The Research Journal of pISSN 1226-0401 eISSN 2383-6334 the Costume Culture RJCC Vol.27, No.3, pp.264-273, June 2019 https://doi.org/10.29049/rjcc.2019.27.3.264
[Original Article] The influence of traditional values on the development of fashion in Bali
Arini Arumsari†, Agus Sachari, and Andryanto Rikrik Kusmara Doctorate Program of Visual Art and Design, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
Abstract
Fashion as a field of cultural studies is a very complex field that is very interesting to discuss, especially in Indonesia as the very rich country in cultures and past traditions. This research will discuss the development of fashion in Bali, one area that is opulent in its cultures. Based on the research conducted by today’s fashion development, Bali is still strongly influenced by factors inherited from traditional values that exist in the Balinese culture. This research is conducted by applying the qualitative method with the ethnography approach to unravel any factor in Bali so that it becomes the foundation and triggers the rapid development of fashion by still maintaining the values of the tradition. Considering that the values of tradition as a whole have a good impact on the preservation of the natural balance and various factors that exist in society, whether these factors still exist in other regions of Indonesia and they are possible to be developed in various regions of Indonesia. So hopefully the development of fashion in Indonesia as a whole can maintain the local content that characterizes the Indonesian Nation and have a positive impact on the balance of nature and also to the community in Indonesia and the world culture.
Received May 17, 2019 Revised June 25, 2019 Keywords: Balinese culture, clothing, fashion, traditional cloth Accepted June 26, 2019
†Corresponding author I. Introduction ([email protected]) Indonesia as the research site, geographically, is an archipelago that also makes ORCID Arini Arumsari the country consist of a number of tribes settling in the islands. The tribes have http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8624-0555 their own cultures which are interesting to discuss. Therefore, though this study is Agus Sachari a study focused on fashion design, it is in line with the traditional values, partic- http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4596-5063 Andryanto Rikrik Kusmara ularly the tradition of Bali, one of the places in Indonesia of which the tradition http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1546-0467 is unique. The objectives and the importance of local content based study as em- ployed in this study is to conserve the cultures within the development of lifestyles This research was supported in part by the Ministry of requiring different fields including fashion design to be more cosmopolitan that may Research Technology and blur its initial identity. It is expected that the result of the study can give some Higher Education Republic of enrichment to one’s point of view that the values derived from the traditional cul- Indonesia through Research Grant for Doctoral Dissertation ture are good and deserve some supports, particularly in terms of the development and Universitas Telkom. of fashion design in the future.
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Ⅱ. Literature Review ing more like, to the literacy tradition, thereby it en- ables the society to incise their historical stories in a The Balinese people are known as the Balinese state of calamity (PaEni, 2009a). ethnic or the Balinese. As an ethnic, the Balinese Through the evidences of the writings of the have characteristics of ethnic identity attached to Ancient Balinese (8th to 14th Century), even to the be- themselves and their group. Bali Tourism Office de- ginning of the 15th Century, it can be explained that fines the Balinese ethnic as a group of people who the deeply rooted theological conception in the Hindu are bound by the awareness of unity both the Bali- Darma society is the worship of the Gods - Goddesses, nese local culture and the national culture. The sense both derived from the Indian patheons as mentioned of awareness of the unity of Balinese culture is re- in Veda and the Purana books that are the Hindu inforced by the unity of language, namely the Dharma scriptures, as well as the names of the Gods Balinese language, the Hindu religion, and the unity that stem from local beliefs known in Prehistoric of the history and cultural journey. Belief of Hiduism times. Such religious understanding and appreciation creates a variety of traditions, customs, cultures, arts, have developed in the various religious sects. But at and so on that have distinctive characteristics, which the same time, the worship of ancestral spirits that are a combination of tradition and religion. In every- have been rooted since the Prehistoric Era also re- day life, these characteristics manifest themselves in mains an intergral part of their theological conception various conceptions, social activities, and physical and religious value system (PaEni, 2009a). works of the Balinese (as cited in Arka, 2017; Geriya, The living philosophy of the Balinese people is Tri 2008). Hita Karana, that emphasizes the harmony and bal- The life of the Balinese Hindu community and eve- ance of life between man and man, man and the ry activity carried out primarily related to religious Creator, and man with his environment. These princi- rituals is always accompanied by symbolic messages. ples are internalized and institutionalized within the The symbols in the Hindu sense are bound between social structure of the Balinese society and become Hindu values, Hindu theology, social behavior, and the Balinese way of life, both in developing the sys- Hindu religious symbols (Nilotama, 2009). In their tem of knowledge, patterns of behavior, attitudes, val- daily life, the behavior of the Balinese is based on the ues, traditions, art, etc. values of Hinduism and the philosophy of Tri Hita In the end, the Tri Hita Karana philosophy be- Karana. The growth and development of Hinduism comes the ideology and core values in the Balinese (Hindu Dharma) in Bali is fundamentally closely life and culture. It is the ideology which then be- linked to the spread of Hinduism (India) in the comes the basis for the regulatory standards used by Archipelago that is thought to go in the early AD the main institutions, such as: sekaa (traditional or- (Poesponogoro, Notosusanto, & Sumadio, 1993; Soek- ganization), subak (irrigation organization) and pakra- mono, 1991). man village (traditional village governance system) in Hindu Dharma in the Balinese society covers on Bali, in evaluating the behavior of its members. various aspects, namely: theological conception and Another authentic tradition that still exists in the religious value; socio religious order and religious re- Balinese culture is caste system. According to Atmojo’s lics in the form of material culture (tangible) such as research (as cited in Seraya, 1991), the caste system temples and statues. The stronger influence of the exists in Bali although it has many different ways in Hindu culture is positively alleged by the change in structure and function but has similarities with the their thinking patterns from the orality tradition of be- caste system in India that is based on Hinduism as
－ 265 － 74 The influence of traditional values on the development of fashion in Bali 복식문화연구 well. Caste division in Bali is divided into four castes stages. The gods are mentioned as follows: (caturwarna), they are: Brahmana, Ksatrya, Waisya, a. Dewa Brahma (Lord Brahma), that is the mani- and Sudra. This information is found in the copper festation of God Almighty or Ida Sang Hyang inscriptions named “Bila II” dated 995 Saka (1073 Widhi Wasa in his duty as the creator and his AD) from the time of King Anak Wungsu. palace is in Village Temple or Bale Agung. The next development by some experts in Bali is b. Dewa Wisnu (Lord Wisnu), that is the manifes- known as the terms of color and dynasty for caste tation of God Almighty in his duty as the keeper system. Between the two terms, dynasty (wangsa) is and his palace is in Puseh Temple or Segara more commonly used (Sudana & Bagus, 1979). Each Temple. dynasty has its own obligations (dharma), but the per- c. Dewa Siwa (Lord Siwa), that is the manifes- son who performs dharma in his dynasty as it appears tation of God Almight in his duty as pemralina to the Balinese people nowadays is virtually absent, or the returner to its origin and his palace is in except the dignity of Brahmana Dynasty (Wangsa Dalem Temple. Brahmana) to be priest or pedanda. Thus, it seems clear that the system of dynasty has undergone vari- Ⅲ. Methods ous changes gradually due to the influence of the modern culture through various channels as seen in In this research, some factors that underlie the de- the modern Balinese society (PaEni, 2009b). velopment of fashion in Bali until the latest develop- In the social system of the Balinese society, there ment will be presented in the structured manner in are two classifications of Village, namely: Admini- several stages (Fig. 1). The first stage is an expla- stration Village or Desa Dinas and Traditional Village nation of the system of the Balinese belief and or Desa Pakraman. I Dewa Made Suartha (2015) ex- culture. After that, it will be presented the develop- plains that Desa Pakraman is a village where the citi- ment of the traditional Balinese cloth and fashion as zens perform their customs and religion in their com- the product of Balinese culture and the form of the munity life. compliance of Balinese people in running their belief. The term of Desa Pakraman was officially used Furthermore, the traditional fabrics and clothing are for the first time in Bali Provincial Regulation No.3/ developed into the inspiration in the development of 2001 on Desa Pakraman that was established on fashion in Bali. In the end of the research, it will be March 21st, 2001. In Article 1 Sub-article 4 of Law explained how these factors have a role to the devel- Number 3 Year 2001, it is explained that Desa opment of the products of fashion designers and fash- Pakraman is a unit of customary law community in ion brands in Bali. Bali Province that has a unity of tradition of manners The steps of the study above are conducted using of social interaction of Hindu community from gener- ation to generation in the bond of “Three Heaven” or “Kahyangan Tiga” that has certain territory and its own property and has the right to take care of its own household. Kahyangan Tiga is the implementation of the Tri Murti doctrine, that is worshiping of the three major gods in regulating the human life cycle, namely birth, life, death in which everyone will experience these
－ 266 － Vol. 27, No. 3 Arini Arumsari․Agus Sachari․Andryanto Rikrik Kusmara 75 qualitative study with ethnography approach. As the in fashion. The development of textile craft in Bali is background of the study, the secondary data are ob- very rich and complex. In Bali there are various tradi- tained from the literature study towards different tional textile products used for daily clothing as well books, scientific journals, proceedings and research as ceremonial events. Some have an important role in reports which are related to the study. Furthermore, transition rites, tooth cutting ceremony, wedding and the primary data collection is conducted through di- funeral ritual as well as ceremonies that are held to rect field observation to Bali, particularly to the fash- honor ancestors and to beg help from deities. In addi- ion, clothing and traditional fabric centers. In order to tion, textiles are also the part of ritual offering made have some recent data on the development of fashion for a temple. in Bali as well as its relation to Balinese traditional On the observation made, the process of making culture, the study also involves interviews with some traditional fabrics ranging from cotton processing to experts in culture, traditional fabric artists, as well as weaving this cloth is an important thing in the history Balinese fashion designers. of the Balinese life. Due to the main museums in Bali, there are artifacts of making cloths as the evi- Ⅳ. Result and Discussion dence that the weaving activity is one of the im- portant activities undertaken by the Balinese besides According to Arifah A. Riyanto, clothes or in agricultural activities (Fig. 2). Indonesian called busana in the specific sense is tex- Based on Ikat Weaving Book: Indonesia’s Weaving tile material that is enclosed or sewn first that is worn Ikat Tradition made by the Ministry of Culture and to cover the body of a person that directly attaches Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia in 2010, the to the skin or that does not directly stick to the skin most popular fabrics in Bali are endek and geringsing (Riyanto & Zulbahri, 2009). cloth. Endek fabric is made with the technique of ikat When historically viewed from its development of weaving on the thread of yarn. It is usually made in the Indonesian culture, the development of clothing is the blend of bright colors like green, blue, yellow, closely related with textile products or more precisely purple, red and others, so most of coloring processes textile craft in Indonesia. This is because from the an- of endek fabric use chemical dyes to get the bright cient times in Indonesia, textile was the main material colors. The motifs shown on endek fabricare usually
－ 267 － 76 The influence of traditional values on the development of fashion in Bali 복식문화연구 floral and geometric motifs and they are now more it is plainly patterned (Fig. 6). We can usually see it varied with various influences from the Chinese, wrapped around a tree or a sacred stone or on custom Indian, or other cultures from other regions of ceremonial equipment. Indonesia. Products made from endek fabric are usu- Then, there is also cepuk fabric in Bali (Fig. 7 and ally sarong fabrics for men and women, long cloths 8). It is a cloth used as a complement to traditional are made with larger sizes to be made into clothing. ceremonies used in the Balinese Hindu ceremonies Meanwhile geringsing fabric is made in Tenganan that have higher power or energy. Cepuk means ‘to Village, using the technique of double-ikat and it meet with’, that is meant to meet with other power seems more classical compared with endek fabric or energy. For example, a dancer in the form of which is made by using natural dyes (Fig. 3). So, the Batari Durga named Rangga usually wears cepuk fab- colors on geringsing fabrics are mostly red, brown, ric because he will meet the Barong, the great energy. yellow, and purplish red. The motifs made on it are It can be used for various functions, namely as upper full of philosophical and sacred values (Fig. 4). They clothes (kemben), as inner fabric (tapih), as a base for are often from puppet stories, mythology or derived offering (tatakan), as ceiling, decorating temple and from the teachings of Hinduism. So, geringsing fabric bade (stretcher for corpse), closing the body, and the has a function that is also more sacred as in the ritual other various functions at the Manusa Yadna cere- dance in Tenganan Village, as the headgear in the mony. Cepuk cloth is primarily used at the beginning tooth cutting ceremony (Fig. 5), as the cover of the and end of a ceremony to ensure the safety of the cer- coffin at the ngaben ceremony and also as ceremony emony (Puniari, 2013). complements at Temple. The following is the chart (Fig. 9) of the classi- In addition to the two woven fabrics mentioned be- fications of the Balinese traditional fabrics and their fore, there is also poleng cloth, a textile product that use: is a typical fabric from Bali. Poleng cloth is a white Along with the time up to now, these cloths are and black fabric, when visually viewed at a glance, experiencing various developments. If at first the
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－ 269 － 78 The influence of traditional values on the development of fashion in Bali 복식문화연구 closely related with textile products or more precisely so takes long process. So, it is very unfortunate if the textile craft in Indonesia. This is because from the an- fabrics that have been processed and made with a cient times in Indonesia, textile is the main material long process with the high craftmanship are then in fashion. processed by cutting or being made a certain pattern Here is the chart (Fig. 10) of the traditional Bali- that will produce waste materials. nese clothing classifications that is in accordance with In the further development, the use of traditional its usefulness: cloths as fashion keeps growing as a fashion trend. It is based on the usability classification and how The fashion development in Bali in the modern times to use it. As a function to cover body, the ways of develops rapidly, it is because the culture of the original use of traditional cloth are usually used by Balinese and the rich natural beauty keep inspiring being wrapped or tied to the body. In its original use, the fashion practicioners to continue working. The it is very rare to find traditional fabrics cut out or fashion development in Bali is also supported by the made with clothing patterns and then sewn as done foreigners and tourists who come to Bali as the popu- in the practice of today’s fashion-making. Based on lar tourist destination in the world. So that this matter the observations during the research, the other thing makes Bali a promising market for a variety of grow- underlying these traditional fabrics to be processed by ing industries, including fashion. As one of the case making pattern - being cut - then being sewn back is studies on the development of fashion in Bali, it will that the traditional fabrics are made very manually. be discussed about the use of the traditional Balinese The raw materials of the traditional fabrics are fibers fabrics and also decorations at Bali Fashion Week. It and natural dyes derived from the natural resources is an event that includes a series of events featuring available in the local areas that are processed gradu- the Indonesian fashion designers, the manufacturers ally and long. After preparing the raw materials, fab- of clothings, accessories and also fabrics that will use ric fabrication techniques are also done by manual Bali natural attractions as the international tourist des- weaving techniques with a non-machine loom that al- tination to attract potential buyers from all around the
－ 270 － Vol. 27, No. 3 Arini Arumsari․Agus Sachari․Andryanto Rikrik Kusmara 79 world and make Bali as one of the world fashion in the form of prada and poleng. cities. In Indonesia some cities such as Jakarta, Bandung, Yogjakarta, and Jember have started to Ⅴ. Conclusion make ‘Fashion Week’ as one of their annual agenda (Warta Ekspor, 2013). Every region holding fashion Based on the discussion above and based on the week has a vision with the fashion week in these citi- results of research on the development of fashion in es, it seems to be a claim that the cities or regions Bali, there is still a very strong influence of tradi- can be like Paris, Milan, Tokyo, and London that be- tional Balinese values. The practices in maintaining come the center of the world fashion. the traditional values in the fashion development in In the implementation of the Bali Fashion Week, Bali are mentioned as follows: overall it is felt very much the content of the typical 1. Selecting fiber and natural coloring material as Balinese culture (Fig. 11 and 12). For example, it is raw materials for making traditional fabrics in different from Jogja Fashion Week that is dominated Bali is still used in the process of making fab- by the use of cloths and ornaments of batik at various rics that are the materials for making fashion collections of fashion products presented, Bali products nowadays. Fashion Week is dominated by the use of traditional 2. Fabric craftsmen in Bali are still maintaining Balinese fabrics and also typical Balinese ornaments fabric-making techniques or structure textile de-
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