Words Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak Photos Jerry Adiguna

Indonesian traditional cultures and societies are an endless treasure trove of ideas that keep the fashion industry turning and they offer many ideas that are still waiting to be developed.

The latest bid is by Ambah Batik, a new fashion brand, which focuses on preservation of cultural heritage, as seen in its debut show. Socialpreneur Dina Rimandra Handayani, the founder and CEO of Ambah Karya Kreativitas, has developed the overlooked motif of pucuk rebung (bamboo shoot) to become the signature element of the fashion products. The motif is frequently used on the traditional clothes of Betawi (native Jakartan), Java, Riau, Sumatra and Kalimantan societies and is widely known as the coastal Melayu motif.

“It represents the close ties among the traditional cultures in Indonesia. Pucuk rebung also bears a philosophical value of being resilient and growing tall to give back to society,” Dina, 28, told the press conference before the show.

Ambah Batik’s team of designers, Stephanie Poai and Rangga Aditya Saputra, showed the motif in various designs and sizes, but maintained its basic triangular form.

Their works were showcased in the ballroom of The Dharmawangsa Hotel in South Jakarta on Aug. 4, with Creative Economy Agency (Bekraf) head Triawan Munaf and Bogor Mayor Arya Bima among the audience. A total of 48 sets of female and male batik ready-to-wear was displayed in four color-themed sequences, with each representing a wide range of styles from casual to semi couture.

The show opened with an array of predominantly red clothes with touches of black and gold. The bamboo shoot motif was combined with flowery batik motifs in jumpsuits, wrap dresses, capes, semi-formal suits and sheath dresses.

The next collection was taken from the blue pallet, a toning down in color from the opening although it was not the case with the designs.

Stephanie, educated at LaSalle College in Jakarta, combined batik with transparent materials in bold cutting. Modern yet elegant, the body-hugging silhouette was the main element in the collection that consisted of cropped tops, high slit gowns and minidresses. For menswear, she designed batik shirts and bomber jackets that were mix-and-matched with Bermuda pants, as well as purple hued male suits inspired by founding president Sukarno’s militaristic formal uniform.

“I want to keep the design as simple as possible because overcutting will definitely ruin the beauty and meaning of the batik motifs,” she said.

A more formal collection dominated by black and gold colors presented the bamboo shoot motif attractively — around the hem, on the torso and across the garment.

In some designs, the motif was embroidered or created from lines of sequins.

Nine glamorous semi-couture pieces took the final bow, with their exquisite designs made to accentuate the pucuk rebung motif even more.

Ballgowns, jumpsuits, minidress and sheath dresses, with coats or long trains, allowed a spacious canvas for the designers to work with the motifs with embroideries and sequins.

The garment material used in the collection were batik tulis (handmade) on baron silk, Thai silk and cotton as well as batik cap (hand-stamped) on cotton.

The special edge from these sartorial pieces was that the production involved design students of two vocational high schools in Kudus, Central Java, and Bogor.

The students in Kudus, facilitated by the community preserving traditional batik of the area that is chaired by Miranti Serad Ginanjar, were involved in the drawing and dyeing processes.

The Bogor students, meanwhile, took part in sewing, making embroidery and finishing works of a dozen pieces in the collection.

“There is a transfer of knowledge and capacity building program in this business we don’t often see,” said Joshua Simandjuntak, deputy of marketing at the Creative Economy Agency.

He said that Indonesia currently has 12.1 million talents in the creative industry, according to the agency’s data.

“We need more talents to generate revenue from the industry,” he said, adding that although the fashion industry contributed only 27.9 percent to the creative economy it was among the most lucrative.

Dina, who has run a food and beverage business since 2010, said the idea to establish the brand came as an extension of her passion for fashion and her admiration for traditional clothes and souvenirs from across the archipelago.

She picked the name from the Javanese word “amba”, meaning “to write”, with the letter “h” to represent the word “hidup” or life.

“Combined with the bamboo shoot motif as the company logo, the name reflects our goal to change people’s lives,” she said.

Half of the proceeds from sales of the products will be provided to vocational schools.

“It would be used to provide school facilities and workshops for the student, including providing mentors in fashion design,” she said.