen families van textielfabrikanten en kwam zo al op jonge leeftijd in contact met batik-imitaties bestemd voor de export naar Nederlands-Indië. Vanaf de jaren ’50 woonde Rens Heringa decennialang in Indonesië waar ze zich verdiepte in Javaanse batik. Voor de 54e Tong Tong Fair maakte zij de tentoonstelling ‘Oma’s Sarong – Familieverhalen in Batik’.
Op 25 mei hebben wij te gast Kees de Ruiter. Drs. Kees de Ruiter (1965) is als kunsthistoricus (UvA) gespecialiseerd in Aziatica zoals textilia, Chinees & Japans porselein en Compagnie meubels. Ook onderzoekt hij sinds vele jaren antieke batik, voornamelijk de doeken gemaakt in (Indo-)Europese batikwerkplaatsen. Daarbij ligt de focus op batiks gemaakt in de stad Pekalongan waar in de 19de eeuw in de batikkerijen van o.a. de Indische dames Van Zuylen, Metzelaar, Toorop en Wollweber, met motieven in Europese Art Nouveau stijl. Momenteel werkt hij aan een publicatie over dit onderwerp.
Op 26 mei is Addoley Dzegede te gast bij ons. Addoley Dzegede is een Ghanees-Amerikaanse interdisciplinaire kunstenaar. Ze richt zich in haar werk op dit moment op het metaforisch potentieel van materiaal, textiel tradities en hoe daarin kleur en patronen gebruikt worden om toebehoren tot een groep uit te drukken. In haar werk gebruikt zij vaak textiel. Sinds enkele jaren werkt zij met de techniek Batik en onderzoekt hiermee ‘Wax Print’, de imitatie-batiks vervaardigd in o.a. Nederland.
Op 28 en 29 mei is onze gast Liesje de Leeuw. In april 2016 verscheen van Liesje de Leeuw (Batavia, 1948) het boek ‘Gedragen doeken – verhalen in batik’. Dit boek bevat 27 verhalen van mensen van 29 tot 92 jaar en hun bijzondere band met batik. De interviews inspireerden haar om de mooiste ‘batikverhalen’ op het podium te vertellen. Haar boek ‘Gedragen doeken – verhalen in batik’ is gedurende de dag ook verkrijgbaar in ‘The Batik Stand’.
Op 30 mei hebben wij Sandra Niessen te gast. Sandra Niessen houdt zich al meer dan 40 jaar bezig met Indonesische textiel, voornamelijk Ikat uit het Batak gebied in Noord Sumatra. Haar boek ‘Legacy in cloth, Batak textiles of Indonesia’ uit 2009 wordt ook wel “de bijbel van Batakdoeken” genoemd. De afgelopen jaren werkte ze mee aan de tentoonstelling van de batiks verzameld door koning Rama V in Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles in Bangkok, Thailand.
Op 2 juni ontvangen we onze laatste gast Shuen-Li Spirit. Shuen-Li Spirit is kunstenaar, danser bij de groep Aniadi Art en dierenoppas. Ze is afgestudeerd in Arts Education aan de Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Ze werkt met de techniek batik en met pastelkrijt. Ze is gespecialiseerd in dierenportretten en geeft batik les in Houten en tijdens workshops.
De reis naar batik
Verder staan de batik-hosts ook nog andere plekken op het programma bij de TTF. Op zondag 26 mei en dinsdag 28 mei vertoont Sabine Bolk haar film ‘The journey to batik – Tari Batik’ in de Pentas Wisata om 20.30u. Aansluitend aan de vertoning zal zij meer vertellen over de batikmakers in haar film aan de hand van enkele batiks uit haar verzameling.
Sabine Bolk is een beeldend kunstenaar en verdiept zich sinds 10 jaar in batik. Ze laat zich hierbij niet alleen inspireren door de techniek, maar vooral door de patroonleer, de filosofie van Batik. Op haar blog De reis naar Batik doet zij verslag van haar ontdekkingen, haar onderzoek en reizen.
In 2009 maakte Sabine Bolk haar eerste ‘reis naar Batik’. In 2016 maakte ze een tweede reis waarbij ze 3 maanden op Java, Indonesië, verbleef om het proces van batik te documenteren.
Sabine schrijft ook voor het onlineplatform Modemuze, organiseert events en geeft regelmatig lezingen, presentaties en workshops. Omdat Sabine als kunstenaar inspiratie uit batik haalt, zet ze zich ook in voor het behoud ervan. Sabine werkt samen met batikmakers op Java, maar ook met onderzoekers, ontwerpers, kunstenaars en andere batikfans, om batik op vele verschillende wijzen te promoten.
Guave
Op vrijdag 31 mei presenteert Guave hun nieuwe collectie ‘IDENTITIES 2.0’ om 14.30u op het Tong-Tong-Podium. Voor de nieuwe collectie gebruikten ze Batik in combinatie met duurzame textiel uit Enschede. Tevens zijn ze om 18u zijn ze te gast bij de Next Generation talk in de Studio Tong Tong.
Guave is een kledinglabel gestart vanuit Romée en Myrthe’s culturele achtergrond en liefde voor Indonesische patronen en textiel. Het begon als een onderzoek naar hun eigen identiteit, waarin hun Indische afkomst een grote rol speelt. Het uitdrukken van deze identiteit kreeg vorm in kleding en groeide uit tot een missie om Indonesische batik in het Nederlandse straatbeeld te introduceren. Ze willen hierbij de verschillen in uiterlijk, cultuur en afkomst omarmen en tot waarde laten komen. Mede door te streven naar een duurzame samenwerking met de batikmakers in Indonesië, zijn ze zich erg bewust van de huidige mode-industrie. Romée en Myrthe zijn van mening dat deze moet en kan veranderen. Daarom zijn duurzaamheid, draagbaarheid en transparantie belangrijke kernwaarden in de ontwikkeling van hun collecties en samenwerkingen.
Ook dit jaar organiseert Stichting Hibiscus een maand vol activiteiten om de Indonesische cultuur in al haar facetten onder de aandacht te brengen. Traditioneel vindt de Culturele Maand in april plaats in CultuurSpoor, Raadhuisplein 30-32, 5683 EA Best. In het kader van ‘Batik, al 10 jaar Unesco Wereld Erfgoed’ is het thema van dit jaar natuurlijk batik.
Zaterdag 30 maart 11:00 – 13:00 CultuurSpoor
Officiële opening door de Buitengewoon Gevolmachtigde Ambassadeur van Indonesië, H.E. de heer I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja en de burgemeester van Best, de heer Hans Ubachs.
Dansgroep Permata onder leiding van Uli Tax zal verschillende traditioneel Indonesische dansen uitvoeren.
Modeshow batikkleding, verzorgd door leerlingen van het Heerbeeck College onder leiding van Uli Tax.
Rondleiding expositie ‘Batik is Art, Batik als Kunstwerk’ door Sabine Bolk
De expositie van Sabine Bolk is tot 30 april gratis toegankelijk in CultuurSpoor.
Maandag 8 april 10:00 – 12:00 CultuurSpoor
Voorleesochtend ‘Indonesische Sprookjes’ en ‘Dieren in Batik’ door Frank van Schaik(‘FrankSobat’) met ‘Sarong tekenen’ door Sabine Bolk voor leerlingen van groep 3 en 4 van basisschool De Kiezel.
Donderdag 4 april 19:30 – 21:00 CultuurSpoor
Sabine Bolk vertoont haar film ‘The journey to Batik – Tari Batik‘. Entree: € 3,– inclusief koffie/thee. U kunt zich hiervoor aanmelden via email: stichtinghibiscus@hotmail.com.
De viering van het 10-jarig bestaan van het blog ‘De reis naar Batik‘ vanSabine Bolk. U kunt zich door haar in prachtige batikstoffen laten kleden. Er is gelegenheid voor het maken van foto’s in de ‘photobooth’. Entree: € 3,– inclusief koffie/thee.
Duration: 12 m 18 sec Film: Sabine Bolk Dance: Dwi Anggraeni Drawing: Mak Sium Canting: Ibu Rasminah, Nurul Maslahah and Ibu Kustiyah Dyeing: Ibu Juwariyah and Ibu Ramini Filmed on location in Sleman, Jeruk and Batang on Java, Indonesia in 2016
From September till begin December 2016, Sabine Bolk was on Java (Indonesia) to capture the creative proces of Batik, Indonesian textile, in a short film. In 2009 Batik became to official UNESCO heritage of Indonesia. The technique of Batik, specifically Tulis (‘Handwritten’), have been under pressure for a long time. In the film Sabine shows the creative process through the hands of the makers. The leading role in the film is for Tari Batik, ‘Batik Dance’, performed by Dwi Anggraeni. This new traditional dance visualises the making of Batik. The dancer and Batikmakers show how Batik is still being made today, under pressure but far from forgotten.
Past Screenings
During my third ‘journey to Batik‘, October 2019, my film was shown in Jakarta, Pekalongan, Batang and Lasem. For more read more on my blog.
On 2 November 2019 during my talk at the Vrijmetselarij Museum, I wil also show my film, more info in News
From 24 – 26 May 2019 my film was in the exhibition ‘West meets East‘ at Stokvishallen as part of the ‘In The Spotlight’ program by Nieuwe Veste.
On 26, 28 and 30 May 2019 my film was screened at the Tong Tong Fair.
On 25 April 2019 my film was part of ‘HERSTORY, a program penayangan film’, organised by Perempuan Berkabar, at Ruang Audio Visual, Dinas Perpustakaan dan Kearsipan Kota Padangpanjang in Sumatra (Indonesia).
On 4 April 2019 my film will be screened at CultuurSpoor in Best as part of the Indonesische Culturele Maand by Stichting Hibiscus.
From 16 December 2018 my film was screened, on a big screen, during the opening of my exhibition ‘De reis naar batik – Dag en Nacht‘ at De Nieuwe Veste in Breda. Until 20 January 2019 my film was part of the exhibition.
On 10 January 2019 my film was screened during the third ‘Save The Loom‘ event at De Nieuwe Dakota in Amsterdam.
Private viewing for the Red Hat Society of Capelle aan den Ijssel on 11 December 2018
On 17 November 2018 my film was screened at Masoek Sadja in Zwolle
On 15 July 2018 my film was screened during Madjoe Dua in Utrecht, I also gave a presentation about my journey to Batik.
On 25th of April 2018 my film was screened during Kopi Kecil in Eindhoven
On 24 & 25 February 2018 my film was screened during the first edition of Wastra Weekend at animal park Taman Indonesia. More information on www.taman-indonesia.nl
On 26th of January 26 2018 my film was part of the Shorts Program III of the SEAxSEA: The Southeast Asia x Seattle Film Festival. More information on jsis.washington.edu/seac/seaxsea-filmfest/
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On the 14th of September 2017 during the Grand opening of the Asian Library my film ‘The journey to Batik-Tari Batik’ had its world premiere together with three other selected movies in the Cinema Room of the Asian Library at the University Leiden. The screening was part of the ‘Tour of Asia’ program and was organised by Framing Asia. More information on www.leidenasiayear.nl
For information on screening ‘Tari Batik’, please send me an email at sabine@sabinebolk.nl
For more on the making of ‘The journey to Batik – Tari Batik’, please visit my blog The journey to Batik
2018 ended with and 2019 begin with my exhibition ‘The journey to Batik – Day & Night’ at Nieuwe Veste in Breda (NL). It was a wonderful month filled with Batik!
During the opening, I gave a tour through my exhibition. It was so great to share the stories of my ‘journey to Batik’ personally and luckily I could repeat it also for friends who visited the exhibition later.
Next to the exhibition, I gave two batikworkshop with Shuen-Li Spirit & made a slide-show for the piano piece by Leopold Godowsky called the ‘Java Suite’ performed by Poitr van de Werff, teacher at Nieuwe Veste, during their New Year Concert.
Kees van Meel interviewed me for his ‘Kijk in Kunst’ program for BredaNu. It gives a nice glimpse of the exhibition and in Dutch I share more about my ideas behind the exhibition and the Batiks on display.
Watch the video here:
I would like to thank everyone who went to see my exhibition, thanks for the great feedback and compliments!
One of my first commissioned work was actually a mural too. I was invited in 2007 to make two murals at a pig-farm that is open to the public and is big on improving the short lives of the pigs there. The murals are still there and open to the public.
So when Marlisa asked me to make-over their Children’s expedition room with a Batik theme, I was really exited. I worked in total 7 days on the mural, and re-decorating the room. The mural starts with typical patterns that were worn by royalty in Yogyakarta and Solo on Java in a Sogan, brown & dark blue colour palette. It continues into a motif with lotuses and then Batik Buketan, an Indo-European pattern still populair today in Pekalongan. After that in red, batik motifs from Lasem and Tuban with a more Chinese influence. It continues into blue with Cirebon’s famous Mega Mendung and ends with a Kain from Madura.
The second mural I made, was after I made the first part at Taman. I was so surprised and honoured to brighten up Sandra Niessen hallway!
I had great fun, and a lot of muscle ache, making these murals this passed year! During the second Wastra Weekend, 23 & 24 February 2019, you can view the mural at Taman Indonesia with additional information on all the Batik motifs I used.
Locations: Argument Vertoningsruimte in Tilburg (NL), Paulushofje in Etten-Leur (NL) and in backyard in Yogyakarta (Indonesia)
Year: 2009 – 2011
‘Dance in a ricecarpet’ is a project in which art, dance and music are combined to a performance. The project was partly developed during a workperiod from the 19th of April until the 22nd of May 2010 in Argument Vertoningsruimte in Tilburg (NL).
During ‘Dance in a ricecarpet’ a ricecarpet is destroyed as well as created by dance. A ricecarpet is a carpet made of several organic materials such as rice, beans and lentils.
‘Dance in a ricecarpet’ was created by Sabine Bolk (ricecarpet) in collaborations with Barbara van Kooten (dance), Chester L. Brandes (classical guitar), Koen de Wit (clarinet), Dirk Elst (percussion) and Berk Aarts (light). It was performed in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia (the try-out) in 2009, in Argument Vertoningsruimte in Tilburg (NL) in 2010 and in Etten-Leur (NL) in 2011.
On 20 meter of wallpaper I painted a pattern based on the bird-like plant motif found on Batik from Lasem (ID) and a pattern based on my ricebird Batik in flight. The wallpapers together form the transformation from bird into motif.
This installation was displayed twice in 2010. In Breda at the exhibition ‘Paper in progress’ and in Leiden during the festival PindaKAAS.
