AWAITING I, 1991
56 x 76 cm
Singapore Art Museum Collection
Singapore

Together with a drab top, the sensible dress to go and wait for the return of the fishing boats, the kampong women wear the versatile kain sarong, the tubular skirt that allows for any change in the size of the waist. The hand-printed batik of these sarongs, with their traditional designs—here taro (keladi) leaves and gardenia (bunga china) flowers—brings a note of luxury for the eyes in contrast to the raw planks of the ice boxes were the fish will be deposited.