“Selamat Datang Seafarers:

The Floating Indotopia”

The floating indotopia will slowly follow the wind and tidal patterns of the ocean, with the aim to bring Indonesia to the world. It will dock at various sites around the globe inviting people to experience this unique utopia for themselves. People can volunteer to join this quest and would live in the utopia for a few months at a time, helping to navigate the sea as they drift from place to place. The main elements identifying Indonesia as a utopia are: humbleness, diversity, inclusivity, food, proud of traditional heritage, spiritualness, climate and conservation. Each of these elements are represented architecturally on the floating utopia.

Replicating a floating forest, the utopia will be a beautiful sight for the distant lands it approaches, encouraging people to board the vessel and encounter a different side of the world. Its colourful batik sails will be proudly be on display hinting at the wonderful capabilities of the individuals and architecture on board. The residents on this floating utopia, work in harmony and aim to create a community-based environment replicating the tropical oasis. They have adapted to their nomadic sea life, finding happiness in scaling back to a simpler way of life and encourage others who visit their home to do the same.

The medium of choice for this project is batik, which is a form of wax-resist dying of cloth originating from Indonesia. As the main concept of my project revolves around the culture of Indonesia, batik has turned into an interesting medium to showcase this vision of ‘The Floating Indotopia’ in fabric paintings.