Customer Reviews

Batik: Fabled Cloth of Java

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is essential for anyone interested in batik and its history in the Indonesian island of Java. It also provides Java's religious background and how batik was affected by Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. The pictures are outstanding, showing to the reader the complexity of batik and the great talent of Indonesian batik artists. I would recommend this for anyone, especially those interested in art or Indonesian culture.

This book is eye candy. The fabrics shown in this book have amazing detail, sophisticated designs, and the colors are beautiful. The fabrics are lovingly photographed. I would recommend this book for anyone who is interested in design, patterns, or textiles. And the book itself is beautifully produced.

A wonderfully rich book on batik, including valuable contributions by Indonesians. This will become a classic. Lively, sophisticated, and informative, as well as gorgeous in its imagery. This is the kind of writing we need on textile arts! A splendid addition to my library!

As a batik lover...this is a great book. Ever since I travelled to Jogjakarta in Java and saw my first batik mask hanging on the wall in a restaurant I was hooked. I'm traveling back to Yogya this month and plan to take a batik class. As a result of my travels to Indonesia, I decided to start my own business importing batik and other items. So 7 years later, I have manufactured and import tons of batik to the U.S. and love it all. Especially the traditional batiks. Warning...shameless promotion to follow: check out our site 1 World Sarongs for our beautiful collection from Java and Bali or you can even find us here on Amazon Market. Anyway, this is a great book with loads of beautiful pictures and articles. I'm still reading it but so far it's very good. I'm biased because I fell in love with batik.

This books serves as a wonderful introduction to the world of batik. I bought it as a counterpoint to my books by Rudolf Smend. The chapters are correctly and lucidly arranged, by regions, types and artists, ang give clarity to this complex topic. The examples chosen are simply excellent and represent the epitome of the artform.

This book provides so much of the information I was seeking.
Geographical,historical,pictorial,technical,ancient and contemporary.
The cloth itself comes with a rich history and part of the pleasure of collecting batik is identifying the motifs and colour usage from various areas.
This book can and does provide so much background content of interest that it is difficult to peruse methodically and the urge to flick backwards and forwards with each page promising curious temptations
to absorb.