This two-piece ensemble draws inspiration from a sarong by Eurasian batikmaker Eliza van Zuylen in ACM’s collection. Van Zuylen (1863–1947) popularised the buketan (European-style bouquet) batiks fashionable among Indo-Europeans and Peranakan Chinese. Taking this pesisir (coastal) style as a point of departure, Mette Hartman fused the pastel patterns with her collection’s Singapore Botanical Gardens-inspired theme.The white decoration is hand-drawn onto blue dye made from the leaves of indigo plants. The resulting serene designs of plants and birds are intended to reflect Swan Lake at the Gardens – the oldest ornamental water feature in Singapore.Norwegian-born designer Mette Hartman has been based in Singapore for more than a decade. Her resort brand, Martha Who, adopts a slow fashion business model by engaging Indonesian artisans to produce one-of-a-kind, hand-painted batik designs. The brand seeks to preserve batik and shibori (a traditional Japanese resist- and tie-dying technique) by reinterpreting traditional designs in their modern silk pieces.
