Batik Fabric - A 2000 year old Art

Even more than 2000 years ago, people were searching for fabric with a design. Eastern and Middle Eastern countries, including India, China, Japan, Persia and Egypt, developed a process for creating designs in fabric that is still being used today.

Artisans in Java and Indonesia further developed the process known as Batik to reflect the culture and religion of their countries in the richness of the colors and detail of the designs on their fabrics.

A batik fabric of white and blue. Click on the picture for a larger image.

When I began quilting in the early 1980s, the variety of batiks available here in the US was limited - both in color and design. The color selections were limited to royal blue and white or black and white. A rare fabric shop that carried any batik fabric might have 4 bolts total with 3 different designs, and 2 different colors.

The design in the fabric on the left is a relatively complex design for an early batik here in the US. This fabric was purcahsed in the mid 1990s.

Understanding how a batik is made explains somewhat why the designs were fairly limited. The process is a method of applying a colored design onto fabric by applying wax to parts that are not to be dyed.

In a fabric with only white and another color, the waxing process is fairly simple - apply one design of wax, and then dye the fabric one color. Looking at the fabric above, wax would be applied to the fabric in the design that is white. The fabric would then be dyed blue. After the fabric dried, the wax would be removed, and the fabric is ready to sell.

As the demand increased, prices allowed for an expansion of creativity, and now batiks abound in quilt shops and on line.

The second phase of batiks came in with shades of colors, but still just basically two colors. Click on the picture for a larger image.

While the basic process remains the same, the number of steps increases as the number of colors increases.

I remember how excited I was to see a new phase of batiks arrive. This group was still only two colors of fabric, but there was some variation in the lighter color.

The swimming turtles is an example of some of this batik fabric.

A batik fabric of white and blue. Click on the picture for a larger image.

Currently the variety of batiks seems endless, both in color and design.

In keeping with the traditional designs handed down from generation to generation in the Eastern and Middle Eastern countries, plants and animals adorn the fabrics

Much like other fabrics, it is possible to find the same design in different color variations, as in the three fabrics on the right in the photograph.

And, how do you use batiks in making quilts?

An Ocean Waves quilt made with batik fabric. Click on the picture for a larger image.

In the mid 1990s, I made this Ocean Waves quilt using batik and hand dyed fabrics. This quilt moves from the depths of the ocean with swirls and shells, through seahorses and fish, and out to ocean waves and the sunshine.

In a different example, I used squares of cats, surrounded them with a kind of pinwheel and added borders.

Happy Quilting!

Penny is a quilter of more than 24 years who seeks to interest new quilters and provide them with the resources necessary to create beautiful quilts.

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