batik

Javanese technique used to dye fabrics. Areas of material are sealed with wax, which resists dye.

Designs are applied using hot liquid wax and a tjanting or brush, and then the fabric is dipped in dye. This process can be repeated several times with successive areas of wax being added, and the dye of the lightest colour being used first. After the material has been dyed, the wax is removed, often by ironing between sheets of absorbent paper or by boiling in water, leaving the undyed design behind. Practised throughout Indonesia, the craft was introduced to the West by Dutch traders.