Batik Art On The Decline Due to Poor Guidelines

Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim, local Brunei batik artists and textile designer during an interview with The Brunei Times. Picture: BT/Quratul-Ain Bandial

LOCAL art veteran Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim has bemoaned the state of the current batik art scene, saying it has stagnated due to lack of proper guidance and instruction for art students.

A pioneer in Brunei's batik scene, Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim , 62, has been very vocal about the dearth of talent to carry on the centuries-old tradition of batik painting, made famous by artists like Singaporean Sarkasi Said Tzee and Malaysian Ramsay Ong.

In an interview at his Beribi showroom, Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim  spoke about the current batik art exhibition at the Waterfront Gallery, which he called "disappointing".

While the exhibition starts off with works from some of the genre's greats - like Sarkasi said Tzee and Ramsay Ong - and even some of Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim's own paintings, he said the amateur works produced from a series of batik workshops for young artists lacked depth.

"What I saw is very disappointing - not much improvement... I look at student's work and nothing. I don't see any talent or something to be proud of."

"I can't blame the students, it is those who teach it who don't have pure knowledge, or are knowledgeable about the process of batik."

Producing batik is an arduous process which can take weeks, by melting wax on to the canvas before hand-dyeing it a series of colours to create the desired image or effect.

"I think it is their approach whether they are ignorant about the process of batik or don't really care about what is art," said Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim.

"Batik is a process of art and here I see no direction at all."

With more than 40 years of experience including a brief stint as a fine arts instructor at local university Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim  has vast experience in batik, from traditional methods to using digital tools to create motifs.

He said most art instructors in schools and workshops are not experienced enough to steer young talent.

"They just see, they just listen, take a one or two day workshop then start teaching people. This may be a good way to promote (batik artwork) but the proper way to do art is you must have a system and be disciplined."

"Of course art can be experimental you can be immersed in different elements. But you must be immersed in art, the proper technique of doing it. That is part of their failing that they cannot achieve quality."

The fact that the Waterfront Gallery exhibition does not display any recent batik paintings since 2004, speaks to the scarcity of quality local artwork, Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim  lamented.

"I went the other day and thought this is ridiculous work. If I was a teacher I would fail them."

He said there a few local veteran artists who, although may not use batik as their main medium, are well-versed in the genre and could offer much-needed guidance to students.

"We need to involve veteran artists so they can guide the young ones. These people (students) are creative but they need proper technique. So at the end they produce something subpar or has no meaning and it's a pity."

However, batik painting is a dying art not only in Brunei, but in the region as well. In the past five eyars, Zainal Abidin Hj Ibrahim  himself has largely moved away from batik painting and into commercial textile production as a batik apparel designer.

He has a traditional batik workshop in Solo, Indonesia where he produces his hand-made textiles, and send his digital motifs, created on Adobe Illustrator and other software, to be made in South Korea.

The veteran has participated in a number of international textile exhibitions, including the World Expos in China and South Korea, where he was able to attract the interest of international buyers.

"Most batik artists feel like there is no market for the paintings, so they move into textile batik design. It is a sad truth."

The Brunei Times.
http://www.bt.com.bn/2012/12/23/batik-art-decline-due-poor-guidelines

BAF's Sunday Seni comes to a close

Expatriates and locals alike trying their hand at batik art during Brunei Art Forum's art exhibition at the BSB Waterfront. Picture: BT/Zatty Joanda

LOCAL young artists from the Brunei Art Forum (BAF) gathered together once again after a three-weekend hiatus to put together an exhibition to continue the art exhibition that was launched last month at the Waterfront Gallery to commemorate this year's National Day.

The art exhibition featured a number of art works that were on display ranging from traditional oil and acrylic paintings of the local scenery to abstract and installation art that was set up by the Brunei Art Forum BAF. 

The artists have drawn their inspiration from 10 chosen words in accordance with the exhibition's theme.

These words include "tradisi" (tradition), "keamanan" (peace), "alam" (nature), "kesegaran" (vibrant), "dongeng" (tales), "kekayaan" (wealth), "tekstur" (texture), "kedaulatan" (sovereignty), "rakyat" (people) and "kehidupan" (life). 

Yesterday's event was dubbed as "Sunday Seni" or loosely translated as "Sunday Art" as not only did visitors of the exhibition had a first-hand try at batik artwork but were also treated to a different kind of art which included poetry-reading and music.

The batik art had an encouraging response from visitors as the batik art classes were held from 10am to 2pm and according to a member of BAF, the visitors still kept on coming to try out the batik art. "We cannot say no to them and we will continue on while our resources are available," said a member who opted for anonymity.

Visitor Lee-Ngee who works for a local private company was at the batik classes accompanying her son, said, "I think it's a really good event. It's definitely a good avenue to promote the talent, their passion and their skills."

Lee-Ngee found out about the event via social site, Twitter and made it a point to pay a visit to the exhibition and stated that she was impressed by the exhibition. 

"To actually organise something like this and to promote it to the community is an achievement, something we should applaud the volunteers. I have learned something that I've not known how to do (batik design) before. You get to appreciate the work but more importantly to get to know the young people with so much talent and wanting to show to the community, it is a culture," she said.

The art exhibition also saw a number of expatriates as friends, Wendy Haldane and Sue Longstaff also had a go at the batik art class.

Wendy Haldane said to The Brunei Times, "We've only lived here for a few months. It's clearly a much smaller place than the UK so we have to look a little harder to look for it (art scene). I can see the country wanting to make an effort to have new and, especially, artistic things. I think think there is a long way to go but there are more ideas that can be contributed by us (expatriates) to help the art scene here."

Agreeing to her friend's comment, Sue Longstaff added, "The woven silk (songket) is absolutely beautiful here in Brunei. That can definitely be made into pieces of art. My son came here during christmas and he is currently doing 'A'-Level Art. He took loads of photographs of the water village and he is, at the moment, translating it into his paintings back in Britain. He is inspired by Brunei."

Yesterday was the last weekend for the BAF's art exhibition. According to the exhibition coordinator, Syen Sofian, "The exhibition has been going from the middle of December and for February since it is in conjunction with the National Day, it is called 'Art Warisan, Heritage Seni' under BAF art exhibition."

He added, "We want people to understand that art is not just what we are doing, painting, sculptures, we have opened a pathway for installation art and other mediums. We invited other groups involved in the poetry scene and music scene to participate today, that's why we call it "Sunday Seni". This is a very casual set-up so they can perform their poetry and music."

The Brunei Times
http://www.bt.com.bn/happenings/2012/02/20/bafs-sunday-seni-comes-close