Wooden Batiks

ANCHOR: Batik textiles have long been known as one of Indonesia's traditional handicrafts. Now the craftsman turn wood into batik handicrafts. Let's take a look. STORY: The craftsman in the Krebet village turn wooden boards into masks, puppets, statues and other products, which are now painted with traditional batik designs and patterns. These products are sold across the archipelago of 17,000 islands. But the bulk of it is exported to the United States and other countries. Men do the hard job of sawing and cutting the wooden boards sourced from the jungles around Yogyakarta. They are carved into delicate masks and statues, which are sanded down to a perfect smooth finish. Female artisans then take over for the final artistic touch. They paint the wooden products with batik designs by applying trace wax and dyes --- just as it is done on cloth. The products are then sealed with a special finish to ensure the colours do not fade. Most of the artisans are accustomed to such delicate work, as they are used to create a range of leather products before that market started shrinking. [Putut Supriyadi, Wooden Batik Handicrafts Gallery Owner]: "We were first producing leather goods but the sales were not good. So we decide to make wooden batik products and this product has garnered a good market." He says the products have increased the economic activity in the village due to good demand. Putut adds that the capacity is enough to make 3,000 wooden batik pieces a month and that covers the entire range of products and designs. After more than 10 years of producing the wooden batik handicraft, the craftsman in Krebet village is now teaching the process to others interested in learning the craft of combining batik with wood.