However, the earthquake failed to dampen the local’s spirit, with batik makers quickly working to restore their shattered economy and rebuild their lives.

We worked in the batik industry before the earthquake, but now we do everything ourselves, including drawing, dyeing and selling pieces of batik,†said Muqoyaroh, 50, head of the Berkah Lestari batik cooperative in Karangkulon hamlet, Wukirsari, a kilometer northeast of the Mataram royal cemetery in Imogiri.

Muqoyaroh said four months after the disaster, approximately 150 batik makers from the Karangkulon, Giriloyo and Cengkehan hamlets decided to set up the cooperative.

He said the drastic change from working in the batik industry to creating their own batik cottage industry required a lot of adjustment.

One of the cooperative’s early creations was a 1.2-kilometer batik cloth, which currently holds the record for being the country’s longest piece of batik at the Indonesian Records Museum.

However, the most important thing is people’ spirit. Thanks to God, residents are able to create batik by hand as part of our cooperative,†said Muqoyaroh.

Khoryatun, 54, said batik making skills had been developed for hundreds of years in the village. At one point, nearly every resident was involved in batik production. To preserve the tradition, a number of children and teenagers are currently being taught the art.

Giarti, a mother of two, said the cooperative uses natural ingredients to produce colors used to dye batik. For example, mango leaves are used to produce light green, teak leaves produce a brownish red color and mahogany tree bark is used to produce brown.

We are able to get materials to produce the colors we need from the surrounding area, Giarti said.

To produce bright colors, fabric must be dyed between 15 and 30 times.

After the dyeing process, the fabric is hung out to dry, but not directly under the sun. It is later dyed and dried several more times until the required color is achieved, said Giarti.

She said the cooperative is currently trying to find a market niche for their products, with buyers from Australia and Sweden having already shown interest.

The price of a piece of batik varies depending on its motif, colors used and its level of intricacy. Undyed fabric sells for approximately Rp 250,000, while dyed fabric varies in price from Rp 500,000 to Rp 1.5 million (approximately US$165).

Batik fabric is soaked for 24 hours, boiled for an hour, soaked again and then ironed before motifs are sketched on in wax.
After the motif is sketched on, which takes between 10 and 20 days, the fabric is soaked in detergent and then dyed with the desired colors.

Batik is relatively expensive because it takes a long time to make. We are only able to produce 20 to 50 pieces of batik each month despite the fact our cooperative is made up of hundreds of artisans, Muqoyaroh said.

Slamet Susanto – Travel and Tourism

This museum makes use of the building used to be for the Dutch Government Treasurer in Pekalongan during the first part of XIX Century. The room that ever used for money saving is still exist and can be seen by museum visitors on request. Batik Museum in Pekalongan city can be seen as a realization of Indonesian eagerness to contribute a centre of cultural and economic activities in order to reach an international level in term of cultural diversity on one side and to give local people a lot of benefits in terms of economic value on the other side.

Being officially opened by Mr President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, on 12th of July 2006 it has 300 collections of various patterned batik cloths contributed by people all over Indonesia. These collections are displayed in two exhibition rooms: the T exhibition room displaying  batik Pekalongan patterned batik cloths and north coastal patterned batik cloths, and the L exhibition room displaying Nusantara batik cloths taken from other areas in Indonesia.

This museum is also completed with an administration room, a storage and conservation room, a meeting room and a Batik Art Shop where visitors can buy various kinds of souvenirs made of batik. There will be a library, and an information and data room in future.

Further information on Batik Museum in Pekalongan city can be seen in www.museumbatikpekalongan.dprin.go.id. Any contact to this museum can be got through by phone/fax 62 285 431698 or an email to museumbatik@dprin.go.id

Imogiri

The museum occupies Joglo Cipto Wening; a 200-year-old Joglo-style traditional Javanese building. Joglo Cipto Wening was officially opened for the first time on March 18, 2004, also by Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.

The museum also serves as a meeting point for artisans and visiting batik lovers and collectors. The museum aims to preserve the tradition of batik production in villages and is home to nearly 90 batik artisans. Many believe batik has been produced by local artisans in Imogiri since as early as 1632, when Sultan Agung Hanyokrokusumo of the Mataram Kingdom constructed a royal cemetery in the area. Of some 350 batik pieces the museum originally possessed, only around 80 are still part of its collection.

Imogiri has long been known as the center of hand-made batik in Yogyakarta. Batik is also produced in several neighboring villages of Imogiri, including Ketandan, Giriloyo and Wukirsari. Residents in most of these villages are batik artisans.