A creation by Catalina, matching paper, batik, tea and purple cabbage tints and Kawung motif. A tribute to the Hummingbirds that have been singing in her window during the lockdown.

 

Catalina Espina, or Cata as she is often called, is a batik artist from Chile. The effects of the different colors and layers of wax, the richness of textures and crackles is always amaze her. This draws her attention to batik all the way from South America.

In this episode of aNERDspective (our NERD talk show where we converse with amazing friends about their textile adventure and perspectives), we collaborated with Khaya Heritage as co-producer and talk to Cata about how she fell in love with batik and how she incorporates batik and natural dyes in her works.

Note: Full video is available on IG TV and this transcript has been edited for reading format.

 

Jeanny Primasari: I am Jeanny, the co-founder, the admin, the photographer and sometimes the amateur model of my brand, Khaya Heritage. This is a brand that I built together with my sister and Khaya provides ready-to-wear apparel. We employ naturally dyed traditional textiles and that’s why I’m very interested in Cata’s work because she works with Indonesian traditional technique, which is batik. Khaya also employ zero-waste cutting method, so no fabric scrap is generated during the production process. We use the entire fabric to make our clothes.  We also love to share insights about sustainable fashion like tips for mending clothes and also the bigger issues, like the social issues in the fashion industry. This talk is also fully supported by @aNERDgallery, Tony from @aNERDgallery will help us publish this top in various platforms, and we will update you when they are ready to be enjoyed.

It is the magic of social media that introduced meet to you and your amazing work of naturally dyed batik. I am not familiar with the idea of there are many artisans/artists in other countries that actually use the batik technique in their works. After I published our poster, several people that are also in the batik industry, they told me that “Oh, I also know somebody from Italia”, etc. I’m very happy to know that I just stumbled upon your post one day and I got very intrigued about your works, so I sent you a message and I got to know you a bit. Today, I hope that we will all get to know you more. You can visit Catalina’s page, the Instagram page @cata_esbatik and the website www.cataespina.cl. You live in Chile, right? What city is it?

Catalina Espina: Yes. It’s Santiago, the capital. It is the most important city.

I know that Chilli is a long strip from the north to the south and where is Santiago? Is it in the North part or in the middle?

In the middle. It’s part of the central.

I told everybody over and over that you make batik but can you tell us a bit about yourself and your work?

As a profession, I am an architect and a designer. That’s why I love art, all the different arts, but batik conquered me so I did follow the steps of batik. Through my work, I try to create a story in each work. My main concept is feminism and the ancient connection between nature and human beings. I think that those are the most important concepts that you can find in my work. That has been spontaneous, I really didn’t think about it. It just happened. I think batik helps me to do that today.

Are you still practicing architecture? Do you still design building?

No. I used to work as a designer, interior designer, videos, but I studied architecture. But then I decided to continue doing batik as professional. 

You know what, actually I studied architecture too. It’s very interesting. Just like you, I move into batik. Have you ever taken buildings as your inspirations when you are doing batik?

Perhaps in the way of building the batik, the design, the composition perhaps. Those are the same. When you have a white piece of fabric, you think like you are building something.

I do that too, so I think the architecture that I studied influenced me a lot. But how did you first know about batik? And what attracts you to it?

I feel like the universe conspired. My first encounter with batik a few years ago, at a batik exhibition, I was very surprised with the textures, the colours. I knew in that moment that was batik, but I didn’t know how she did that. So I started to search and I did not find information about that, not too much. Everything was in English at that moment. At that time, I was studying interior design. I was told that there was a new course, a short course about Batik. I was so happy because everything was put together and I could learn because of that. I knew about batik for the first time and then I had the opportunity to join this course.

So the texture and the colour are what attract you to Batik?

The texture, the colours and then when I started to learn the technique itself, I was surprised with the unpredictability. I mean, the results after removing the wax are so unpredictable for me. You never know what is going to happen, what are going to happen to the colours. I really like that from batik.

The other thing that I think is very important, especially when I teach batik, is the flexibility of the technique. If you have a drop of wax, for example, you need not worry since you can adapt to it. So I can say that they aren’t mistakes because you can move your design, you can change it. It is not a problem. Sometimes, the result is better. So I love that. That is so special in Batik.

If you have a drop of wax, for example, you need not worry since you can adapt to it. So I can say that they aren’t mistakes because you can move your design, you can change it.

Not only you have the short course, you even came to Indonesia last year because you wanted to learn firsthand from the batik masters. Which part of Indonesia did you visit?

I was in Pekalongan one week and then in Yogyakarta.

Did you see the difference between Batik in Pekalongan and Yogya?

Yes, of course. Pekalongan is completely different in some aspects, different motifs and the colours. Batik in Pekalongan has brighter colour if you compare with traditional batik from Yogyakarta.

Which batik masters or artisans did you meet and what did you learn from them?

I was studying with Zahir Widadi in Pekalongan. I was in a workshop for one week. I learned batik tulis, batik cap. I learned to dye with mahogany, tea, indigo, etc.

I know him. I mean from his works, I didn’t know him personally, just from his Instagram. He is also one of my favourite batik artisans because his work is very delicate. He makes very small detail and I hope someday I will have the capacity to work with his fabric. When you have a beautiful fabric, you feel like you don’t want to cut it because it is too beautiful to cut. So, I hope someday I will have the skill and the capacity to work with his fabric.

How has your experience in Indonesia influence you?

Now I’m trying to apply the natural dye techniques from Zahir and other artists, to introduce their use of cap but in the contemporary way, the symbolism. I really love all the meanings behind the symbols. So I guess when you know that meanings, the works will be much richer.

The first post I saw on your Instagram is the one with Kawung pattern and you dyed it with tea (as shown in the opening image). I think in Indonesia, tea is not a common natural dye for a batik that you sell. For batik that you wear, it’s not common. So, it’s very interesting for me that you are dyeing with tea. And I think you know that Kawung is a traditional pattern in Indonesia batik. It is very common. You see the Kawung patterns with all the variations on almost every batik artisans’ pages.

Somehow, I have the feeling that this picture is not made by a local artist. I did not know what made me think that. Even before I read your account name or your captions, I knew that this is something different. Maybe it was from the way the picture is taken, the light, everything. It just gives me a sense that this is not something from here. My question is how do you marry batik, inherently brings the spirit of Indonesia with your own culture or your own sense of artistry?

I think that batik is a very versatile art. So for me, like an artist, architecture and designer, it is the best way of expression. You can use different materials, you can use it to decorate your clothes. It is so versatile, like an art, like an expression. If we talk about the culture, our countries are very far away, but there are common topics between them. For example, the symbols and philosophy concepts from the world view. They are geographically far but they are not so distanced.

I see your works in your website and that’s beautiful. And as you told me before, they speak a lot about feminism and also the connection between human and nature. I saw one that looks like the goddess and it was in your exhibition in Netherlands. Can you tell us a bit more about that project?

I did it for an exhibition in The Netherlands. Exhibition was about Nehalennia, an Atlantic goddess. They found a lot of stones with the image carved on it. There is a lot of mystery about Nehalennia. She was the goddess for sailors who protect the sailors during the trip between England and The Netherland. At the same time, she is the goddess of morning. There are a lot of history and mysticism. For me, it is very special to work with that topic or issue because it suits me perfectly.

What about the technique? When you do batik, do you use canting the traditional way? Do you use any other tools to apply the wax or apply the colour?

I use canting, different brushes, special tool from Ukraine called kistka. It’s very small tool to apply the wax on the Easter eggs, decorate the surface of Easter eggs. It is very tiny so it allows me to wax the very small areas for the detail. Do you know that?

Not yet, I read about a Ukrainian tool, but I have not seen the picture of this tool. I will surely search for it after this. What about the wax or what kind of wax do you use?

I use a simple mix, made from paraffin and beeswax. I mix beeswax and paraffin in different proportion, but nothing else. Sometimes, I use micro wax or carnauba wax as well.

I also see that you make batik on paper. This may be something new for Indonesians who usually perceived batik as a textile art. Do you use paper more often than cloth? Also, what is the benefit? Is it easier to use paper than cloth? What is your opinion?

The paper has an advantage because the process to remove the wax is easier. It is very easy. You can play with the different layer of paper and you can obtain wonderful results. It is very interesting to work on paper. In this aspect, it is absolutely contemporary. You can design with the different papers that you do with batik. You can design your own paper, to cover the walls, or to wrap your gifts. It is very versatile.

How do you remove the wax from paper?

With the iron.

Will the wax stick to the iron?

The iron melt the wax to become liquid and it stick to the paper. You (have to) put it between two sheets of paper, and then iron.

J: Do you use a lot of natural colours?

In fact, I learned using reactive dyes. I’m a bit new in using natural dyes. I have been experimenting a lot but you never stop learning about natural dyes. Each method is different. It depends on the fabric, on paper works different as well. I have been trying a lot and I love it. I would like to move to natural dyes work definitely. This is my aim.

Do you use similar natural colourings as the one we use in Indonesia? Is it difficult to find colours?

The advantage, or disadvantage you can think either, about natural dyes is that they are typical for each area, depending on the geography. Here, we cannot find natural dyes because the weather is different. I have been working with vegetables from the kitchen, like onion skins, beetroots, teas and some plants that I can find here in my continent. And some native trees as well, that works very well.

But I live in the middle of the city and I am a bit restricted by that. Sometimes I have the opportunity to collect some leaves from the forest, from the nearby natural areas. In those occasions, I can collect some leaves from native trees, or something like that. The most common is that I work with vegetables from the kitchen. That is why I choose tea, for example. It is something easy to find in the city.

Yes, I understand you.

So, that is my tips to my urban natural dye.

How was the response to your work among Chilean people and also your international customers?

It has been a bit difficult here in Chile to have open doors. I do not know if it is only difficult for art. I have a very good response when I offer some workshops, especially childrens and young students have been very happy learning batik. Something really new for them. The most difficult is to open the doors. I have received a big support from my colleagues, friends in Batik Guild. They are very kind. I am really happy with them.

I think that was a good start. And you mention Batik Guild, it is based in UK (United Kingdom), right? Can you tell us what they do and how do you become a member of the guild?

Batik Guild is a non-profit organisation, run by volunteers, that aims to promote and educate in field of batik. We have regular magazines that give information about workshops, natures, news about members from around the world. It is a very good organisation, they have classes from different techers, in Belgium, in England, etc. It is really nice. The problem is they are very far as well. For members in Europe, they are in contact all the time, for workshops, lectures, etc.

And thanks to Batik Guild, I can go to Indonesia, because one of the member organise part of the trips which I took part. So it is nice, it allows contact with other people of the batik world. I knew about the guild because I had a teacher here and I asked for her colleagues or partners. I contacted, I emailed them and they asked me to send them my work. I did it and I joined. That was 5 years ago.

J: I have checked out their website. If you want to check out Batik Guild website, it is www.batikguild.org.uk

Besides telling people about Indonesian or Javanese batik, they also explain about batik from other parts of the world, from China, Africa, Ukraine. You mentioned that you also use the Ukranian tool for your work. What about batik from other areas, from China or Africa? Do you also learn batik techniques from those areas?

 No. I have only read about the different techniques. I have not learnt about them. I have not had the opportunity yet.

You are very eager to learn about everything. What about the other members in Batik Guild? Do they only adopt batik only as a technique, such as using wax and the dye, or do they also adopt the traditional patterns from the countries from Indonesia, China, and so on? Is it the technique that they use or they also use the patterns?

For me, it is difficult to answer that question because I do not know so deeply about every artist. But I can tell you that each of them has a particular type, in respect to their personal background and culture. But I am not sure about the particular pattern (that they use).

When you introduced Batik Guild, you said that I would be surprise about how a lot of people love batik. In your opinion, how do the Western world think about Indonesian batik? Or how is the batik’s prospect in the international world? Do you have any insight on that?

When I showed videos of process of batik to people, their common expresion is “Wow, it is amazing”, “They are marvelous”, “What a laborious works”, “Those women must be very patient to do that kind of work”. I think that is their thinking about batik. They are just surprised of the difficulty of the technique and their patience, their detailed work, everything.

About the prospect, I think we are living in time of change, and I think it is absolutely important to see the nature, to see the planet, to listen to, because our nature as human beings. Each practice helps you to rediscover our essence, it is important. I think batik can do it. I think the world needs batik to rediscover our essence.

I think the world needs batik to rediscover our essence.

So do you think that people should learn to do batik on their own to rediscover oneself? Do we need to make batik or only need to enjoy other people’s work?

I think to learn it is a bit difficult sometimes, but you can do it if you are interested. But for disciplines, batik helps you.

I have 2 more questions, the first one is related to the situation of the world today, the COVID-19 pandemic, it has hit hard on everyone. How are you coping with that? Do you have a contingency program to put the business moving?

In Chile, the situation has been difficult since last year because of political problems. This year we have to add COVID-19 to the problems. So during the lockdown, I was creating a workshop that I told you before. It is about batik on paper and I thought about using simple materials because of the situation here. The simple materials are like paper, and tea, to prepare to cook in your own kitchen, and using simple motif, like a kawung, with the (deep) symbolism and meaning. That is my job in the last month. This workshop is online, made up of seven videos, and it is available in Spanish and English. It is on my website.

So, anyone who want to learn batik, how to do batik on paper with tea, you know the tea that you drink, you can visit on website  https://en.cataespina.cl/ and you can find out more about the workshop there. It is an online workshop so you can do it from home and the materials are easy to get, just paper and tea, and the kawung pattern is a familiar pattern here but it has a very deep meaning.

We had another question: what do you think that we, as batik advocates, should do to create awareness and to get people interested in batik, especially to international audience? You mentioned that batik is to rediscover that you should connect with nature, so I think this is a related question, how do we create the awareness and get people to be interested?

The good way to show batik is when you show the process because batik is really difficult to learn. If you do not show it, people often do not understand how it is done. When we show the technique, when we show batik tulis work in the process, people are surprised. So I guess that is the way to show the world.

I think that is a good idea. When we show the process behind it, people will understand and also appreciate it.

There is also another question (from a live audience), will you see any collaboration perhaps in the future between Khaya and Catalina?

Of course!

I think it would be really nice. We are reaching the end of our talk today, it has been almost one hour. Thank you for your time and insights. I am sure Indonesians are very happy that out heritage culture is highly appreciated overseas. They would be very proud. Maybe we still have homework here in Indonesia that I think we need to make people realise that batik is a process, it is a technique and it is a product of a certain process. Batik is not just a pattern that is created by printing machines. I think we have more printed batik here than original hand-stamp or hand-written batik. Even you and other batik artists around the world understand that. But there are many Indonesians who do not undestand that. It is our homework.

Before my final question, there is another question (from a live audience), can you talk more about the kistka and the differences with canting?

The tools is smaller than canting, I know you have a lot of different number for canting. I guess the smallest one is zero. But a kistka is smaller than canting. That is the difference.

And one more question, if you have all the time and money in the world, what would you like to explore? If time and money is not an issue, what would you like to explore with batik?

I would like to make a project mixing batik in different areas, for example in fashion, batik on paper, a big exhibition, something like Cirque du Soleil.

Well, that was the final question. Thank you for joining, let’s keep in touch.

Can I tell you a message? I was thinking a lot about batik because of your question. Yes, the world needs batik. That is why I think: please love it, be proud of it and preserve it, especially young people. When I was there (in Indonesia), I saw a lot of old people working on batik. It is only that young people are not interested because it takes a lot of time. Perhaps you can improve that.

That is another homework for us that we should love, be proud of, and also preserve batik, get more younger generation to be in batik industry. Thank you very much for the advice. See you Cata.

See you. Keep in contact.

 

We hope you enjoyed this episode of aNERDspective. Check out the previous episode on IGTV and our gallery and store if you would like a piece of batik for your home or wardrobe. You may also check out Catalina’s Instagram for her latest workshops and creations.

Image source and credit: Catalina Espina’s Instagram and website, unless stated otherwise.