The indigenous inhabitants of Southeast Asia and the Pacific have used tree bark, or more correctly the inner layer called tree bast, long before they learnt the art of weaving, or trade textiles became available. Bark cloth can serve most textile purposes: loincloths, skirts and jackets, headbands, blankets and even bed curtains, wrapping material, basket straps, or as weft in a tough kind of floor mat. The cowboys of Sabah used bark cloth as horse blankets, to cushion the wooden saddles so their ponies’ backs wouldn’t get galled. 19th-century travellers noted that bark cloth is mainly used where ‘bazaar cloth’ was not available, or by those people who couldn't afford to buy it.	Range of modern bark cloth products at RWCB 2009
Kenyah woman in mourning garb, Central Borneo, c.1920. Photo from Tillema F.: EEN FILMREIS NAAR EN DOOR CENTRAAL-BORNEO, Amsterdam 1938	The one time when even skilled weavers or wealthy people wore bark cloth was during the mourning period, when anything colourful or decorative had to be laid aside.

The Raw Materials

Some ten trees, including the wild fig or kayu kara (Ficus spp) may be used to make bark cloth. The two most common ones in Borneo are

1. Tekalong, of the breadfruit family (Artocarpus spp). With some care, strips of bark can be peeled off without killing the tree. Tekalong produces a light brown fabric, darkening with wear; considered very serviceable especially for loin cloths
2. Ipoh, upas (Antiaris toxicaria). The bark is only taken off this tree after it has been felled. Ipoh bark produces a fine-grained, creamy-white cloth, considered superior to tekalong; owing to the method of harvesting it is, obviously, much rarer.

Method

The strip of bark is moistened, rolled up and carefully beaten with a wooden mallet; this operation has to be repeated many times to get a sufficiently thin fabric without actually tearing it. Today, the rubber mangle is often used to make bark cloth for carrying straps and the like.

‘One magnificently tattooed Baketan cut a piece of bark, measuring 4 meters x 30 cm, off a wild breadfruit tree. This strip he rolled up tightly, and beat it gently with a notched wooden mallet. As the bark got softened, he unrolled the strip, shook it out, rolled it up again, more tightly and continued beating. After several hours of this treatment the piece was widened to about 80 cm, and had become quite soft. He hung the strip of cloth in the fast-flowing river overnight, allowing the water to carry away the woody pieces of bark which still adhered to the soft bast cloth. After drying it the next day, he was the proud owner of a new, light brown loincloth which he could expect to use for many months.’

From Nieuwenhuis A.W.: QUER DURCH BORNEO, E.J.Brill, Leyden 1907; vol I p.223

Making bark cloth, Ulu Bahau, c.1890; from QUER DURCH BORNEO

One reason why bark cloth remained in use for everyday wear even in societies where weaving was practiced, or after commercial cloth had become available, may be that there is no gender restriction on its manufacture. Any man or woman may make it.

Pattern Darning

Bark cloth tends to fray along the natural grain. When used as a loincloth, being subjected to longitudinal tension only, it doesn't need reinforcements. A jacket or skirt, however, has to be strengthened across the fibre by transverse stitching or -- for decorative purposes -- pattern darning.

For everyday or festive wear, extra stitching is done in elaborate patterns, often with coloured thread or, since the 20th century, wool yarn. Bands of running stitch alternated to form blocks, chequers, crosses and herringbone patterns. The hems, neck openings and armholes of bark garments are often bound with plain or printed bazaar cloth, and further embellished with fringes, beadwork edgings or needle-weaving.

Pattern-darned bark cloth, Sarawak, 1920s

Changing Fashions

In some areas bark cloth was still used for mourning garments long after it had been abandoned for normal wear.

The last people to make and use bark clothing for everyday purposes were probably the Kenyah of the upper Batang Koyan and Bahau, south of the Sarawak border in the region of the Kelabit highlands. It is impossible to determine whether these people felt strongly about their traditions, or were too poor (remote?) to be able to buy bazaar cloth.

Bark cloth hat, from Lawas (photo from Sarawak Crafts Council)

Nowadays, creative craftspeople are using bark cloth to make souvenir and novelty items – the ‘cowboy hat’ of Lawas is one sample of this development.

....and Bidayuh craftswoman Esther Sired, near Kuching, is using traditional skills to produce bark products for present-day use.

Having made the cloth to the desired thickness, she uses dye to create a variety of tones to combine with the natural brown, to make bark cloth vests for men, and for decorative items such as flowers, boxes and lampshades.

Bark Waistcoat by Esther Sired

Bark Flower by Esther Sired

Modern artistic expressions using bark

Since the 1980s, skilled embroiderers have started to use bark cloth as a new base for their work. One such is Lucy Ang-Abey, some of whose pieces are shown here:

Bark Embroidery by Lucy Ang-Abey	Bark Embroidery by Lucy Ang-Abey

....and talented Sarawak artists such as Ramsay Ong Liang Thong have been using the material as a novel ‘canvas’. Ramsay has used the brown, coarse tekalong bark as an ideal base for painting nature subjects. Examples of his work are shown below:

Bark Painting by Ramsay Ong	Bark Painting by Ramsay Ong