Honorary reporter Claudia Agatha Mande When as Sucy from Indonesia
Photo = Embrun Nawawi
East Java Fashion Harmony, an annual show, took place last month at Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java, Indonesia. South Korea’s Gyeongsangnam-do cooperates with East Java as a sister state, and using Jinju silk provided by the Jinju Culture and Tourism Foundation in Jinju, Gyeongsangnam-do, he creates three batiks (Indonesian traditional Textile) I created a costume.
In a social media interview on Jan. 3, fashion designer Embran Nawawi creates pieces inspired by traditional Korean and Indonesian costumes.
Embrun Nawawi
Introduce yourself briefly.
I am Embran Nawawi, a designer and lecturer for courses on textile and fashion promotion and entrepreneurship at Petra Christian University and Widia Mandala Catholic University in Surabaya, East Java. I have been designing clothes using East Javanese batik patterns for 15 years and I am also the creator of East Java’s Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy fashion event he.
Why did you collaborate with South Korea on last year’s show?
I was invited to think of a collaboration concept related to East Java’s sister states. While searching for something that fit the show’s theme, “From Wisdom to Majesty,” I discovered that traditional hanbok is still part of modern fashion in Korea. This led to my idea of using a batik design.
I was also invited to use silk from Jinju, which is usually the material for hanbok. The technical difficulty was how strongly the wax would bind to the Jinju silk, and how strongly it would absorb color to create the amount of dye needed was highly unpredictable.
Nevertheless, the silk I got in Jinju exceeded my expectations. We hope to use Jinju Silk again to make classic batik from other cities such as Tulungagung and Tuban.
Inspired by the high-waisted elements of the hanbok, Embrun Nawawi created a batik embellished palazzo jumpsuit using organza silk from Jinju, South Korea.
Describe the three costumes you designed.
The trio were inspired by the couture and shapes of Hanbok, particularly the high-waisted elements incorporated into Palazzo jumpsuit pants and transparent Korean outerwear. In another piece, I created a simple dress inspired by the shape of the hanbok skirt and paired it with a unique transparent kimono. We combined the styles of men’s hanbok with Indonesian styles by including the Kembang Suro batik pattern, which symbolizes sincerity and offering. These patterns were used alongside Korean designs of phoenixes and lotus flowers and had similar meanings.
Why did you combine Jinju Silk and Probolingo Batik?
Probolinggo was an influential trading center during the time of Indonesia’s Majapahit Empire, giving birth to one of the country’s oldest batik patterns, like Kemban Suro. Combining the best batik of my country with the best silk of Korea in the hands of Batik Porwa Maestro was an extraordinary experience.
We believe that this kind of cultural collaboration can create a lasting fashion wave around the world, as traditional clothing is also relevant to contemporary Korean fashion. I look forward to collaborating with you.
Embrun Nawawi takes the stage with models wearing his fashion creations.
kalhong617@korea.kr
*This article was written by Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our honorary press corps come from all over the world and share their love and passion for all things Korean with Korea.net.
