Handmade by Indonesian fashion label Bin House, this shirt is in traditional Javanese style, marked by its formal standing band collar and dark-brown on white colour. The kawung (seed) batik motif resembles the cross-section of a palm fruit with its seeds revealed. It is a major style in central Java (Solo and Yogyakarta) and had once been reserved for use by royalty. Although it is a repeating design that could easily have been made a printing block (cap), it is in fact hand-drawn (tulis).This shirt was worn by Dr Kenson Kwok, Founding Director of Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) and Peranakan Museum, at the opening of ACM at the Empress Place building in 2003.Since the post-war period, men in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia have worn batik shirts at important events to express their cultural identity. At events that involve political figures, batik shirts are especially symbolic of national and regional pride.
