And I was like, Oh my god, mum.
This is so typical of my Asian mother.
Textile designer Lisa King discovered her late mothers vast collection of batik fabrics last January.
Courtesy of Lisa King
Suddenly, Id been given this archivewhat do I do with it?
Am I allowed to cut these things up?
Its pieces my grandmother would wear, that my great-grandmother would wear.
Textile designer Lisa King discovered her late mother’s vast collection of batik fabrics last January.
My mother would go to Indonesia every year and buy a suitcase full of batiks from artisans.
It kind of became apparent to me that this collection of fabrics needed to be seen, she continues.
Kings mother (left), grandmother (right), and great-grandmother (center) wearing batik fabrics.
King’s mother (left), grandmother (right), and great-grandmother (center) wearing batik fabrics.
Once this dries, it acts as a barrier to the dye, resulting in the print.
I dont think people appreciate how this cloth is actually made, she says.
The textile designer is now looking to give her mothers incredible batik archive a second life.
The textile designer is now looking to give her mother’s incredible batik archive a second life.
Her batik-loving mother would be proud.
