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Edward Hutabarat: lights up Indonesia's batik journey
Masterwork: Fashion designer Edward âEdoâ Hutabarat explains a batik motif during an exhibition held on the sidelines of his Batik Journey fashion show at The Dharmawangsa Hotel
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span class="inline inline-center">Masterwork: Fashion designer Edward 'Edo' Hutabarat explains a batik motif during an exhibition held on the sidelines of his Batik Journey fashion show at The Dharmawangsa Hotel.
Renowned fashion designer Edward Hutabarat is greatly known for his modern take on batik. Now he's taking batik to a new level.
Fashion designer Edward Hutabarat showcased his exploration into Indonesia's invaluable batik heritage during Batik Journey, a fashion event held to celebrate his 35-year journey in fashion.
'I've been exploring Indonesia for 20 years, and what I've discovered is the remains of civilizations ' the landscape, traditional textiles, food, and dances,' he said on Thursday.
'Now I'm trying to gather little pieces of these remains, presenting them here in Batik Journey'.
Edo ' as Edward is usually called ' collaborated with artistic director Jay Subyakto and photographer Davy Linggar, as well as with a selection of batik artisans from several of the country's batik-producing areas.
In the fashion show that was organized at The Dharmawangsa Hotel, he showcased collections from his ready-to-wear line, Part One, teaming up with Nur Cahyo, a renowned batik maker from Pekalongan in Central Java, who made all the batik.
'Our collaboration for Batik Journey was more advanced than before. I always use striped lining in my designs and this time we tried to make those stripes with batik technique,' Edo said.
Prior to using Javanese hand-woven lurik (stripped fabric), Edo had used American cotton to make his striped lining.
Nur Cahyo also said that it was also new for him to create striped lining using batik technique.
'We prepared it over about a year because everything was made by hand, we had to be very patient,' Nur Cahyo said.
The results of the collaboration were spectacular on the runway.
The striped lining, which comes in many colors ' red, yellow, green, black ' has become the main theme, not just the accent, in Edo's modern designs.
Rompers, jumpsuits, shorts, loose tops and short dresses were created, paired with large hats and flip-flops, generating a refreshing, energetic, summer feeling for the collection.
For the next part of his journey, Edo combined stripes with the Sawunggaling motif.
'In order to maintain the motif, I make the pattern first before applying the batik motif. That way, no part of the Sawunggaling bird motif will be cut in half ' I want them to be flying in my designs,' he said.
He applied the Sawunggaling motif on silk and satin that was to be transformed into diverse styles of cocktail and long dresses, with pockets for more casual styles.
Edo also presented creations for men, combining batik fabrics in a kimono style that fell right on the ankle, with a second design presented as a jacket.
The motifs in the batik kimono were quite large, but his ability to arrange did not make the look appear overdone, even when paired with lurik, instead showing a strong and elegant feel.
Outside the fashion show hall, Edo held an exhibition showcasing the batik textiles produced through his collaborations with several batik artisans, including Nur Cahyo.
From Madura in East Java, Edo teamed up with Maimunah, a batik-maker who produces batik textiles using a gentongan (water jug) technique, where fabrics are kept in barrels for weeks in order to create distinguished colors.
Dark red, according to Maimunah, is the typical color of Madura batik and is usually combined with black, brown or indigo.
'Just like many other coastal batik-producing areas, Madura batik features a lot of flora and fauna motifs,' she said.
Edo also collaborated with Ninik Ichsan and Uka Masina Trusmi from Cirebon in West Java; with Nani, from Tuban in East Java; and Tatik Sri Harta from Surakarta, Central Java.
A video presenting the batik-making process and exhibition of several half-finished batik textiles were combined as a way to further introduce batik to the audience.
'The strength of Indonesia lays within its civilization's remains. I collect such remnants and try to apply them in a more international style,' the 57-year-old designer said.
' Photo by JP/NBL
