Traditional costumes in modern living

Ladies from Marken watching the coronation of Willem-Alexander 

Showing difference between mourning and daily wear (both in my eyes very colorful)

Traditional costume in Bunschoten-Spakenburg

Niesje Koekwijn is ironing her 'kraplap'

This post is about the wonderful documentary "Levende Klederdracht"(= Living Traditional Costume, English title is "Dutch Darlings") by Niek Koppen.* The docu shows the last wearers of our Dutch traditional costume. These women from Arnemuiden, Staphorst, Urk, Volendam, Bunschoten-Spakenburg, Westkapelle, Scheveningen and Marken are shown in their daily life.** It's like watching tropical birds displaying in the forest including the wildlifephotographers who are documenting the whole thing from only meters away. These women aren't being exotic, they just didn't stop wearing these costumes. Most women stopped wearing traditional costumes during the Second World War. Materials were scarce and I think this type of clothing is especially impracticable during wartime. Not only because of how it was worn, but also because you would have stand out.
Most women were happy to give up this tradition. Most men already stopped wearing it and it was therefor considered a liberating act.
The women in "Dutch Darlings" also stopped wearing it during the W.O. II, but all started again when they got liberated. They didn't feel like themselves in the modern, practical clothing. Some of the women tried it out many times, but husbands and children wouldn't recognize them in jeans and sweaters.
The documentary deals with preconceptions in a beautiful way. Of course religion played an important role in the traditional wear, but nowadays it's tradition and not believing in God that makes them choose to wear it. The ladies watching the coronation of Willem-Alexander *** on the first still, tell that they heard from this computerscreen in a museum that they (their traditional costume) are 200 years old.
In Staphorst the lovely Margje laughs when they conclude that she has many children, she answers that for Staphorst criteria she doesn't have that much. They also ask if she has a television. Of course she doesn't, "but on the internet you can see everything!", she replies.

Margje Haasjes-Hokse from Staphorst

Her dot covered cellphone covers

One day a week she dresses her daughter in the traditional costume

Stamps!!

Margje is making a print on fabric during the interview. I found it absolutely wonderful to see the making process, so I tried to share it with you with these stills from the documentary. The quality is not that good, I have to take the pictures while playing, because otherwise a big orange "play" symbol is in the frame. 

First some background information about Staphorst and its folk art tradition. I have two books about Dutch folk art in which the focus is on how to do it yourself. In the 70s there was a folk art revival for both indigenous as foreign forms of decorating clothing, furniture and other  objects. In a book from 1965 they say the technique in Staphorst was kept secret between folk artists. In another book they claim the Staphorst dot folk art is pretty new. They first learned mural painting from a German emigrant early 1800. He was an ornamental painter in the 'bauernmalerei' tradition. After the war the abstract dot technique replaced the floral paintings. With approval from the clergy the dots were put on caps and other objects. To make these dot paintings yourself, you can best buy the paint in Staphorst (Bring your own jars). The special paint dries up like a pearl on top of the fabric. ****

They make the dots with a stamp. The stamp is a made very simple by putting nails in a piece of wood or cork. Margje in the docu inherited her stamps from her mother. I'm so happy that these stamps are still used! And I hope her youngest daughter, next to her in one of the stills, takes over this tradition of making Staphorst dot paintings. 

Margje is making a fabric for a mutch (a close-fitting linen cap). She cut it in the right shape, so she doesn't print pieces of fabric she is not going to use. The fabric is on a wooden bord and over the fabric is a grid made of wire. I found this very clever, in this way the print is symmetrical and straight. She makes a print of a vase filled with flowers. They ask her what other things she makes. She answers that cellphone covers are her best selling object, and she makes bookmarks. Have to get me one of those cellphone covers! I'm very happy that traditional costumes will find their way in modern living, thanks to Marja's cellphone covers and this great documentary by Niek Koppen!

Vase print in the grid

Next color, different stamp

Adding bright red in a tick paste like paint

The pearl like drops are clearly formed

The paint stays on top of the fabric

After the floral filled vases a pattern in between is added

Margje uses lids for the paste like paint

Every pattern is built up with plural stamps

Almost finished, on her head a finished mutch

* More information about "Levende Klederdracht" on www.selfmadefilms.nl

** You can watch the documentary on Uitzending Gemist, http://gemi.st/NPS_1227986

*** See post "The day that you knew was coming is finally here"

**** Information from "Volkskunst der Lage Landen" by Dr. TJ. W. R. de Haan (1965), "Nederlandse Volksschilderkunst" by J. Zuidema (1977) and "Volksschilderkunst" by Michel Spohr (1978)

***** You can buy "Dutch Darlings" in the webshop of Beeld en Geluid

Terima Kasih!

Photo by Koen de Wit at Liefkes Collection, A house filled with Indonesia*

2014 is going on for some days now, and unfortunately so is my cold. I'm a bit better now and had some time to think about the past year. What a wonderful year 2013 was, I had a lot of misfortune, but I also had great luck. My blog, this blog De reis naar Batik gave me totally different opportunities then my artist career and I met great people in the process!

Always looking out for patterns and batiks

I would like to start with thanks, thanks to the readers of my blog. I hope you keep reading, sharing and enjoying my blog in 2014. I will do my best to learn and share more about Batik, wax prints and other interesting stuff I enjoy, visit many lovely exhibitions (I already have a list of exhibitions I have to visit this year) and hope to receive new Batik Statements this year!
Thanks for the Batik Statements I received in 2013.** I not only received great Batik Statements, I made some myself of myself, but also of people posing for me. My Batik Statement project even let to an actual Batik Statement Fashionshow on the 21th of April during Indonesian Cultural Festival at Best.***
I would like to thank Stichting Hibiscus for letting my try-out a fashionshow for the first time, thanks to the wonderful models, thanks Rob Rosielle for lending me your mothers, madame Rosielle-Bergsma, collection and of course Batik Chic for the nice accessories!****

Try-out for Batik Statement Fashionshow, April 2013


Me and Batik from madame Rosielle-Bergsma collection, photo by Kees de Ruiter

In October I had the pleasure of giving a lecture, De reis naar Batik: making a statement, during the Najaarsdag of the Nederlandse Kostuumvereniging in Amsterdam about Batik and Vlisco.*****Thank you for inviting me! I was really happy to get the opportunity. I also enjoyed the improvisation fashionshow at the end. I dressed up three volunteers from the audience, including my brother, showing some simple ways to wear Batikcloths without sewing or cutting. A great day!

Checking the trail during the improv fashionshow

Also new for me in 2013: Workshops! It started with my project in March, a neighborhood participation project about butterflies and other animals living in my neighborhood. I helped making birdhouses and worked together with Famous Grauss making Butterfly-feeding-tables. In October and November I gave two workshops for kids. At Taman Indonesia I gave a small introduction on how Batik is made using crayons and ink. It was wonderful to see how every kid created their own batikdesign!******

Marlisa, owner of Taman Indonesia with Lonny Gerungan

In November William Kwan surprised me with the first pictures of my Pagi-Sore Batik "Difficult Time". Photo below is a sneak preview of one of the Batiks made by Ibu Maryati from Jeruk. I'm so happy with them, can't wait to hold them in my hands. Patience is key in this project and it's not for nothing about growth in difficult times. On my website, www.sabinebolk.nl, you can read more about this project. And I will keep you posted here as well!

Detail of my Pagi-Sore Batik "Difficult Time" made by Ibu Maryati

Best of wishes for 2014!

And a special thanks to:
The Textile Blog for sharing and supporting my posts!
William Kwan and Ibu Maryati for making my first real Batik!
My mother, father, brother and grandparents for all the support, feedback and cultural upbringing!
Koen de Wit, love you and thank you for being open and interested in all my interests!
Rob Rosielle for lending me the beautiful Batiks!
Ine WawoRuntu from Stichting Hibiscus for the great day in Best!
De Nederlandse Kostuumvereniging for having me at their Najaarsdag!
Marlisa for giving me a stage at Taman Indonesia for workshops, art and Batik Statements!
Kees de Ruiter for sharing the love for Batik Belanda and especially Maria Carp!
Dhanti Hajdenborg for all the wonderful Batik Chic products I could use during the fashionshow!
The Koninklijke Bibliotheek for added my photobooks De reis naar Batik and The journey to Batik to your collection!
Tubagus P Svarajati, Krisna Murti and William Kwan for their support in my quest to return to Indonesia!
Vlisco for making great collections!
And Batik, my little ricebird, for making me happy every day with his songs!

Spotted at the Station in 2013

* See blogpost "A house filled with Indonesia"
** See all the Batik Statements under te label "Batik Statement"
*** See blogpost "Batik Statement Fashionshow"
**** See blogpost "Batik Chic on the Pasar Malam"
***** See also my blogpost "Wax cloth Statements"
****** More about my workshops (in Dutch) on www.sabinebolk.nl

The Book Pharmacy

"das buch der nature" by herman de vries at the Van Abbemuseum library***

Most posts I start with I'm reading this or that book. Last couple of weeks I didn't read a lot, but I did visit some wonderful places filled with books, the library of the Van Abbemuseum (Eindhoven) and Artis (Amsterdam).  They feel like magical places to me, where you can travel far and see things you've never seen before. Traveling through other peoples minds.

The title of this post is the translation of the Dutch title translation of the book "The Novel Cure".* In Dutch the title is translated as 'De Boekenapotheek' which literally means 'The Book Pharmacy'.
What a great way to see a library, a place where you can heal. I'm always wishing for more time to read, but it's not really time I need, it's rest to read. I'm jealous of people who read a lot and are therefore filled with information and knowledge.
Knowledge is power, I'm a strong believer of that, so when I'm interested in a subject, I love gathering information. The funny thing is that the knowledge I gather is not always the most useful, but I love the places it brings me to. I read books of all genres, fiction and historical, about nature and Batik. I love books in which I'm introduced to a world that is real, yet I haven't seen it before or it happend a long time ago. The characters in for example my Batik books were real people and I love imagining how it was and felt. Reading these books isn't different for me than reading a novel. Only I have to fill in more blanks. On the other hand you make discoveries with the people that wrote it, or make new ones by putting the dates and facts together. It's traveling in fact instead of in fiction.

On the 12th of november I went to the book launch of herman de vries book "die wiese / the meadow 1986-2013"** at the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven. I spent a lot a days in Eindhoven in October and November, seeing Vlisco Unfolded during the Dutch Design week, helping with a temporary carpet at the Van Abbe and looking at the lights during GLOW.
I was waiting to write about the book launch till Cees de Boer's speech was online. Unfortunately it's not online yet. It really inspired me, but because I was taking pictures I couldn't make notes. He told about the important role that nature plays in herman's work. And I know now that I have to write herman de vries, and not Herman de Vries.
His new book "die wiese" shows the growth of a meadow that is returned to nature. He bought a piece of land in Germany and only added some of his favorite trees, then he just let nature do the work. Only in the middle of his meadow he mows the grass to keep an open spot. If you flip through the book you see how the farmers land is turned into a small, wild forest. He just documents the development. A lovely project and what a joy it must bring to have such a piece of land. His simplized way of showing natures beauty, is something I truly admire.
In the Van Abbemuseum library where the book launch was held they also made an exhibition of herman de vries other books till the 10th of January 2014.*** Handmade, single publications, next to pressed leaves that are added to limited edition versions and handwritten notes. A true feast for booklovers!

Another great library I discovered was the library of Artis. Me and Koen visited Artis in September, but I never knew they had this classical, magical place filled with books about plants and animals.
Koen and I both entered a competition of Roots****, a magazine about nature with beautiful pictures, where we could meet Redmond O'Hanlon and see the newest episode of his series O'Hanlons Heroes.*****And we both won!
After Redmond and other members of the crew were interviewed on stage, we watched the episode about the ladies Tinne. In the break 25 people could see the library. I sticked like glue to the man responsible to make sure I could get a glimpse.
Oh how I would love to spend a day there, enjoying the beautiful book covers, gasping over hand colored images of birds and trembling of fear with every turning page, scared I might damage it. Hopefully soon I can, and I have to have a good idea of what books I would like to see. Now I just want to see them all!!

The white books are part of an exhibition by Lynne Leegte******

* "Van lezen word je beter, article in De Volkskrant on Saturday 21 december 2013
** To order "die wiese / the meadow 1986-2013" by herman de vries, see www.peterfoolen.blogspot.nl
*** "herman de vries books and editions", library exhibition at the Van Abbemuseum. Till 10th of January 2014
**** Roots, www.rootsmagazine.nl
***** More information about O'Hanlons Helden on www.vpro.nl
****** The white books are part of an exhibition by Lynne Leegte. Till 31th of January 2014 at the Artis library. More information on www.lynneleegte.com

The best kind of prize is a *sur*prise! *

On the 20th of November I was really lucky to get a guided tour through the Vlisco factory in Helmond (NL). A friend of mine won it in a contest, but couldn't go. She asked if I wanted to go, lucky me!
With a group of twelve women, mostly readers of the magazine that gave away the prize, we got a good look at the proces of a cloth becoming a Vlisco fabric. We weren't allowed to make pictures, due to the problem Vlisco is having with the copying of their products. New designs are kept secret as best as possible, so they can release a new campaign without fake wax-prints taking over the market.

I had my notebook with me and put a lot of interesting facts on paper, but how was I to make a nice blog post without pictures? Then I realized I had this great book about Vlisco I received by snailmail. I was really happy with the postal gift. After my lecture De reis naar Batik: making a statement, during the Najaarsdag of the Nederlandse Kostuumvereniging in Amsterdam, I got an email asking if I was interested in a little book about Vlisco made in february of 1989. It included a square cloth as well. The lady that send me the book knows a lot about chintz. I was talking with her on the Najaarsdag after my lecture. She finds Vlisco fascinating because of the link it has with the chintz brought by VOC from India to the Netherlands. I still love to learn more about this subject, and now have some good literature tips were to start. And I can always send my questions to her, how wonderful.
In the booklet from 1989, after a short introduction about Vlisco and its history, they tell about the making process with pictures!!

The postal gift included a copy of an article from the Textielhistorische Bijdragen and an invitation of a Chintz exhibition written and curated by the sender of the package

Booklet 'Expressief in Textiel' on the square Vlisco cloth

First page

Wax, Indigo, Color stamp

Big piles and roles full of Vlisco

The Vlisco factory is in the former castle garden. This makes their location unique, so near the center of a city. The oldest building on the property is the water tower from 1880. The building that should have prevented fire, was the only building that survived the fire in 1883. Before P.F. van Vlissingen junior started Vlissingen & Co in 1846, there was already an blue (indigo)dye house on that location from 1802.
There are many theories why Vlisco became so popular in West-Africa, but from a historical point of view it most likely had to do with the impact of trade by sea. The Gold coast was a stopping point on the shipping route to the Dutch East Indies. They used that point for stocking up provision. Cloth was and still is a popular product for trade. Chintz, Batik and eventually Wax Prints found in this way their way on the African Market.

All fabrics start with one thing: A Cloth. Vlisco uses raw cotton from China, but tries to get it more and more from Africa. After a process to get the raw cotton soft and able to absorb the dye, the printing of the patterns starts. Big rolls in which the pattern is engraved apply it in wax (resin) on the cloth. The wax is only applied once. Totally different from Batik, where with every color dye a new layer of wax is applied. Because the wax is only applied once it needs to be very strong. Of course the breaking, and the craquelé affect it leaves with it, is part of the process, but it needs to stay intact till the end. This makes designing for Wax Print difficult. Thin lines can't be used and in the drawing the lines need to be connected to make it stronger.
After the wax is applied the cloths goes through its first dyebath. Originally this first bath was indigo, Blue, but today more base colors are used like red. Indigo is a difficult color to make and to keep fade resistant. The cloth is dyed seven times before it has it's typical Vlisco blue base color.
The now indigo colored cloth goes into a special breaking machine. This machine breaks of the wax and leaves some dots of wax on it. This gives the cloth an irregular wax pattern, and makes every Wax Print unique. The pattern is never the same.
After the breaking machine colors are stamped on the cloth. This was done by hand, the last hand print was in 1993, but this is now done mechanically. Big rolls, like the ones that apply the wax, with orange and green felt like patterns put the dye on the cloth. To keep the misprinted feel of the hand stamped Wax Print, they print wrong on purpose.

The big rolls full of one design, average 1200 meters per design, are gathered in one location to be checked, cut into 6 yards and packed for transport. I liked this part of the factory the best. Big rolls, next to pallets packed with new Vlisco's and bundles with exotic destinations on them. Even though most of the work is done by machines, the final check can only be done by eye. The big rolls are visually checked on flaws. Flaws are part of the quality and recognizability of Wax Prints, but they have to be small flaws. On sight the seams of the cotton, too big misprints, holes in the fabric and other flaws are marked. After this the cloth is cut into the right length for sale. The waste product, the misprints, are burned. Before, parts of cloth were given away for free, but were then sold as original Vlisco. On the selvedge was their name and the number of the design. To protect the quality of the brand, the misprints are burned.

Our guided tour ended with a visit to the boutique. I always love to see the new collection with my own eyes. And to see the outfits used for the campaign. I'm totally in love the with the turquoise with pink jacket!
In the factory we saw the limited edition Angelina's. They are made to celebrate her 50th birthday. Also celebrate the 50th anniversary Vlisco invited Facebookfans to draw an outfit made out of the Angelina fabric. I participated with a dress painted on paper, you can see the dress here: http://woobox.com/cd94jd/vote/for/1741837. Today is the last they of the contest, so your vote is still very welcome, thank you!**

* Quote from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Willy Wonka
** More about my Angelina dress for the Vlisco contest on my website, see "Vlisco's Angelina Contest"