
Indonesia, West Java, Wrap cloth (kain panjang), with motif known as the 'golden vehicle' (kereta kencana), 1974-1976, Masina workshop, Trusmi, Cirebon, West Java, Indonesia, cotton, dyes, hand batik, 105.0 x 252.0 cm; Gift of Michael Abbott AO QC through the Art Gallery of South Australia Foundation 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide.
Interwoven Journeys: The Michael Abbott collection of Asian art
This exhibition celebrates the many remarkable gifts to AGSA from South Australian barrister Michael Abbott, AO KC.
In Asia, Abbott developed a fascination for textiles — their materiality, meaning and capacity to carry rich cultural traditions. Interwoven Journeys invites visitors to experience the breadth of South Asian and South East Asian art and includes a focus on Balinese, Sumatran and Javanese textiles, including the oldest known complete Indonesian batik textile, exhibited for the first time.
The exhibition is complemented by a major publication that describes the way in which Abbott’s generosity has provided a point of convergence for scholars and curators around the world.