Batik wax-resist pattern studio

Also known as Batik tulis

Batik is cloth patterned by resisting dye with wax: a maker draws lines and dots of hot wax with a small copper pen called a canting, dips the cloth in a dye bath, then boils or scrapes the wax away, leaving the pattern in the colour the wax protected. Diagonal bands, circle lattices and many-petalled medallions are classic layouts.

Play the preview About this tradition

Batik wax-resist pattern studio: photograph by Ahaetulla — Photo: Ahaetulla, CC BY-SA 4.0, source on Wikimedia Commons

Batik wax-resist pattern studio: the game in attract mode

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How to play

Pick a dye colour and a motif from the tray beside the cloth.
Tap a square to draw it: the same motif is turned half way round on the opposite side of the cloth.
Copy the small cloth shown above, then press Check.

Rules at a glance

The cloth repeats itself when turned half way round, as many diagonal batik layouts do.
A square counts only when its motif and its colour both match the target.
Three stars need a nearly perfect copy; you can undo or clear as often as you like.

About the tradition

Batik is made across Java and other parts of Indonesia, and in Malaysia. Skills are taught in workshops and families, from the first wax lines with the canting to the final dye baths.

Origins

A living tradition passed from person to person; it is not tied to a single dated origin. It belongs to the cultural world of Southeast Asia and the Islands.

Credits

Pattern design: World Heritage Games (original)
Photo: Ahaetulla, CC BY-SA 4.0, source on Wikimedia Commons
Text: CC BY-SA 4.0, World Heritage Games.

Sources

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Batik_Artisan_Applying_Wax_with_Cantin

Get the app

Batik wax-resist pattern studio is one of 17 textile crafts in the Textile Crafts of the World app for iPhone, iPad and Android. Submitted to the App Store and Google Play; in review. Store links appear here the day it goes live. One app, many traditions, no account needed.

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