Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Linda and Legacy


During Fiber Face 3, the exhibition of international fiber art in Yogyakarta, I was approached by a young blond woman who wanted a copy of Legacy in cloth. Her name was Linda Kaplanova. I had just sold my last copy. Linda said that she would contact me again in Europe and we became Facebook friends. She said that she lived in the Czech Republic

All photographs by MJA Nashir
In Prague, the presentation of Rangsa ni Tonun (the film by MJA Nashir and myself about Batak weaving techniques) took place on Friday 22 June. Linda Kaplanova was in the audience. She had seen the announcements about our event on Facebook and had written to ask me to reserve a book for her.

There was some magic in meeting her in Prague after having met her briefly in Yogyakarta two years earlier. I gradually recognized her as I stood there before the audience prefacing our film with an explanation about the importance of what we have called "Pulang Kampung" (returning cultural information and research results to indigenous peoples). She brought me a box of luscious strawberries and Prague waffles.

Linda was lovely. Those were special days for her. She had just completed her final project for her Master of Arts and during the week, her art academy on the bank of the Moldau had been holding Open House. Her project was on display. Today her degree was conferred. The future stretches before her. When she visited us at the University of Life Sciences in Prague, she was with a friend with whom she wishes to work. They are full of idealistic ambition. Linda wants to make a go of it as an artist and bring the beauty of Indonesian and other indigenous textiles to the people in the Czech Republic. It will be a challenge, but already she has met that challenge in her final project; she is organizing an Indonesian Day of films, textiles and photographs for the fall.

Linda was one with her project
Of course we also talked about my plans to "pulang kampung" with our Rangsa ni Tonun film, i.e. to bring the text and the film back to the Batak people in the villages. We talked of the decline of indigenous culture and arts and the ways in which we will be able to meet the future. I repeated my refrain that has become a theme of this European tour with our film: it takes the world to sustain an indigenous art tradition. The future of indigenous cloth will be diverse. It will be found in art, fashion, hobby, craft, and interior design as well as the survival of indigenous traditions. Linda represents one or more of those paths. She is already an inspiring educator and artist who is incorporating indigenous techniques in her work. She is raising awareness and will face the challenge of finding a commercial avenue to ensure the viability of her ideals.Linda studied batik in Yogyakarta but ikat captured her heart when she saw it during her travels in Flores and Sumba (Eastern Indonesia). Her final project was an application of the ikat technique to interior design. On Sunday, MJA Nashir and I went to see it.  The design of her chairs had been inspired by chairs in Yogyakarta. She wore a shirt and pants that she had dyed with the same colours that she had used in her project. She was one with her project as she described the processes, challenges and goals of bringing it to completion. Now she treated us to homemade lemonade and cherries picked from the tree of a friend. Her health and grace were luminous.



Linda took us on a walk from the river to the presidential palace. The path started out narrow and treed. Suddenly it opened onto a green oasis. We sat down on the grassy field and then lay there to revel in the luxuriant calm and beauty of the earth. Linda goes there often, she said, to relinquish the stresses of her busy life in the city. There she finds inspiration and wholeness. 



Saturday, June 23, 2012

Indonesian article about the Cologne component of our European Tour


Kain Ulos Batak Dikaji Ahli Jerman
Sosbud / Sabtu, 23 Juni 2012 07:15 WIB



Metrotvnews.com, Frankfurt: Komunitas Batak memiliki pengetahuan tradisional bernilai tinggi tentang menenun Ulos. Sayangnya, dewasa ini teknik tradisional mulai ditinggalkan oleh para penenun.

Padahal, hasil tenunan dengan teknik tradisionl lebih bagus daripada menggunakan teknik modern. Hal itu diungkapkan pakar Etnologis Dr Sandra Niessen dalam acara pameran tekstil Ulos Batak di Gallery Smend, di Kota Koeln, Jerman.

Menurut pejabat KJRI Frankfurt, Hendriek Yopin, Jumat (22/6), dalam pameran tersebut Dr Niessen menayangkan secara detil bagaimana ulos ditenun dengan teknik tradisional yang sarat dengan nilai-nilai filsafat.

Sandra Niessen memperlihatkan bagaimana warga suku Batak menenun Ulos melalui film singkat berdurasi 30 menit berjudul "Rangsa ni Tonun". Film yang dibuat MJA Nashir itu memperlihatkan setiap tahapan pembuatan ulos yang mengandung makna spiritual. Jika diurut, maknanya bermuara kepada kebesaran Tuhan sang pencipta.

Konjen RI di Frankfurt, Damos Dumoli Agusman menyatakan kekagumannya atas upaya Dr Niessen dan Nashir merekonstruksi pengetahuan tradisional teknik menenun Ulos yang hampir saja menjadi bagian sejarah dari budaya Batak.

Menurutnya, alat tradisional tenun Batak memang sudah hampir punah karena beralih ke alat yang lebih modern. Namun demikian teknik pembuatan tradisional perlu didokumentasikan dan dilestarikan.

Pengetahuan tradisional sedang diperjuangkan di forum World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) di Jenewa sebagai hak intelektual komunitas yang akan mendapat perlindungan dari perspektif HAKI, ujarnya.

Diharapkan dokumentasi ini akan membantu Pemerintah mengidentifikasi dan merekonstruksi kembali pengetahuan tradisional komunitas adat Indonesia yang mulai punah.

Hal ini dengan sendirinya memperkuat perlindungan HAKI terhadap kemungkinan diklaim komunitas atau Negara lain, ujarnya.

Menurut Konjen sudah tentu pengetahuan ini milik komunitas Batak dan upaya Niessen ini semakin memperkokoh kepemilikan orang Batak atas intelektual.

Pengetahuan tradisional dan direkonstruksi secara sistematis serta dikemas dalam media yang dapat dipahami semua lapisan pengamat di dunia sehingga komunitas Batak tidak perlu lagi kuatir tentang titel kepemilikannya, ujar Damos.

Dalam Film tersebut dikisahkan secara visual para penenun Batak menggunakan alat dan bahan-bahan yang sangat sederhana namun sangat kaya dengan makna filosofisnya.

Dalam penuturannya, Dr Niessen berhasil mengumpulkan data-data dari berbagai arsip tentang teknik menenun ini dan membuat kembali alat-alat tersebut.

Dia menunjukkan alat ini kepada sekelompok wanita Batak yang telah berusia lanjut dan tidak dapat membendung air matanya pada saat wanita tersebut memperagakan teknik traditional menenun dengan menggunakan alat-alat itu.

Mereka sudah lama tidak melihat alat ini namun memorinya masih sempurna untuk menggunakan apa yang dialami pada saat remaja dan sayang sekali teknik ini tidak lagi berkembang dalam komunitas Batak dewasa ini, ujar Dr Niessen.

Pameran ini diselenggarakan Rudolf Smend, yang telah lama menggeluti teknik pembuatan Batik Indonesia dan dihadiri pakar tenun dan akademisi Jerman yang tertarik dengan Indonesia.

Dalam pameran tersebut hadir mantan misionaris Jerman yang pernah menetap di tanah Batak setelah era misionaris terkenal Jerman Dr Ingwer L Nomensen. (Ant/Wrt3)






source: http://www.metrotvnews.com/metromain/news/2012/06/23/95817/Kain-Ulos-Batak-Dikaji-Ahli-Jerman

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Text of my Opening Talk in Gallery Victoriastadt, Berlin


...celebrating cultural legacy


 Ladies and Gentlemen, Girls and Boys,

Welcome to our exhibition of the textiles of the Batak people of North Sumatra, Indonesia. These people live around a magnificent lake in mountainous terrain. The photographs will give you a sense of the ancestral home of the Batak people.

The textiles in this exhibition are not for sale; only the photographs are for sale. These textiles formed the basis of a book about Batak textiles that is present for you to examine and to order if you would like a copy (Legacy in cloth, Batak textiles of Indonesia).

The textile tradition of the Batak people is one of the most ancient in the Indonesian archipelago.  It is thousands of years old. Currently weaving is in drastic decline. There is reason for concern that it may die out. The textiles that you see in this exhibition are old. They are no longer made with natural dyes and hand spun yarns and many of the techniques are disappearing.

Indigenous peoples everywhere in the world are in crisis. The global economy leaves no room for their "alternative" lifestyles. Weaving makes no sense any longer, financially, socially or even spiritually, for most people. It used to be that life for the Batak was unthinkable without textiles to accompany them every moment in their lives and during every ritual. The hand woven textiles were used to clothe the people's bodies and also to protect their souls.

Mrs. Hillary Clinton said, "It takes a village to raise a child." I would like to adapt her concept and say, "It takes the global village to maintain an indigenous art tradition."  We are thankful to the Gallery in der Victoriastadt for this opportunity to share Batak textiles with you. I believe that we share the responsibility for maintaining this glorious weaving tradition.

MJA Nashir, the Indonesian who made the photographs in the exhibition, and I, started to work together two years ago. I brought forty copies of my extensive documentation of Batak textiles, based on thirty years of research and fieldwork, to weavers in North Sumatra. Most of their heritage textiles have been sold to tourists, collectors and dealers. Through my book, they were able to see the full repertory of their weaving tradition. Most of them were amazed at the beauty of their tradition. Most young people have never seen the textiles that you see hanging in this gallery.

The gift of my book has led to a revival of Batak weaving in one village. The people believed that it was too valuable to allow to disappear. Mas Nashir and I have witnessed over and over again how important it is for people in the villages to have access to information about their cultural heritage. Most of the Batak intelligentsia have left the villages to go to the cities. The young people aspire to leave and not to weave.

Mas Nashir has written a book about our travels. You will see it here on display: Berkelana dengan Sandra: Menyusuri Ulos Batak. It is in Indonesian. In it, he shares his insights into the importance of repatriating cultural knowledge. His book is doing very well among Batak people who feel moved by this recognition of their culture. When he finished writing his book, we returned to the Batak area to give copies to the people about whom he wrote.  To our mind, there is an ethical imperative in ensuring that the people whom we study and about whom we write, receive copies of the information that we produce.

Mas Nashir and I have also made a film together, Rangsa ni Tonun. It is about Batak weaving techniques and it is based on a text that was written by a member of the Batak intelligentsia almost 150 years ago. The Guru explains the spiritual origin of weaving. The Batak believed that weaving was passed down from the gods.  This film will be shown tomorrow night in the Indonesian Embassy of Berlin. It starts at 18.00 (six p.m.). We hope that you will be able to attend. There will be a short introductory lecture, the film is a half hour in length, and then there will be time for a discussion and snacks.

Mas Nashir and I plan to bring this film to North Sumatra. We will travel with our computers and a screen and we will show the film in village after village. In this way, we will restore to the Batak people the ancient Batak text -- now found only in archives in Germany and Holland -- and, just as important, celebrate the weaving arts.

Until now, Mas Nashir and I have had no funding to do our work. I have used my savings and my pension and all proceeds from my book.  Friends and other people who believe in our work have also helped us in a variety of ways. We have decided to look for corporate support. We hope that we will be successful because I am no longer able to continue on my own resources.

Mas Nashir is brilliant not just as a photographer, filmer and writer, but also in maintaining relationships with people. He has developed a large community on Facebook, mostly Indonesian people, who follow what we are doing. While most of them are not with us tonight, there are hundreds of people in Indonesia who know about this opening in Victoriastadt and are with us in spirit. Our Batak friends are very proud about this exhibition of their culture.  We invite you to join our Facebook site. You will find it under MJA Nashir. My Facebook name is Sandra Niessen and I live in Oosterbeek (Netherlands).

I also keep a blog in which I share my Batak adventures. http://bataktextiles.blogspot.de/
I invite you to look it up and join me. It is part of my website, kindly donated to me by Pamela Cross, my dear friend in England. (Please see her own important forum for aficionados of indigenous textiles:  http://www.tribaltextiles.info/community).

If you would like more information or you would like to get in touch with us, please feel free to send me an email or to contact me by telephone:

Sandra.Niessen@gmail.com
Mobile Phone: 31- 6 22 50 66 46
                                                                          
In closing, I would like to thank Joachim Blank for faithfully organizing our Berlin events at TAB and here in Victoriastadt, and also next week in Cologne. He saw our exhibition in Jakarta and recognized it as something that would interest a Berlin audience. Then he invested his energy to make it happen.

I would also like to thank Mrs. N. Wolters who has been willing to have my textiles fill her gallery space even though they are not for sale. She also kindly donated our booth at Textile Art Berlin.

Thankfully, both of these people understand the importance of textiles beyond their commercial value.

The Indonesian Embassy in Berlin and the Department of the Secretary of State in Indonesia have made it possible for MJA Nashir to come to Berlin and they have helped to defray some of our costs. We are extremely grateful for this assistance.

Thank you again for joining us tonight. Thank you for forming a community of support for indigenous textiles.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Keeping TABs (Textile Art Berlin)


Batak textiles were at the top of the list of exhibitions at the annual TAB (Textile Art Berlin) event in Carl Ossietzky School in Berlin this past weekend (9 and 10 June). It was a superb opportunity to show our work on Batak textiles to a textile-loving public in Germany. People came from far and wide to attend the event. Twice we were able to show our film, Rangsa ni Tonun, to an appreciative audience.
A group of Danish textile experts and textile enthusiasts
came to Berlin to visit TAB. Because of their request, we
could show our film a second time. (Photograph by MJA Nashir)

The visitors were truly enthusiastic. Especially the weavers among them could appreciate the finely woven textiles. There were those to whom I had to explain certain basics like the ikat technique (the dyeing of patterns in the yarns before they are woven), but it was clear that the textiles created their own mood and atmosphere and that this required no explanation. People were awed by their simple, elegant, undemanding grace. Sometimes I was quite moved by people's reactions and I knew that they had seen and felt the origin of my own love for this woven tradition. The textiles have an integrity not found in industrially made products. The old ones have a deeply spiritual quality. They speak of the human spirit and reveal skills so highly honed that they can elicit gasps and incredulousness. One woman visited our booth again and again. The textiles filled her with an undefinable longing and she wanted to be in their presence. She felt that she was missing their influence in her life. She sensed the world of which the cloths were a part.

Our booth had many visitors, but I tore myself away on the last day to visit other booths and exhibitions. I was fascinated by the TAB event. It called to mind an art tapestry that I had once seen of warheads entitled Blanket of Peace. The contrast between the woven medium and the depicted image was unforgettable. Just putting women and cloth together seems to yield a particular ambience. Words like peace, calm, kindness, gentleness and attentiveness spring to mind. I was delighted to be a part of it: colour, creativity, inspiration.

There was a strikingly convivial atmosphere. I was proudly wearing a modern shouldercloth given to me by Martha Ulos who is an Indonesian leader in the maintenance of the Batak textile tradition. Her cloth received many compliments. (Photograph by JA Nashir)
I was also delighted to bring Batak weavers of the past, albeit represented only by their work, into the fold. I remembered Ompu Okta's (the leading weaver in the Rangsa ni Tonun film) excitement when she participated in Fiber Face 3the International Textile Art Exhibition,, in Yogyakarta. The vision of Agus Ismoyo and Nia Fliam to bring together modern, trained fiber artists with indigenous textile makers is strong and apt. The inspiration that this combination generates is mutual.

Apparently this annual event has been going on for years. It runs primarily on the energy of people who do it for love because makers rarely earn enough for their handmade textiles. But their work IS rational! That it does not pay -- while warheads are hugely subsidized by taxpayer money -- is what is irrational! This is women's work, women's art: underpaid, undervalued. It fosters community and peace. It contributes beauty and a sense of accomplishment and pride. May TAB in Berlin go on forever! And Batak textiles, too.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Schedule of Batak Textile Events in Europe 2012


A. Textile Arts Berlin (TAB)
9 - 10 June, 2012
Karl von Ossietzky School, Berlin Kreuzberg

1. Photo Exhibition of Batak Textile Arts by MJA Nashir
2. Exhibition of Batak textiles from the collection of Sandra Niessen
3. European Premiere of the ethnographic film RANGSA NI TONUN by filmer/director MJA Nashir, and anthropologist Sandra Niessen, about Batak weaving techniques
Saturday 9 June and Sunday 10 June, 15:00 EG, Room 29


14 Juni - 2 juli 2012
Türrschmidtstraße 12

10317 Berlin Lichtenberg

S-Bhf Nöldnerplatz, Bus 194, 240, 396

1. Photo Exhibition of Batak Textile Arts by MJA Nashir
2. Exhibition of Batak textiles from the collection of Sandra Niessen


C. Indonesian Embassy, Berlin
15 June 2012, 18.00
Showing of ethnographic film, Rangsa ni Tonun.


D. Gallerie Smend, Cologne
20 Juni - 15 September 2012
Mainzer Straße 31
50678 Köln

tel ++49 / 221 / 312 047


1. Photo Exhibition of Batak Textile Arts by MJA Nashir
2. Exhibition of Batak textiles from the collection of Sandra Niessen
3. Film Rangsa ni Tonun

The ethnographic film, Rangsa ni Tonun, will be shown at the opening of the exhibition on 20 June at 19.00.
The exhibition will be opened by the Consul General, Mr. Damos, of the Indonesian Consulate in Frankfurt.
It will be shown again on 21 June at 11: a.m. after the tour of the exhibition at 10 a.m.


E. 5th International Mechanical Forum University of Life Sciences, Prague
22 June, 15:00 - 16:00
1. Photo Exhibition of Batak Textile Arts by MJA Nashir
2. Exhibition of Batak Textiles from the collection of Sandra Niessen
3. Film Viewing Rangsa ni Tonun followed by discussion


F. Studio of Fashion Designer Marie Labarelle, Paris
26 June, 19.30 p.m.
Informal Viewing of the ethnographic film, Rangsa ni Tonun followed by discussion
RSVP - only 30 places available
Les vêtements ont une âme          
Atelier- Boutique: 34 rue des Petites Ecuries, Paris 10, métro Bonne Nouvelle / Château d'Eau
Ouvert tous les jours du mardi au samedi de 13h à 19h30, tel: 01 44 83 94 http:www.marielabarelle.com


G. Museum Nusantara, Delft
1 July, 14.00 - 15.30
Showing of film Rangsa ni Tonun plus introduction and discussion during a meeting of the friends of the Museum..