Figure 1.15: "Cremation bull" draped in white cloth, gold paper adornments and palm-leaf lamak, accompanied by two ceremonial parasols. Amlapura.
Finally, certain categories of textiles supply information relating not only to the gods, but to the social aspects of humans, their characteristics and the relations between them. For the individual, cloths of a special kind such as bebali and wangsul (see Chapter 5), mark various stages of human life and are used to protect the individual in ceremonies of transition. Certain textiles formerly expressed the highly stratified social hierarchy of traditional Bali. Such materials as bebali and wangsul were produced and controlled by the gria or brahmanical houses, while at the same time being indispensible in the performance of rites of passage for members of all social classes.
The uses of specific types of textiles are detailed in lontar palm-leaf manuscripts, also preserved in gria, These concern various categories of rituals—for gods, humans, the deceased, demons, etc. Because of the religious leadership exercised by the intellectual and spiritual elite of brah-mans, a system of textile standards became operative throughout Bali, This contrasted with local traditions and brought about certain uniformities where previously there were no doubt more specific differences.
Exceptional socio-religious status also attaches to the aU-white apparel of the pemangkuy who ministers in the temple service, and to the black-and-white clothing of the pedanda or brahman priest. Attire of this type contains elements—such as the red or black miter-like headdress (Fig, 3.7)—that are forbidden to all other members of society. Social functions were previously distinguished by clothing on a much greater scale than today. Various dignitaries within the court hierarchy, and also warriors, wore special garments that indicated their status.
In the past, endek and songkèt cloths were generally the prerogative of the princely courts and aristocratic families (see Chapters 2 and 3) with regard to both production and use. These cloths have since undergone a process of democratization, so that personal distinctions can no longer be made on the basis of textiles alone. It seems, however, that clues are
Whereas endek and songkèt are social badges recognized in every part of Bali, other textiles are characteristic of relatively closed social groups typical for particular regions. Thus, for example, the geringsing cloths of Tenganan in eastern Bali are the prerogative of the village aristocracy, so that anyone wearing or using such a ritual cloth there identifies himself as one of its members. In a similar way, keling cloths (see Chapter 6) were formerly worn in Nusa Penida only by women, and were therefore the badge of a gender-specific group.
In the course of time and through the socio-cultural changes of the past decades, these marks of social distinction have begun to blur. The greatest difference betokened by clothing today is no longer that between social classes, but between everyday and holy day. Daily clothing makes people out as citizens of a modern state, whereas traditional festive garb underlines Balinese Identity and the pride which the Balinese take in their own culture and traditions.
—B. Hauser-Schäublin
CHAPTER TWO
Endek
Ikat Production in Transition
THE form of traditional textile most commonly seen on Bali today is endek. This is the most highly-developed process in terms of technique and design; largely as a result the fabrics have acquired many new, non-traditional uses and are now seen far beyond the island's shores. Once the prerogative of noble families, endek has become a popular article of dress and an important badge of cultural identity for Balinese men and women of all social classes.
The patterning technique known here as endek is actually a variant of the ikat process widely practiced throughout Indonesia. Ikat (Indonesian "bundle," mengikat "to tie") is a complicated and time-consuming resist-dye technique in which undyed yarns are mounted on a frame in bundles according to the pattern and tied in places with short lengths of banana bast or plastic strips. During the dyeing process, the tied areas resist the absorption of dye and remain uncolored; repeated tyings and dyeings can result in a multihued pattern of great intricacy. The preprogrammed designs may be applied to either the warp threads alone (warp ikat), or to the weft (weft ikat)—or to both thread systems at once, so that the patterning of each one supplements the other (double ikat)..
Two forms of ikat are known in Bali: weft ikat, called here endek, has the pattern in the weft only; double ikat, known as geringsing, has patterns in both the warp and the weft. The latter procedure is exceedingly complicated, as the two designs have to be brought precisely into register with one another, and is undertaken in only one place in the whole of Indonesia—the tiny village of Tenganan Pegeringsingan in eastern Bali (see Chapter 9). In recent years, combined warp and weft ikat processes have been used in some establishments in Gianyar (central Bali) as well, but here the warp is patterned in some places and the weft in others, while the two are never blended together as in Tenganan.
Figure 2.1: Outer hip cloth for men (kampuh). Endek and songkèt on silk. Bulèlèng, 1920-30. 141 x 109 cm. MEB IIc 17571.
COURTLY SYMBOLS OF STATUS
For a long time endek cloths were solely the prerogative of the princely families of Bali. They were worn on special occasions in palaces and temples as sumptuous wraparounds (wastra, kampuh), as breast cloths (selendang, anteng) or as shawls (cerik), frequently containing added songkèt or supplementary weft patterns (see Chapter 3). Elaborate production methods and exotic imported materials such as silk, special dyes, gold and silver threads greatly enhanced the value of these traditional status symbols of the courtly culture.
Figure 2.2: Breast or shoulder cloths (anteng, cerik). Endek on silk. Bulèlèng, Buhunan, first half 20th century. 294 x 46 cm.; 252 x 41 cm. MEB HC 17574; 13992.
The earliest extant endek textiles date from the late 19th to early 20th centuries and come from the north Balinese principality of Bulèlèng, which was at this time an important and influential textile-producing center. Endek patterns from this period are predominantly geometric, and are combined with songkèt patterns to form an artistically unified whole. Endek crossbands patterned with lozenges, crosses and arrowheads alternate with strips of geometrically patterned songkèt. Likewise; endek triangles with small, multicolored dashes nest together with contrasting songkèt ones to form rectangles. The basic color of these early endek-songkèt fabrics is red—varying from a deep purple-red to a warm brick-red. Only later do yellows and greens appear.
Early figural representations are rare and very sumptuous, consisting for example patola patterns with lions and riders on elephants (see Chapter 8). This tendency to imitate patterns produced by other techniques—thereby creating, as it were, a substitute product—can also be observed in endek versions of the geringsing patelikuf double-ikat
