Once trapped in tradition, batik is now the cultural highlight of Indonesia.

The dispute over batik with neighboring country Malaysia, which actually only registered certain batik coloring techniques instead of a patent on batik, turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

It fuelled the spirits of Indonesians to grow their collective love for batik.

Their enthusiasm peaked when the country dedicated a day to batik on Oct. 2 after the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared the method of hand-painting cloth using hot wax a part of world heritage in 2009.

Batik collector Ratna Maida Ning said that in the past, batik became a part of the daily clothing of Indonesian women, although mainly as jarit (long cloth), which was paired with a kebaya (blouse).

“We needed batik because we wore it daily. My mother wore it at home. For formal occasions and wedding parties, I would pick the finest piece of my collection,” she told The Jakarta Post.

Iwan Tirta. (JP/R. Berto Wedhatama)Ine Hakim Tohir, 45, began collecting batik around 15 years ago when she started to develop a penchant for the ancient art of decorating the fabric. Her mother taught her to modify batik cloth as a skirt and to match it with a blazer for formal occasions she attended abroad.

She said she had been accustomed to seeing the execution of modern clothing in batik, thanks to inspiring fashion shows and the contribution of late celebrated designer Iwan Tirta who brought batik to high fashion.             

Other designers — such as Ramli, Edward Hutabarat, Josephine “Obin” W. Komara, Dhea Panggabean, Carmanita and Oscar Lawalata — are also known for their dedication in using batik in their creations.     

“It is the time to present batik with a modern touch, so it can go global,” Edward told the Post.

He is among several designers who uphold their idealism about preserving tulis (hand-painted) and cap (stamped) batik while trying to make batik on the same level as world class products. Edward said he worked hard to keep his shop that showcases fine batik in Pacific Place, one of the affluent shopping malls in the capital. His reason is simple.

“I want to safeguard the availability of exclusive batik. My batik should be able to be paired with international brands, such as a Hermes bag. I could have gone for a location that offered lower rent fees, but I opted not to,” he said.

Edward Hutabarat. (JP/P.J.Leo)Batik is now a regular highlight at major fashion events such as Jakarta Fashion Week. Smaller cities such as the Central Java towns of Pekalongan and Surakarta as well as Yogyakarta also regularly hold batik carnivals and fashion events to bring the art closer to people.

Today, youngsters walk down the streets wearing chic designs of batik from dresses to blazers, shawls, bags and shoes.

Coleta Puspa Prima Saputri, a 25-year-old employee of a private company, said she started wearing batik regularly in 2005 when she was still in college.

“I like wearing batik for almost all occasions, even when I am on a date with my boyfriend. I am proud of it. My favorite design is a knee-length batik dress,” she says.

Yogi Ikhwan, 28, said he used to wear batik only at wedding parties, but he started to add it to his collection after becoming a civil servant in 2009. His office requires employees to wear batik twice a week, on Thursdays and Fridays. “I like short sleeve batik with traditional motifs,” he said.

Edo, as Edward is familiarly known, said the trend would continue to grow if more people developed knowledge of the artistic and long process of making batik, which would in turn grow their love for the tradition.

Designers, he said, should also have a strong commitment to using batik instead of merely making designs based on market demand.

Although batik tulis and cap are struggling against the flood of mass-produced batik from China, Edo is upbeat that the country can make better efforts to preserve the ancient art by promoting batik through seminars, talk shows and films.

“China can print batik extensively because it does not carry any burden to preserve the tradition. We are the ones who should develop batik because it has a lot to do with our heritage, small scale economy and tourism,” he said.

Ine, who also serves as the secretary of Yayasan Batik Indonesia (Indonesia Batik Foundation), said people should stop calling screen-printed products “batik”.

“It is OK to wear printed outfits with batik motifs, but you are not wearing batik,” she said.

She applauded the current trend, but said that the country still needed to continuously preserve batik tulis and cap to prevent the recognition from being withdrawn by UNESCO.  

“We must show the world that we have the intention to preserve batik, so we can retain the heritage status. I believe batik will not merely become a one hit trend, but will be a part of our daily life,” she said.