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Shopping for Fine Balinese Furniture
by Sant Qiu
A casual stroll around the island of Bali would reveal the Balinese flair in craft and woodwork. From intricate wood carvings that grace temples, houses and ceremonial decorations; elaborate sculptures chiselled to perfection; to awe-inspiring art pieces capturing the beauty of Balinese life. The fine craftsmanship of Balinese artisans is an acknowledged fact in the region and beyond.
Indonesia offers a wide range of raw materials like the lava stones and exotic wood like teak, sono, ebony, etc, that can be found in abundance in Java, while Lombok offers fine ceramic wares hand-crafted from terracotta. Materials sourced from these islands usually end up in Bali, which is where you find many skillful craftsmen who ply their trade for international designers and collectors. Other than being one of the chief suppliers of fine furniture, Bali has also become a showcase of Indonesia's best traditional craftwork.
Only in Bali would you find a boundless array of furniture and furnishing items! For example, the different types of timber furniture available include outdoor furniture, traditional furniture with carved designs and antique furniture handcrafted using teak, mahogany, sono, suar, kamper, ulin, tamarind, etc. For wicker furniture, choices range from natural fibre such as rattan, banana fibre, sea grass, enceng gondok (water hyacinth), to synthetic fibre (also known as polyrattan). Both fibres can be woven into traditional wicker furniture, or contemporary pieces infused with modern design sensibilities. Or if you have luxury in mind, furniture inlaid with exotic materials like mother-of-pearl, cinnamon, buffalo bone, buffalo horn, pearly mussel shells and coco shells would appeal.
In terms of the quality of the furniture, many different grades-from under average to fine upmarket-are available to suit different budgets. Most ready-made furniture manufactured would be of average quality as the majority of purchasers are big global players who serve the mass market. In such cases, pricing is emphasised over quality standards. Another reason for the mostly average quality production is that local craftsman are not exposed to the high standards of upmarket furniture that high-end consumers outside of Indonesia have come to expect and demand.
But a new trend has emerged in recent years. Motivated by their own desire for self- expression and enticed by the prospects of exporting their designs, there has been a surge in the number of designers who have started producing their own furniture and craftwork. Attuned to international trends and standards, this generation of designer-entrepreneurs has brought a new wave of quality-consciousness to the furniture industry. Introducing stringent quality control into traditional manufacturing techniques, they have achieved standards that are on par with the world's finest.
How can one ensure the bespoke furniture purchased is of the promised quality? One tip is to look for someone who understands the standards you require, and has the expertise to draw that out of the craftsmen. Do some research on the type work that the supplier has done for clients and check with the company to see whether they are able to deliver the end product that is according to your expectations. It would help if you are able to suss out any reviews or comments by the supplier's previous clients to whether they were satisfied with the work done. This is especially important if you are a professional designer and architect who know exactly what you want when you are customising your designs.
Quality manufacturing is a long and tedious process that involves stringent checks and control at every step. For example, craftsmen sand all teak with very fine sand paper to give the furniture a surface finish that is extremely soft to the touch. Joints of furniture are machined to exacting tolerances, so that they always fit perfectly with no visible gaps between joined wood. Every piece of teak that goes into the furniture is colour graded to ensure that the furniture has the most vibrant colour tone. In addition, only high-performance adhesives are used in the construction of the furniture.
Attention to such details ensures that what you expect and what you get at the end of the manufacturing process is what you have envisioned all along.
About the Author
Find out more about working with a specialist supplier for your hospitality project by visiting http://www.cushcushgallery.com Cush.Cush is the designer's choice for customised hospitality furnishings. They work closely with architects, designers and contractors to produce customised furniture, accessories, feature lighting and artworks. For inquiries email Suria at suriawati@cushcushgallery.com
Chinese traditional architectural craftsmanship for timber-framed structures
UNESCO: Representative List (2009) URL: www.unesco.org Description: Standing as distinctive symbols of Chinese architectural culture, timber ...
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