Kakies on a Broken Slope

This work is a tribute to Indonesian writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer (1925–2006), whose historical novels—particularly the Buru Quartet, including Footsteps—recount colonial history from an Indonesian perspective. The protagonist, Minke, inspired by journalist Tirto Adhi Soerjo (1880–1918), confronts racism in colonial Jakarta, including discriminatory regulations dictating the wearing of traditional rather than European clothing.
In the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) profited enormously from Southeast Asia’s textile trade, especially chintz—woodblock printed cotton and silk fabrics originating from India. These textiles were used as barter for spices and profoundly influenced regional design and ritual practices from West Sumatra to the Moluccas. Dutch attempts to monopolize this trade led to the domestic production of chintz, with one of Europe’s earliest cotton-printing factories established in Amersfoort. The imitation patterns proved lucrative and even helped shape Dutch folk dress until around 1860.
Printing is the act of leaving traces. This work was created for the exhibition Trouble Skirts at KAdE during a short residency at the Cotton Printing Factory de Volmolen in Amersfoort. I crafted wooden shoes with carved soles, drawing on ancient batik motifs: Parang and Parang Rusak. Parang means “slope” in Javanese, while Parang Rusak symbolizes a broken wave. With every step, the shoes imprint these patterns—symbolically linking past and present through movement, memory, and resistance.