KOTA BARU: About 20 kindergarten children participated in the batik painting activity organised by the Kelantan Malaysian Handicraft Development Corporation (Kraftangan Malaysia) yesterday.
The activity was held at the state Kraftangan Malaysia's office in Jalan Kuala Krai.
Kelantan Kraftangan Malaysia assistant director Faizul Azha Ibrahim said the programme was held in conjunction with Malaysia Batik Day, which would be celebrated in December.
Apart from painting batik, he said the pupils also had the chance to play a few traditional games, including congkak.
"This is not the first time we have organised the batik painting activity.
"Before this, we organised similar activities at the primary schools and public high learning institutes.
"It is also part of our programmes to promote craft," he said.
Kraftangan Malaysia recently embarked on a campaign to bring public exposure, awareness, and knowledge about Malaysian batik.
Kraftangan Malaysia senior director (design and research) Khairul Hafizi Naharuddin said Malaysian batik was defined as a fully or partially handcrafted art form featuring motifs reflecting the Malaysian community's art and culture.
He said the allure of Malaysian batik extended beyond Kelantan and Terengganu, adding that it uniquely embodied cultural identity through the motifs and patterns that were specific to the ethnic communities of the region, prominently featuring Sarawak (Pua) and Sabah (Rungus).
He added that alternative batik entailed the use of alternative materials, including linut, clay and eco-print batik methods.
Clay batik uses clay as the principal colour-blocking substance, and linut batik uses starch.
In eco-print batik, patterns and colours are produced on cloth through tapping and rolling processes using natural materials like leaves and flowers.