Batik-An Ancient Art

Batik - The Art Form created more than one millenium before the present!

The Meaning of the word Batik

Where does the word batik come from?
The word "batik" is Indonesian in origin. The word batik occurs in Javanese as Ambatik, which actually means drawing and writing. Batik has evolved around the principle that wax and water repel each other, therefore an area of fabric that has been covered with wax is prevented from accepting dye.
The Indonesian word "tik", meaning a drop (referring to the small drops of hot wax), shows how the word batik was derived.

The History of Batik

Batik is a very ancient craft dating back at least two thousand years. Batik has been continuously practiced in Java for centuries. It was around 1500 that travelers first brought back tales of highly artistic batik fabrics ,which people worked on for months on end.
At the close of the last century the technique was introduced to European arts and crafts. Batik has even more enthusiasts today because it produces excellent effects.

It can be defined as a method of applying a colored design to textiles by waxing those parts that are not to be dyed. Evidence of its practice has been discovered in most Eastern and Middle Eastern countries including India, China, Japan, Persia and Egypt, but although its actual source is unknown, it was on the island of Java in Indonesia that the art reached its peak development.
Today, the Chines people are using Batik as a means of artistic expression, and in conjunction with classic Chinese art, a very beautiful means of expression.