USK Attended Virtual iWareBatik Workshop to Explore Batik Digital Platform

Universitas Syiah Kuala joined the virtual workshop of iWareBatik User Experience Events, 19 August 2021, invited by Universitas Cendrawasih. The program aims to obtain feedback on user experience towards the use of iWareBatik in different contexts, as well as to gain innovative ideas on how to make a better safeguard intangible cultural heritage through digital technologies. The workshop was opened by Puspita Ayu Permatasari, as the Nurturer of Culture iWareBatik Digital Technologies.

iWareBatik workshop is a series of User Experience (UX) events in cooperation with 27 universities across Indonesia which is supported by USI UNESCO Chair, Università della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland, and all media partners, such as CAVENTER, Pesona Desa, Milangkori, and Kanca Nusantara.

24 Universitas Syiah Kuala students, along with other students from Universitas Cenderawasih, attended the virtual workshop. They were invited to download the iWarebatik Mobile App, fill survey forms to get feedback, discuss Batik, and share experiences of the application use.

Regarding the user’s experience, the app introduces types of Batik and shows the suitable Batik for each occasion. The user can use the mobile phone, after downloading the apps, to scan the pattern or motif of Batik, then the details will appear automatically on the screen. In short, the app helps the user to identify the type of Batik based on its purpose.

Particularly, iWareBatik apps is a digital platform that is designed to showcase and communicate the exceptional cultural values of Batik tradition that is protected by UNESCO as the legacy of humanity. Batik is recognized as a textile-making tradition in Indonesia that was inscribed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009. The online platform serves to help international and Indonesian Batik stakeholders to identify the variety of Batik textiles, the philosophical values behind the motif, its place of origin, and useful information about local producers. Since Batik characterizes the culture of each region in Indonesia, the iWareBatik platform also provides information about Indonesian tourism overview related to Batik in 34 provinces across Indonesia. Artificial Intelligence machine learning provides a new learning experience to reveal the hidden past of the Batik motifs using the Batik Recognition Tool in the mobile app.