Lewa Pardomuan is an Indonesian based in Singapore. Lewa is a TV producer, who loves to travel, collects Indonesian textiles and many other artefacts. Since 1998, Lewa has collected more than 300 textiles from various cultures and islands in Indonesia and is a passionate advocate of “Indonesia is not all about batik”. Earlier this year, we went textile tripping across Indonesia and time was too short to discuss all of them. Lewa is back to share with us his journey in finding love in Iban textiles from West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

Iban textiles from Borneo is one of the most complex fabrics. With same name, how does the Iban textiles and culture on the Indonesia Kalimantan side differ from the Malaysia Sarawak side? What is it used for? Any rituals or specific technique? Lewa has the same questions when he first started collecting Iban and Ibanic textiles only five years after he starts collecting. He let us in and share his discovery journey in an afternoon of discovering Indonesian textiles beyond batik.

On 27 March 2021, Lewa led an interesting discussion around Iban textiles on Zoom. You can watch the full video here:

Here are some thoughts (or #aNERDspective) that Lewa and the participants discussed throughout the video.

• There are five tribes – Iban, Kantuk, Mualang, Ketunggau and Desa – in West Kalimantan with some of the Iban tribe members migrate across border to Malaysia. Each has their own textile motifs.
• On interpreting motifs, there is a lot of confusion of what does a shape represents in Ibanese textiles. It was brought up by a participant that motifs were created based on a dream, it is a representation of a vision or a message that they got from another world. A participant mentioned that motifs, to her, represents the heritage and the continuation of traditions but Lewa said not getting too stressed about getting every motif right and perfect. It is a learning process through books and talking to weavers and experts. Also, it is a personal journey should you choose to delve deeper into textiles, Iban or otherwise.
• On provenance of Iban textiles, there are many dealers selling textiles from Iban in Sarawak, which could have crossed the border from Indonesia. Some tribes, like Kantuk and Mualang, no longer weave, making their textiles difficult to study. Read more, talk more and learn more and beware of naughty dealers.
• On the present state of Iban weavers, it was shared that some issues are the labour migration and deforestation of cultural lands that take away the natural resources for them to continue weaving. Some groups are isolated and they lack basic services such as education and healthcare. On the other side, there are people who are having multiple income streams with stable income while simultaneously pursuing the preservation of their craft heritage.

We urge you to watch the video and you can check out this list of books that Lewa recommended during the talk about Iban Textiles:

1. Splendid Symbols: Textiles and Traditions in Indonesia by Mattiebelle Gittinger
2. Textiles from Borneo: Iban, Kantu, Ketungau and Mualang Peoples by Heribert Amann
3. Iban Art: Sexual Selection and Severed Heads by Michael Heppell, Limbang Anak Melak, Enian Anak Usen
4. Journal of Borneo-Kalimantan
5. Iban Ritual Textiles by Traude Gavin
6. Pua: Iban Weavings of Sarawak by Edric Ong
7. Tenun Ikat Dayak Desa: Cerita dan Motif Kain by Dewan Kerajinan Nasional Indonesia
8. Pesona Padu Padan Wastra Indonesia by Perkumpulan Wastra Indonesia

We hope you enjoyed the episode and tell us which other island should we explore deeper?

Cover page of Pesona Padu Padan Wastra Indonesia 

Final note: We are selling a copy of the bilingual book of Pesona Padu Padan Wastra Indonesia by Perkumpulan Wastra Indonesia, a textile group that Lewa Pardomuan founded. Do contact us if you are looking for a book to learn more about Indonesian textiles and how to mix and match different Indonesian textiles for everyday wear.