from THE ISLAND OF FLORES, NTT INDONESIA
Alfonsa Horeng wearing an Endeh skirtcloth and a top featuring a mamuli design.
ANU Textiles will host a talk by Alfonsa Horeng from East Flores, Nusa
Tenggara Timur (East Nusa Tenggara), an area renowned for its magnificent textiles. She studied agriculture in Surabaya, and was in
Australia last year to do a Gender Leadership course at Flinders
University. Alfonsa is from Nita, near Maumere, in the Sikka district and was instrumental in setting up a co-operative ‘Sentra Tenun Ikat
Lepo Loron’ (STILL). Lepo Lorun means ‘House of Weaving’ in the
Sikka language. The co-op involves nine villages and around two hundred women. With some seed money from the Indonesian
Government, they were able to purchase sewing machines and start their venture. Alfonsa's demonstration and talk will bring to life the work of the co-op, beginning with the raw material used, cotton, the spinning of the yarn, the plants from which they extract dye and the complicated manoeuvres involved in weaving the threads.
It is no surprise that these textiles have attracted the attention of some of Indonesia’s leading designers, among them Ghea S. Panggabean, whose ethnic fashion is well known. Alfonsa has had promotions in Jakarta and Germany. The co-op also produces other items, such as scarves and table runners. Their website is: www.alfonsadeflores.blogspot.com
Valerie Kirk, Head of Textiles, The Australian National University,
School Of Art, Building 105, Acton,
Canberra, ACT, 0200
P: 02 61255833
1