The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Sarong

Sarong

mid-1800s
Cotton: plain weave, wax-resist dyed (batik)
Overall: 106 x 192.4 cm (41 3/4 x 75 3/4 in.)
Gift of Mrs. James J. Tracy 1917.26
Location: not on view

Description

Batiks made in the North Coast region of Java, specifically in Pekalongan, were influenced by both Indian and European motifs due to the Dutch presence in Indonesia. In this sarong we see a mixture of Indian and European flowers including jasmine, lilac, and daffodil. Batik is a wax-resist dyeing technique used throughout Java. Hot wax is applied with a tool known as a canting and a design is hand drawn with incredible skill. This sarong was then dyed with indigo, a well sought after and culturally important natural dye. Areas on the fabric with wax will not accept the indigo dye, hence the term wax-resist.
  • ?–1917
    Mrs. James J. [Jane Allyn Foote] Tracy [1857–1944], Cleveland, OH, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1917–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Larsen, Jack Lenor, and Bob Hanson. The Dyer's Art: Ikat, Batik, Plangi. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1976.
    Wessing, Robert. 1986. "Wearing the Cosmos: Symbolism in Batik Design". Crossroads : an Interdiscliplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. 2, no. 3: 40-82.
    Maxwell, Robyn J. Sari to Sarong: Five Hundred Years of Indian and Indonesian Textile Exchange. [Canberra?]: National Gallery of Australia, 2003.
    Khan Majlis, Brigitte. The Art of Indonesian Textiles: The E.M. Bakwin Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago. [Chicago]: Art Institute of Chicago, 2007.
    Kumar, Prakash. Indigo Plantations and Science in Colonial India. New Delhi: Cambridge University Press, 2013.
    Adam, Tassilo. The Art of Batik: Weaving and Dyeing in Java. [United States]: Read Books Ltd, 2016.
  • Fiberworks: Tradition and Technique. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 5-November 11, 1977).
    Design in Printed Textiles. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 7-September 3, 1961).
    Techniques of Textile Printing. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 11, 1948-May 29, 1949).
  • {{cite web|title=Sarong|url=false|author=|year=mid-1800s|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1917.26