Hi guys, you still remember the public speaking I told you about couple of weeks ago?
Well, guess what, I HAD MY PRESENTATION YESTERDAY!!
For those who don't know, the public speaking was for my English course, I was required to prepare a talk of approximately 5 to 7 minutes in length on a subject of my choice. The talk evaluation criteria included things like did I run over time, did I talk in a logical and ordered sequence, or did I maintain eye contact and etc.
I’ll let you guys know how I did on the presentation when I get my results…
So, here is my presentation! Hohoho…don’t laugh at my topic please!
Pictures are my power points and the paragraphs are my speech...
The word batik is an Indonesian- Malay word for dot or point, "titik" .
It is a generic term which refers to the process of dyeing fabric by making use of a resist technique; covering areas of cloth with a dye-resistant substance to prevent them absorbing colours.
Although the exact origins of batik are unknown, it is most common on the island of Java, Indonesia.
It is known when the art of batik was first practiced in Java, batik belonged only to royalty and families of wealth and position. It was a hobby for the royal women.
Aristocrats and royalty had certain designs identifying a family, social status or geographical location on the island.
Many of these designs have survived to this day.
Currently, batik art has spread to India, China, Malaysia, Europe and Africa.
It has become a skill and art of many great cultures.
Today it is believed that certain patterns have special meanings and are thought to bring the wearer good luck, wealth, prosperity, health, etc.
There are two main types of batik in Malaysia today; hand-painted and block printed.
The painter uses the canting, a small copper container with one or more differently sized pipes. The container is attached to a handle made of wood or bamboo.
The canting is filled with molten wax and used to trace the outlines of the pattern on the fabric.
The prepared and measured-out fabric is stretched over a metal or wooden frame.
The pattern is traced with a soft pencil.
The canting is filled 2/3 with liquid wax, and the utensil is held at an angle against the cloth.
The artist has to be extremely precise and careful to obtain a smooth flow of wax.
The utensil will have to be dipped frequently into the wax pot to keep the optimal temperature.
If the wax is too hot it will penetrate the fibres too deeply, and is difficult to remove.
If it is too cold it will not fasten properly.
When the waxing is finished on one side of the fabric, it is left to dry.
If the wax has not penetrated the fabric properly the operation is repeated on the other side.
The next step is painting the parts of the fabric that are not covered in wax.
The painter uses brushes of different sizes, and larger areas may be coloured with a sponge.
The shade can be varied by adding water or more colour.
The colour has to dry before fixing.
Finally the wax is removed in hot water, and the fabric is rinsed several times in order to remove excess dye and residues of wax,
Printing is done by means of a metal block made by welding together strips of metal.
In former times emptied tin cans were utilised.
The measured-out cloth is put on a padded table.
The printer has the wax pot at his side.
The block is dipped into the pot to be filled with wax, and then it is pressed against the cloth.
The process is repeated until the entire cloth has been filled with wax patterns.
The printer can change between different blocks as needed for the design.
When the waxing is finished the cloth is soaked in dye.
The colour fastens to the areas that have not been waxed.
From now on the original white colour will only be visible when the wax has been removed from the cloth.
The cloth is then rinsed several times in boiling water to remove excess dye and wax.
It is then hung to dry.
o
When it was question time, i was praying so hard " Please please DON'T ASK me any questions!!!"
hahaha...but then they asked me a few easy questions...and then FINALLY...It's over!
The reason behind this topic selection was because i wanted to present something that the locals are not familiar with...and something that is unique in our country...as so i came out with the idea of presenting Batik! I think the tutor liked it, at the end of our tutorial, she came and said that it was an interesting presentation *joy!!!*
It wasn't that bad after all, although i was very nervous, but i memorised everything that i wanted to say, and was just trying my best not to forget any lines.
There was once that i forgot to mention something and i skipped a point, i was like "brrrrrr...sorry..."<--clumsily... and went back to the point that i was suppose to say...- Everybody was laughing, including my tutor!
Embarrassing i know...
For the whole presentation, i was like forcing myself to look at the audience in the eye...you know...maintaining eye contact...oh my god...it was really hard!!!! SERIOUSLY! i didn't know where to look...and i didn't want to look like i was memorising my lines (with rolling eyes and silly gestures that say "Yea...this chick is trying butt hard in memorising her next sentence!").
DAMN...
But then i am glad that it is finally over...lets just hope that i did well!
Well...i hope you guys learned something from this presentation, cause i know i did, because to be frank, i was not familiar with batik at all until i did the research on it!
So, hope you guys enjoyed it.....
