This batik textile is by contemporary Indonesian batik artist, Bayu Aria Widhi Kristanto, from his Hokontul (Hokokai batik made in Bantul) series, which are inspired by Hokokai batik created during the Japanese occupation. This piece merges the pesisiran style of naturalistic motifs—such as flowers, butterflies, and the luk cuan (lokcan), a bird motif derived from the Chinese mythical phoenix—with the traditional central Javanese batik colour of sogan brown. The Chinese phoenix is often viewed as an emblem of beauty and associated with good luck, and thought to appear in peaceful and prosperous times, making it a popular motif. This piece also has a pagi-sore badan. Pagi-sore (or “day-night”) batik consists of two distinct designs and colours on a diagonally bisected badan. This allows the wearer to achieve two different looks in the day and at night by arranging the same cloth differently.
