Friday, October 23, 2009

BATIK, A SUBLIME CLOTH FROM JAVA (INDONESIA)

Still talking about Batik.

There are many different batik designs, in general, there are two categories : geometric motif and free form design. Particular design have been associated with traditional festivals and specific religious ceremonies like wedding. It was thought that certain cloth had mystical powers to ward off ill fortune, while other pieces could bring good luck.


KAWUNG
Kawung is another very old design consisting of intersecting circles, known in Java since at least the thirteenth century. This design has appeared carved into the walls of many temples throughout Java such as Prambanan near Jogjakarta and Kediri in East Java. For many years, this pattern was reserved for the royal court of the Sultan of Jogjakarta. The circles are sometimes embellished inside with two or more small crosses or other ornaments such as intersecting lines or dots. It has been suggested that the ovals might represent flora such as the fruit of the kapok (silk cotton) tree or the aren (sugar palm).


CEPLOK
Ceplok is a general name for a whole series of geometric designs based on squares, rhombs, circles, stars, etc. Although fundamentally geometric, ceplok can also represent abstractions and stylization of flowers, buds, seeds and even animals. Variations in color intensity can create illusions of depth. The Indonesian population is largely Muslim, a religion that forbids the portrayal of animal and human forms in a realistic manner. To get around this prohibition, the batik worker does not attempt to express this matter in a realistic form. A single element of the form is chosen and then that element is repeated again and again in the pattern.


PARANG
Parang was once used exclusively by the royal courts of Central Java. It has several suggested meanings such as 'rugged rock', 'knife pattern' or 'broken blade'. The Parang design consists of slanting rows of thick knife-like segments running in parallel diagonal bands. Parang usually alternated with narrower bands in a darker contrasting color. These darker bands contain another design element, a line of lozenge-shaped motifs call mlinjon. There are many variations of this basic striped pattern with its elegant sweeping lines, with over forty parang designs recorded. The most famous is the 'Parang Rusak' which in its most classical form consisting of rows of softly folded parang. This motif also appears in media other than batik, including woodcarving and as ornamentation on gamelan musical instruments.


MODERN BATIK
Modern batik, although having strong ties to traditional batik, utilizes linear treatment of leaves, flowers and birds. These batiks tend to be more dependent on the dictates of the designer rather than the stiff guidelines that have guided traditional craftsmen. This is also apparent in the use of color that modern designers use. Artisans are no longer dependent on traditional (natural) dyes, as chemical dyes can produce any color that they wish to achieve. Modern batik still utilizes canting and cap to create intricate designs.





Source:

Thursday, October 15, 2009

AND THE BIGGEST WHINER GOES TO...



If you (1) have time to whine and complain about something (2)
then you have the time to do something about it.
(Quote from Anthony J. D'Angelo, Founder of The Collegiate EmPowerment Company and creator of The Inspiration Book Series)


(1) Whiner: A type of person whose only way of speaking is through non stop complaining. I know someone like this, and I hate someone like this. Beware a complainer, because once they find a vent they won't let that person go until they are a complainer themselves. (quote from urbandictionary).
(2) Unnecesarry things..

Friday, October 9, 2009

Hagelslag

Hollanders called it Hagelslag. Indonesians called it Meises (I don't know where this is come from). For the Americans, it's known as Sprinkles or Jimmies. I prefer to call it meises (you know where I'm leaving). Meises is one of Broodbeleg(1) made by chocolates and sugar. This kind of broodbeleg is also common in Indonesia(2), Belgium and Suriname, once a colony of The Netherlands.

Dutch hagelslag was first invented in 1936 by Gerard de Vries for Venz, a Dutch company. Inspired by several letters to Venz from a five-year-old boy named H. Bakker asking for a broodbeleg, prompted de Vries's to develope the hagelslag. After much research and venture, de Vries and Venz created the first machine to produce the tiny cylindrical treats. They were named "Hagelslag" after their resemblance to a weather phenomenon prominent in the Netherlands, hail (hagel)(3).

the common plastic packages of meises made in Indonesia, the brand name is Ceres

this is the premium version, you could find it in Setiabudhi Store

You could see the different, this is the real hagelslag from Netherlands

the other

and the other one..

see?



(1) : Broodbeleg is a bread topping examples butter, margarine, jam, pindakaas, cheese, chocolate paste.
(2) : In Indonesia, Roti Tawar (white bread) with many kind of broodbeleg is a common breakfast foods besides Nasi Goreng.
(3) : I couldn't see the connection...

source : http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hagelslag

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Morning Rain

the sound, the scent, soft and calm, refreshing rain..
with Rod Stewart's song...


remind me of my mom..

Friday, October 2, 2009

Indonesian Celebrate Batik Day on Oct 2



Indonesian have been asked to wear Batik on oct. 2 to celebrate UNESCO`s decision to include Batik in its list of "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" items. And I saw everyone wearing Batik today, including the students here at Polytechnic, oh my, they're very cute! I hope every friday, Indonesian always wear Batik in honor of our heritage.


Masyarakat Indonesia disarankan memakai Batik pada tanggal 2 Oktober 2009 untuk merayakan keputusan UNESCO yang telah mengkategorikan Batik ke dalam daftar "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity". Dan, hari ini saya melihat semua orang memakai batik, termasuk para mahasiswa di Politeknik, dan ya ampun, mereka keliatan lucu banget deh! Saya harap masyarakat Indonesia mengenakan Batik setiap hari jumat dalam rangka menghormati warisan luhur budaya kita.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Sumatra Shaken by New Earthquake


Peace, Prayers dan Blessings for the victims of earthquake in Padang and Jambi.
Semoga para korban dan masyarakat disana senantiasa ada dalam perlindungan Allah SWT. Amin.

Fear of Commitment

image from http://jezebel.com/5310186/breaking-not-all-men-comically-terrified-of-marriage
Guys decided they wanted to get married when:
  1. his dad suggested it
  2. he was committed when his girlfriend helped him through a rough time
  3. had to deal with a drug addiction

Damn!