Hartono Sumarsono, Life for Batik
Hartono Sumarsono.
Hartono Sumarsono, 66, has collected Nusantara batik for the last 36 years. The reason is simple, preventing batik from being brought and stored abroad. This commitment has paid off. Thousands of batik finally returned home.
“In the past, around 1983, there was an individual from Padang who told me that batik, particularly the fine batik, could vanish [in Indonesia] after being taken abroad. From there I decided to collect batik. This is of my concern,” Hartono said in Jakarta on Wednesday (March 20, 2019).
According to him, hand-painted batik has been taken to a number of countries, such as Japan, China and European countries. Some of them are collected and resold there. It is not clear how much ancient batik has left Indonesia.
He has now collected more than 1,000 batik clothes. The collection comes from almost all corners of Indonesia, such as Surakarta, Pekalongan and Jakarta. Hartono added he was only interested in collecting fine hand-painted batik.
"It’s hand-painted batik, which is finely crafted. Experience is required to understand the subtlety. However, the process [in knowing the fineness of batik] was quick for me. That\'s because I\'m used to seeing batik from the past, "Hartono said.
This man from Cirebon has long known batik. He became accustomed to helping his uncle sell batik in Tanah Abang Market, Jakarta in 1969. This activity lasted three years until he graduated from high school.
In 1972, Hartono ventured to start his own batik business. His hard work
has been fruitful. The brands Kencana Ungu and Citra Lawas, which he founded, are widely known by the public. Because of his long experience in the batik industry, Hartono considers batik his life. "Batik is my life," he said.
Maintain batik
Besides the fact that batik is the core of his business, he loves batik very much. He spent almost half a century learning about batik from across the archipelago more deeply. During that time, he also found old batik that almost disappeared.
One of the rare batik collections is “bang biru”. The word “bang” comes from the word “abang” which means red, while “biru” means blue. The bang biru item is in the form of a mattress or bed cover. The batik is then called bed sheet with meaning.
Hartono Sumarsono.
Bang biru has a creamy base color with a number of red and blue motifs. This batik only uses these two colors. However, red and blue are sometimes mixed together to produce a black hue.
“This batik is made in Cirebon, Madura, Lasem and in other areas. This is the most difficult collection to obtain. I have two from Braga. One of the bang biru was made in 1880,” Hartono said.
Bang biru is not the only old batik that has been “rescued” by Hartono. There are a number of other ancient batik that he managed to collect and keep up to now. The batik was later documented in the book he wrote. Now, the book is a mean of preserving batik as a knowledge to remember.
There are five books written by Hartono, namely Batik Pesisir (Batik from Coastal Region), Benang Raja, Batik Guratan, Batik Betawi and Batik Sudagaran Surakarta. His newest book, Batik Sudagaran Surakarta, was launched last Wednesday.
Sudagaran is a batik motif that developed in Surakarta and Yogyakarta. This motif was created by sudagar (batik merchants) for ordinary people
in colonial times. Because, at that time, there was batik that was intended only for kings and nobles, namely batik larangan (expensive).
Batik larangan includes several motives, including parang, kawung and truntum. This batik can only be worn by nobles in the Vorstenlanden region, namely the territory consisting of four palaces in Java. The four kingdoms were the Surakarta Sultanate, the Yogyakarta Sultanate, the Mangkunegaran Duchy, and the Pakualaman Duchy.
“Batik sudagaran is not tied to the standard of a royal batik. The sudagaran motif is made based on the abilities and preferences of the craftsmen. This batik is also open by outside influences, for example from Pekalongan, Lasem and India,” Hartono said.
There are about 247 batik sudagaran displayed in the book. The batik was made in the 1930s until the 1970s. Hartono himself curated the batik in his book.
Sudagaran batik is made with various themes. Some of the motifs included in sudagaran batik include butterfly, dragon, shrimp, buketan, and Garuda Pancasila motifs.
“I hope this book can introduce the younger generation to sudagaran batik. I also want to donate my batik collection in the form of book so that it can be enjoyed by many people, "he said.
Batik collections and books written by Hartono are considered to play a role in the preservation of Nusantara batik. Therefore, in 2011, Hartono was granted the Upakarti award by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. His love for batik is considered equal to dedication.
Culture and business
Anyone should be able to wear batik. According to him, everyone has the freedom to wear and obtain batik according to his or her financial situation. That also includes batik-motif textile not only the handwritten batik.
The price of hand-painted batik can be expensive on the market. That\'s because the valuation of hand-painted batik is higher than stamped/printed batik. The creation of hand-painted batik is a long process that requires special skills.
So far, according to Hartono, there are a number of parties who do not support printed batik. Because printed batik is considered to reduce the cultural values contained in batik. In fact, not necessarily all people can afford to buy batik, which is expensive.
“In my opinion, it\'s fine for people to wear printed batik. There are also people from the middle to lower economic groups. It is not right if they are asked to buy hand-painted batik at a price of millions,” Hartono said.
According to him, the preservation of batik will be well-maintained if everyone can access batik (or batik-motif textiles). Batik does not always have to be exclusive. According to Hartono, although produced in a modern and fast way, batik-motif clothes will always contain cultural aspects.
“It’s difficult if we only prioritize the cultural aspects of batik. The business and economic aspects of batik must run well too. This can be achieved through printed batik,” Hartono.
On the other hand, he also strongly supports the preservation of painted batik. Hartono advised that everyone can love batik as an Indonesian identity. According to him, wearing batik is the same as maintaining the eternity of the nation\'s cultural heritage. (E07)
Hartono Sumarsono
Born: Arjawinangun, Cirebon, 1953
Wife: Herawati Tjokrosendjojo
Child: Andrianto Kurniawan
Education: SMA
Award: Upakarti 2011 for dedication and preservation of antique batik.
