THE EXQUISITE ART OF THE PERANAKANS – L’ART DELICAT DES PERANAKANS

BILINGUAL – BILINGUE

From The Great China they came to trade on the coasts of Malaya and Singapore. Some two hundred years ago, many of them settled to stay and married local Malay women. These families who became known as the Peranakans, developed a new “baba” language, a marriage of Malay and Chinese Hokkien.

The Peranakans also created a new art culture by creating intricate motives of flowers, butterflies and phoenixes in bright yellow, rose pink, jade green and serene blue. These exquisite tableaux were embroidered on the women’s traditional wear, the kebaya, and painted on porcelains pieces which have since become collector’s items.

While on a trip to Singapore, I found a set of cards celebrating the Art of the Peraniakan. These cards were painted by Maureen Foo Bong Soon, who is a self taught artist !!!!

On the packaging for the cards, it was written that Maureen “hopes that her bold, bright colors, and detailed work will evoke in you a sense of exquisiteness, beauty, brightness and joy.” She has definitely succeeded in doing that with me!

 

Ils étaient venus de la Grande Chine pour établir leurs ports de commerce sur la péninsule malaise et à Singapour. Cela se passait il y a plus de deux siècles, lorsque ces marchants chinois choisirent de rester et de fonder des familles en épousant des femmes malaises. Ainsi naquit la civilisation perenakan et, avec elle, un nouveau dialecte, mélange de chinois hokkien et de malais: le baba.

On doit aux peranakans une toute nouvelle culture artistique du même nom qui dépeint des motifs floraux, des papillons et des phénix qui naissent dans le vif des jaunes, des roses, vert de jade et bleus. Ces tableaux raffinés étaient aussi bien brodés sur les kebaya, les tenues traditionnelles des femmes, que peints sur des objets en porcelaine, désormais des pièces de collections.

Lors d’un voyage à Singapour, j’ai trouvé un set de cartes représentant l’art des peranakans. Ces cartes ont été peintes par Maureen Foo Bong Soon.

Sur l’enveloppe, un commentaire de Maureen qui “espère que ses motifs très détaillés aux couleurs vives et audacieuses réussiront à évoquer tout à la fois la délicatesse, la beauté, la clarté et  la joie » En ce qui me concerne, elle a certainement réussi !

 

 

MY FIRST 2013 DOLL

And she has a tattooed leg!  Sa Jambe est tatouee!

You can see Thild and others on my Dolls and Craft Gallery page

Thild

 

For Rosemary

Wandering grace you are the bohemian drop
Of the divine splash born to pop
And soak us with your day dreams sparkle
A passion for life that is a marvel…..
A Poem about Rosemary @invitemyself.wordpress.com 

Cloth and batik doll – approx 50cm – Made for Rosemary and gone to Tasmania (should have made her a coat?)

 

SHE CAME WITH THE TIDE – DEPOSEE PAR LA GRANDE MAREE

Peranga

BILINGUAL POST – BILLET BILINGUE

A new South China Sea mermaid. Her name is Peranga. She came with the high tide to rest on Damai* beach where she met an English man who happened to fall in love with her and is planning to bring her back to the land of the Angles.

To see more of my dolls visit my gallery and my special post.

*Damai beach is 25km away from Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo

Une nouvelle sirène de la Mer de Chine ; elle s’appelle Peranga. A la dernière grande marée elle est venue se reposer sur la plage de Damai où se trouvait justement un anglais en est tombé amoureux et va bientôt l’emporter sur l’ile d’Albion.

Vous pouvez voir mes poupées sur la page Gallery ou Atelier

*Damai se trouve à environ 25km de Kuching, Sarawak, Bornéo

 

MY LATTE TASTES BETTER AT THE MUSEUM CAFE

Heidi Munan, Chief of the Knitting Brigade, all for a good cause

THE KNITTING BRIGADE

“I want to join the brigade”.

The petite Chinese woman who’d just spoken stood very straight and firm, in between two occupied chairs, thus breaking a large and full circle of seated knitters.

Heidi’s eyes slowly moved away from her needles and rose to meet the new comer’s look.“Can you knit?”

“No.” Was the woman’s reply. “You teach me?”

Every woman in the group looked up as one; every one of them was smiling. “Grab yourself a chair and sit next to me.” Heidi instructed before adding “and, ladies, let’s make our circle a little bigger.”

This is how Lily became a member of our fondly nick-named (by me) Knitting Brigade.

 

All plaids and quilts are made for cancer stricken children

I used to knit a little, back then, when I still lived in France. When I followed Hubby to Borneo with only one metallic trunk and a regular suitcase – hardly a removal – only God knows why felt I had to pack my knitting needles? I mean, and honestly, why expect to be doing any knitting in the tropics, cooked-up in a 30 something degrees Celsius steamy atmosphere? Thirty years fast forward, Heidi provided me with the answer when she recruited me to knit for cancer stricken children and made me take my needles out of their old container.

Heidi is a gifted knitter who makes quirky dolls that represent various ethnics of Sarawak where we live.  She is what I call a “generation knitter” from the Swiss Alps. My theory is that knitting is in her DNA, inherited from a long line of Helvetian women. Knitting is in her bones, while her brain works fast and her heart beats in the right place, the right combination of gifts to come up with the generous initiative of recruiting volunteers to get together once a week and knit a myriad of colourful yarns into 7.5cm squares which she assembles with a crochet into wonderfully cheerful blankets that children can hold and hug while in the ward and back home.

Some of Heidi’s dolls can be purchased at the Museum Cafe

The Knitting Brigade is constantly growing with new and regular members who gather every Wednesday morning from 10.00 to 12…ish at the Sarawak Museum Shop & Café at the Tun Abdul Razak Museum. There are irregular members too: ladies who commute between their countries of origin and Kuching. They are friends whom we miss for a few months and hug fondly when they come back for a long visit.

The Knitting Brigade is really an ever expandable circle of friends made-up of colourful characters who bring their invaluable cheers and stories to share not only with other knitters but, too, with the Café’s customers, locals or travellers.

A Batik Kooch, based on the crooked tailed cats of Kuching (Kuching means CAT) one of many items selling at the Museum Cafe

In fact, choosing the Museum Café to meet was a call from the heart as both Heidi and I (and Annette, and Anita, and Rosnah) are old friends of the Sarawak Museum and of its gardens. When the Café offered us a “place de charme” amongst beautiful vintage furniture and classy displays of books, old maps and crafts made by some of the most talented Sarawak artisans, we simply blended in and, somehow, my latte started to taste better at the Museum Café!         

The Knitting Brigade

                        

 

RUMAH UDAM – LONGHOUSE IBAN

Rumah Udam aux Couleurs de Fete

CLICK FOR ENGLISH TEXT

 DECOUVERTE DE RUMAH UDAM, LONGHOUSE IBAN

Le weekend dernier nous a vu prendre la route pour un trajet de près de 500km jusqu’à la ville de Sibu. Le voyage lui-même s’est déroulé comme un long métrage de paysages, commenté de ça et la par Swee Ann et Danson, notre chauffeur tatoué. Les villes, les villages et la longhouse Iban que nous avons visités, tous nous ont accueillis avec leur propre charme ; pourtant les meilleurs souvenirs que nous avons ramenés de ce périple sont faits de rires mais aussi de quelques moments émouvants que nous avons eu le bonheur de partager avec nos hôtes accueillants et (je vais vous surprendre) un oiseau rare !

Je reste sous le charme!

Le but de notre voyage était de nous rendre à Rumah Udam, longhouse Iban près de Sibu, pour assister à une fête qui devait conclure l’effort d’équipe des longhouses riveraines de la Manyan de dégager leur rivière des débris accumulés durant quelques années d’abandon. Les Ibans de Sungai Manyang avaient en effet abandonné le transport en pirogue lorsque l’exploitation de palmiers à huile avait créé une route d’accès à la plantation. Sous l’égide du Sarawak Rivers Board les villages concernés ont retroussé leurs manches pour déblayer la rivière et remettre leurs pirogues et leurs nasses à l’eau.

Longhouse avoisinante

Pour pouvoir accéder à Rumah Udam, il faut passer devant une autre Longhouse. Fin de la route, nous avons abandonné la voiture.

Le Pont en bois qui traverse la Menyan avec, au bout, Rumah Udam

 

 

Au bout du pont, un portail destiné à souhaiter la bienvenue aux visiteurs. Il estentièrement décoré de motifs traditionnels Ibans, peints en noir sur fond blanc.

 

 

 

 

Qu’ils soient peints sur les murs de la longhouse, qu’ils soient nattés ou tissés en ikats ou même tatoués sur la peau, ces motifs racontent non seulement la grande histoire de la vie du peuple Iban mais ils possèdent aussi pouvoir de protection contre les ennemis et les esprits malveillants ou même diaboliques.

Lessive et bannières patriotiques, on a hissé les couleurs

Une délégation de VIPs est attendue à la longhouse ; le comité dirigé par le Tuai Rumah (le chef de la longhouse)  a déployé une bannière patriotique sur toute la longueur du balcon extérieur.  Pendant ce temps la, les femmes ont étendu leur lessive colorée.

Les sarongs sont toujours beaux, et pourquoi pas étendus dans le jardin ?

Cette photo ne surprendra certainement pas mes ami(e)s qui me connaissent bien ; ils savent que je suis passionnée de sarongs en batik. Les sarongs sont non seulement un vêtement confortable à porter noué au dessus de la poitrine ou autour de la taille (ici les femmes les portent même pour dormir), ils servent aussi de portes bébés passés par-dessus l’épaule. Quant a moi, j’adore porter le sarong a la maison, en particulier sur ma terrasse, mais je les aime aussi faisant partie de ma déco, en panneau mural, en couverture de couette ou carrément en quilt, transformes en jouets ou même en robes de poupées. Franchement je ne vois pas de limite à l’usage d’un beau sarong.

HIDUP SARONG SARONG! VIVE LES SARONGS!

A l’Intérieur de Rumah Udam

 

A l’intérieur de la longhouse, le ruai a été enguirlandé pour l’occasion !

Le ruai  est la véranda intérieure et commune de la longhouse où tout le monde se réuni. Tout est prêt et bien décoré pour accueillir les invités.

Cette porte s’ouvre sur l’appartement privé d’une famille. Lorsqu’un Dayak veut indiquer la longueur de son village, il se réfère au nombre de portes. Rumah Udam a 21 portes. Certaines longhouses au Sarawak, notamment sur les hauts plateaux de l’intérieur du pays, peuvent avoir jusqu’à plus de 200 portes !

 

et demain il fera jour.

Mon Histoire en Format Ebook

RUMAH UDAM – IBAN LONGHOUSE

Rumah Udam “Dressed-up” for Celebration

AROUND RUMAH UDAM, IBAN LONGHOUSE.

CLICKEZ POUR LA VERSION FRANCAISE

Last weekend saw Hubby and take a rather long drive of almost 500km to the town of Sibu. The road itself was a reel of sceneries; the towns, villages and the Iban longhouse we visited all had their own personal charm; however, what remains in my memory are the great fun I had and a few touching moments I spent with the people and too, with an amazing bird!                                                  

 I am still under the spell!

The main purpose of our journey was to reach Ruhma Udam, an Iban longhouse close to Sibu and celebrate a community clean up of the Menyan river by all the longhouses along the banks. The river had been abandoned as a mean of transportation in favour of a palm-oil plantation road; it had become cluttered with debris and trunks. The folks of Sungai Menyan, encouraged by the Sarawak Rivers Board have agreed to clean up their river and repopulate the waters with indigenous fishes.

A Neighbouring Longhouse

Before we could cross the wooden bridge leading to Rumah Udam, we had to pass

The Bridge Crossing Sungai Menyan to Rumah Udam

another longhouse.

This was the end of the road, where we had to abandon our car.

At the end of the bridge, a welcome gate fully decorated with traditional Iban designs painted stricking black against a white background. The Dayak designs of Sarawak are much more than a decorative art; wether painted on the walls of a longhouse, pleated into baskets or mats or woven into Puah Kumbu (ikats) or again tattooed on the skin, they also tell of the great story of the Iban people and operate as protection against enemies and evil spirits..

Laundry and Banners at Rumah Udam

A number of VIPs are expected to come to visit today and the Longhouse committee led by the Tuai Rumah (the head of the house) have stretched a patriotic banner along the banister. Meanwhile, the women hanged their colourful laundry.

Sarongs are simply beautiful anywhere, even on a laundry line!

Anyone who knows me will not be surprised that I took this picture: I have a huge love for sarongs. Not only are they comfortable and convenient to wear as a strapless dress, or wrapped around the waist (women here even wear them to sleep), they are also useful as baby carriers, strapped around a shoulder. As for me, not only do I enjoy wearing them, I also love them everywhere in my home, as wall hangings, turned into quilt covers or even whole quilts, siewn into toys or dresses for dolls, name it, I must have done it.

 HIDUP SARONG SARONG! VIVE LES SARONGS!

Inside the longhouse

Inside the Longhouse, the Ruai

The ruai is the interior verandah where everybody meets. It has been decorated and everything is ready to welcome all the guests.

Behind this door is the private appartment of one family. When a Dayak wants to indicate how important his longhouse is, he mentions the number of doors. Rumah Udam has 21 doors. Some longhouse in the highlands of Sarawak count more than 200 doors!

The Good Life!

And Tomorrow Will Be Another Day

 

COUTURE INSPIRATION BORNEO: MAGNIFIQUE!

BILINGUAL POST – BILLET BILINGUE

I am being a little selfish with this post; I am making myself very happy with beautiful pictures of fashion creations by Borneo couture designer Edric Ong. But then again, I’m sharing so… let’s all share a splendid time.

Régalons-nous ensemble à découvrir quelques créations mode de Edric Ong qui ne cesse de se laisser inspirer (pour notre plus grand plaisir) par les motifs indigènes de Bornéo.

Edric creates Eco-textiles for his fashion designs. His models never fail to amaze me when they wear cottons and silks tinted with natural dyes and even ikats or pandanus accessories and jewelry.

Les créations d’Edric sont en fibres naturelles. Ses mannequins  surprennent toujours par la beauté de leurs vêtements réalisés en cotonnades et soieries. Ses teintures végétales sont concoctées à partir de produits indigènes à Bornéo. Il n’hésite pas non plus à utiliser des ikats ou même des feuilles de pandanus pour ses accessoires et bijouterie !

 

 

Batik cotton shirt worn over catappa shibori cotton wrap

 

 

The Bride wears a Japanese bridal white silk kimono over a lace beaded kebaya and batik block flare skirt

 

cut indigo leaves stamped on silk; handwoven silk top and wrap dyed with onion skin

 

central panel of silk scarf dyed with ‘mengkudu’ or morinder citrifolia

 

Cher wears cotton knit dress with indigo leaves stamping Emil’s jacket is persimmon dyed

 

‘Gatsby’ style feather and velevet cape worn over satin silk top and skirt highlighted with an antique Iban ‘rawai’ silver corset

 

 

 

 

red hibiscus flower dyed silk shibori shawl

 

red hibiscus dyed shibori silk shawl

 

The shawl is dyed with morning glory flower

 

yellow allamanda floral dyed silk ensemble – mengkuang pandanus jewelry

You can find Edric Ong’s creations under EO label on his website but also at the Aseana Gallery at Suria KLCC in Kuala Lumpur and the Datai Shop, Langkawi. A beautiful reason to come to Malaysia!

Vous pourrez trouver les collections d’Eric Ong sur le site internet du label EO ; à la Gallery Aseana at Suria KLCC à Kuala Lumpur et au Datai Shop de Langkawi. Une bien belle raison de venir visiter la Malaisie !

Edric Ong, l’homme au chapeau au centre de la photo –

 

 

 

 

MY DOLL-MAKING ATELIER / ATELIER DE POUPEES

I am a batik lover and for a long time I had a vision of a mermaid with a blue batik tail. One day I finally made “Mia”

Mon Histoire En ebook

J’adore les tissus en batik et depuis longtemps j’avais envie de creer une sirene dont la queue serait en batik. Un jour je m’y suis enfin mise et voici donc Mia!

Depuis bien d’autres poupees ont suivi…

Mia’s tail measures an extraordinary 58cm (the whole doll measures 83cm), she listens to soothing songs caught inside a sea shell and glitters like salt does in the sun. Mia’s whole body is made of cloth; her face is sculptured and painted; extra long eyelashes make her look at once dreamy yet quite cheeky. For the crown that holds together her blue hair I used a combination of tinsels that I fused together on a very fine metallic fabric mesh that I then embroidered with colorful metallic threads and cottons to add interesting hues.

Tari of the Waves 82cm

“Tari of the waves” is Mia’s pink sister with purple eye lashes. I created her for my friend (while thinking of her too) Tari who lives in Australia. She has always loved sailing, collecting sea-shells and creating decorative gifts with them, and her favorite color is pink. I absolutely dislike making the same thing twice yet I really wanted to please my friend, so I chose to focus on the challenge of not being able to use shells which would have been rejected by the Australian customs and excises department; instead I used pearls (yes, fake ones).

Although I do sell some of my creations in a local shop, I am more into making dolls to make my friends and family happy. My friend Helen explained to me how she never had any toys to play with when she was little, so I made country dolls for her. I also made Bidayuh dolls for Judy of Kampung Hannah Rais; funky batik cats called Kooch (Kuching is translated “cat”) with an amusing crooked tail typical of our local cats and you may say that Kooch is a Sarwakat; Batik fishes for my four young nephews who love fishing with their grand dad (my brother) and batik hearts because everyone deserves one. For Janice whose suitcase was too full I assembled a miniature French toile de Jouy doll built around a tobacco pipe cleaner, then I used the same technique to make a Bidayuh one carrying a basket made of tree bark and again a Chinese one for Linda.

Ange de Jouy

 When I found myself looking at the unattractive black CPU next to my computer I made Mei Mei (remember Taipan?) a bright Hakka doll; it was in October so I placed a moon cake in her hands .

Mei Mei

When Janice gave me a pattern for an unarguably western Christmas angel I thought it would be great to have a local protector all year round so I changed the dress to black and painted it with red and gold sparkles, added a garland of gold coins around the bottom of the tunic and let her wear a Bidayuh hat on her jet black hair.

Bidayuih Angel

I started my first doll as a challenge to myself : as a student my art teacher always had a tough time deciding between E and F to mark my work; I guess my mark must have depended on whether she was annoyed with my inability or if she felt sorry for me. With such a history, I was convinced that although I would love to make my own dolls, it would be way beyond my capabilities. One fine day at last I figured out the obvious, that I had nothing to lose if I would give it a shot and so I did. I have never stopped since. Very quickly I gave up looking for the rare patterns that sometimes appear in Australian craft magazines; I started creating my own imaginary cross-culture characters. Now I encourage anyone who is interested in craft to dare try their skills and follow their imagination. Really it can’t hurt to try! And if you wish to express your repressed extravagance, and why not, the Lady Gaga in you, then by all means, make dolls!

Irma la Douce

Above, Irma la Douce, my first doll from a pattern found in an Australian magazine. The fabric for her skirt was brought back all the way from Martinique by my dear friend and quilting artist Claude Mougey. In those days (2002) I did not have good fabric pens.

                 MY GROWING GALLERY

The Borneo Dolls

A) The Bidayuhs

Simbuh March 2009

In Bidayuh Simbuh means “fat”.

En dialecte bidayuh, Simbuh signifie “dodue”

Kumang Gawai Bidayu

Kumang = Princesse

Gawai = Harvest festival -Fete des recoltes

Bidayuh Judy N Nina May 2007

Perita Gawai

B) TREE FAERIES AND BUTTERFLIES

Borneo Tree Faerie

The Borneo Tree Faerie’s wings are made of tree bark.

Kitchen Faery May 2012 – Gone to Amanda’s Kitchen in Kuala Lumpur

Beaded Batik Butterfly

Butterfly Ballerina

 C) MORE ETHNIC DOLLS

Brindemauve

Ramsay’s Girl

Ramsay’s Girl’s face is based on one of Ramsay Ong’s painting.

Lola Balanda, Hanging Doll

Lenora Mars

D) KOOCH, The Batik Cat

Kooch in various batik sarongs

Kuching cats aka Kooch all have a broken take (it is genetic) and so do my Kooch!

Miss Sarawak Kooch

This is a Miss Kooch made out of a black & white Sarawak design sarong. She wears a pearl nakelace.

Blue & White Sarawak Batik Design Kooch

Mini Kooch for little children or decoration

May 2012 – Adopted by Amanda

E) ANGELS & CHRISTMAS DOLLS

Boutis Angel

This Boutis angel is 45cm tall (Now gone to Western Australia). I learned Boutis or Provencalembossed embroidery from a most gifted artist who has become a dear friend, Lucie Berrestwho is fiercely involved with the Musee de Provence de Chateau-Gombert, near Marseilles, in in rehabilitating this almost forgotten art.

Starangel

Ange Doremi 2009

The angels collection was encouraged by my friend Ratna who so kindly organised an exhibition of my dolls in her Inspiration shop, Nexis, no.14 grd. floor. lot 2342, Bormill Estate Commercial Center, Jalan Tun Ahmad Zaidi Adruce in Kuching. Thanks Ratna, I love you!

Miss Boh

TEO’s X’Mas Spirit

E) MORE MERMAIDS

Naiadenimes Mermaid in Jean

Naidenimes 2012 Decorated with Sea Shells

Moorea

Shanghai Blue

Kongsi Mermaid

Dugong Ulu river mermaid from Borneo Highlands

Mermaid in Red June 2011

Rose the Borneo Mermaid JULY 2011

F) AND DOLLS, DOLLS, DOLLS, DOLLS…

Caw-Girl for Jacquie X’mas 2010 Main fabric for the skirt is from Texas, the hat is from Australia, the sheepskin for the boots too.

Indiara

Jonquile

Mademoiselle Tricolette

ANGELA

ELISA

Miss Jackson

 

JE VAIS PASSER A LA TELE!

Les français que je rencontre à Kuching (généralement des touristes) me posent nombre de questions sur ce que peut être ma vie dans un pays si différent du notre. Hors-mis mes « aventures » à l’intérieur du pays dayak et mes MEsaventures avec la faune et les éléments chez moi, ce qui rend ma vie différente n’a souvent rien de bien exotique, ainsi ma journée d’hier qui aurait dû suivre le train-train quotidien d’une semaine bien ordinaire et sans histoire.

J’avais donc prévu de passer à la Gallerie Ramsay Ong pour déposer quelques uns de mes tapis de tables en batik, puis aller passer quelques heures au Sarawak Club pour profiter de l’internet rapide et travailler sur mon blog ; mais l’Univers avait prévu autre chose, sans bien sur m’en informer.

A ma surprise, à onze heures du matin, la galerie débordait de monde et des poteaux en métal noir avaient poussés entre les étalages ! La télévision Malaisienne avait débarqué chez Ramsay pour réaliser un documentaire sur les artistes et artisans du Sarawak. Et voila qu’en quelques poignées de main je me retrouvais sous l’œil de la camera en train de manipuler mes tapis de table et liée par une promesse d’accueillir toute l’équipe chez moi à Ko Ko Wangi.

Table quilt & mini Kooch (cat) by Annie R.Teo

La nuit allait tomber lorsque les 13 (de quoi en rester raide) ont débarqué leur tonne d’équipement sur ma terrasse. En quelques minutes, mon salon était transformé de façon à mettre en valeur en vedette mes modestes créations : poupées, chats en batik, quilts et boutis. L’interview passée et sans crise de trac, tout était remis en ordre et je me retrouvais enfin seule à me demander comment j’avais pu passer de mon coin couture au grand-écran et probablement celui du festival du documentaire de Cairns en Australie.

PS : Désolée, pas d’autographes.

Mon Histoire En ebook