Iwan Tirta Batik Collection, US Embassy Jakarta Indonesia

Indonesia’s most famous batik artist, Iwan Tirta (1935-2010), made 25 stunning batik wall hangings for the US Embassy in Jakarta during the 1970s and 1980s. In 2015, Julia led a textile conservation workshop at the Museum Tekstil in Jakarta, training museum staff in methods of cleaning and repair, focusing on this important collection.  In 2018, this important collection, now remounted and framed, is in the newly renovated Embassy. Resplendent are two monumental batiks depicting the Great Seal of the United States. These one-of-a-kind batiks were custom-made by Iwan Tirta for the Embassy. They were a high-level diplomatic gift during the Reagan and Clinton administrations! They are a bold message of American Indonesian Diplomacy, executed large scale in the most famous of all traditional Indonesian handcrafts—batik.

Great and Good Friends

An exhibition celebrating 200 Years of U.S.-Thai Friendship, organized by the US Embassy Bangkok, and held at the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles 2018. Showcasing royal gifts from Thai monarchs and diplomatic gifts from American presidents – Julia conserved a magnificent royal golden robe and several other 19^th c textiles. Hear about her work in the video clip.

The Launch of The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles and the First Textile Conservation Lab in Thailand

In 2012, The Queen of Thailand’s textile museum and conservation lab opened in Bangkok, the culmination of a five-year conservation project for Julia. This multi-year effort included the preparation of over one hundred textiles for the inaugural exhibitions; the training of a team of museum conservators; the implementation of sustainable and state-of-the-art solutions for long-term storage and display of textiles; and conservation outreach and training in Thailand.