LOT 29
Fatimah Chik
B. Johor, 1947
Nusantara, Ledang Series, 1995
Signed and dated “Fatimah Chik 95” on lower right
Mixed media batik collage
61 x 61 cm
Provenance Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur
RM 2,200 – RM 2,500
All things traditional are always breathtaking. Batik most certainly does not escape this. It is highly ornate, structured with its luxurious texture and at most times, the way it is created – blocks, waxing, hand painting, dyeing – adds more value to it. What makes it even greater is that Fatimah Chik has brought batik to greater heights by commixing the old-style of crafting symbolic batik with new art forms to fit into the category of contemporary fine art.
After years of thorough research on tribal and traditional symbolisms and motifs (of the Malay, the Sumbanese, the Minangkabau, the Toradja, the Batak and the Dayak), new colours, shapes and symbols are brought into being through the metaphysical and iconographical influences from these tribes, demonstrably present in this piece of art. Her creations break the barriers between the physical, religious and racial differences among people.
Fatimah Chik was born in Pontian, Johor and trained at the MARA School of Art & Design as a textile designer. Her experiments with batik design began mid 1970s, and it was then that she started combining different motifs into her work, thus making them entirely her own style.