Indrawati Gan Determined to Preserve Chinese Batiks

KOMPAS/REGINA RUKMORINI

Indrawati Gan

As a child, Indrawati Gan was convinced that she belonged to the succeeding generation in preserving the Chinese batik tradition, Gan batik of Pekalongan origin pioneered by her ancestors since 1870. She has undertaken Chinese batik preservation through books and batik paintings.

Indrawati is a member of the fourth generation of the Gan family and at the same time the last successor of the Gan batik tradition. Her two older brothers are not interested in batik.

As a successor, regrettably Indrawati is incapable of mass-producing Chinese batik because of the difficulty in securing skilled workers. Therefore, she has adopted another way for the preservation of Gan batik. She shares her knowledge of batik through books, paintings and direct explanations.

“Although I cannot create a succeeding generation from our own descendants, hopefully my attempt to share the science and knowledge of Chinese batik can induce the growth of a new generation of batik makers from the general public,” she said in her residence in Yogyakarta on Wednesday (25/1/2023).

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She hopes that from the many people who have listened to her explanations, read her books as well as observed batik making and Chinese batik motifs, the younger generation will be attracted to continue Chinese batik production activities as her family used to be engaged in.

Her knowledge-sharing activity is intended to complement her family’s previous activity that was only focused on production without considering extensive preservation or publication efforts. Amid the limitations to mass-produce batiks, she strives to reintroduce Chinese batik motifs through paintings. She regards this method as far more effective in enabling people to scrutinize the motifs and grasp their philosophical meanings. “The motifs on Chinese batik and their meanings usually escape notice when the cloth has been sewn up and worn as garments,” she said.

She feels the need to widely introduce Chinese batik motifs because these designs tend to be less familiar to the public. They are less popular than Solo or Yogyakarta batik motifs. Many batik-makers are eager to present Chinese batik motifs but randomly copy or imitate other batik motifs. As a result, the patterns have changed. “Many phoenix motifs, for instance, have changed into roosters,” she added.

Through generations

Indrawati belongs to the fourth generation of the Gan family of batik makers. The Gan batik business was pioneered by Indrawati’s great grandfather, Gan Sam Gie, in the 1870s. This business ended in 1992 with the passing of Indrawati’s father, Gan Tjiang Liem.

In the family of Gan Tjiang Liem, Indrawati is the youngest of four siblings. She is also the only daughter.

By tradition, the Gan batik business is continued by the family’s son. However, her two older brothers have no interest in batik. Her other older brother in fact loved batik, but sadly he died at a young age. As there was no successor, Indrawati was prompted to carry on the Gan family batik tradition.

KOMPAS/REGINA RUKMORINI

Indrawati Gan

In the late 1980s, public interest in hand-drawn batiks was declining. The situation made batik business players like her father pessimistic. Indrawati, who was then attending college in Yogyakarta, tried to find out what was actually happening. She visited a Gan batik customer in Bandung. The customer said the heyday of handmade batik was ending due to the influx of printed batik.

As a matter of fact, Indrawati, who was going to be married, wanted to continue her family’s batik business, but her future husband disagreed as its prospects were seen as less promising. After getting married, they undertook the business of wood drying and bakpia (wheat flour cake with mung bean) in Yogyakarta.

Entering the 2000s, she was even more desirous of running a batik business after touring Angkor Wat in Cambodia. There she witnessed many people producing cloth like batik. Indrawati, who had separated from her husband, decided to continue the family batik business. She sought skilled workers capable of crafting Chinese batik typical of Pekalongan. It turned out to be difficult. Even by giving direction and showing pictures, the employees she had recruited produced different batik patterns.

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Indrawati refused to give up. She opened her Apsara batik business in 2012. The batik motifs presented in her batik products were exclusively temple designs, such as those of the Borobudur Temple. The business has been going on up to the present along with the bakpia sticks.

She later devoted her interest to batik by joining a batik-lovers association in Yogyakarta, Sekar Jagad. In this organization she actively follows various batik programs as a designer as well as a resource person in discussion sessions. She also learned batik making. Although born into a batik-business family, Indrawati had previously never produced batik herself.

A piece of her batik was presented at the 2^nd Gan Clan National Meeting in Jakarta in 2017. She received a positive response from her big family. Thereafter, she thought the only way to preserve Gan batik was to produce them.

As she was unable to mass-produce batik like her ancestors did, Indrawati decided to change her medium. She made batik paintings. So far, she has created dozens of paintings, some of which were sold. The rest are kept as her collection for display.

She has tried to write books about the history of Gan batik. It was difficult to get the story from domestic documentation. Fortunately, she obtained them from museums in the United States and the Netherlands. She also traced Gan batik kept by collectors in Jakarta and Yogyakarta.

Indrawati does not want Chinese batik, including Gan batik, to be forgotten. Chinese batik have contributed to the history of Indonesian batik, inspiring diverse batik designs in many regions.

Indrawati Gan

Born: Pekalongan

Education: Bopkri 1 Senior High School, Yogyakarta

This article was translated by Aris Prawira.