great decor

Using a painstaking technique where a wax resist is drawn onto cotton cloth before adding colorful dyes, Oluwayemisi Adeniran creates this sensational batik wall hanging from Ghana. It depicts an expectant mother as she communes with God. Says the artist, "African mothers believe that only God can give them children so they keep trusting Him for a child."

Crafted by hand with cotton calico and paper, this striking piece of wall art displays the creative mind of Emmanuel Atiemoh Yeboah. The Ghanaian artisan combines colorful batik motifs with traditional kente cloth, diligently cutting out patches and using them to create the image of two village women. This piece arrives within a ceiba wood frame.

Ghana's K. Baka uses traditional batik techniques for a fascinating portrait of a kudu, a typical specie of Africa. This tender creature is often related to powerful spirits and gods, symbolizing strength and wisdom. The artist employs a palette of yellow, brown and black tones for a vibrant and traditional style.

Decorated in colors of red, green, blue, and yellow with traditional truntum and kawung floral motifs, this set of four star ornaments is handcrafted of wood. They hang from the tree on golden cords. Balinese artisan Gunadi adds the colorful motifs using the batik method, applying a wax resist to each ornament before submerging it in vats of dye.

During the times when European explorers began arriving on the shores of ancient Latin America, Mayan cultures throughout the continent enjoyed a great prosperity of mercantile life. An ah ppolom, or "great merchant," would travel between cities in order to facilitate the transfer of goods. Accompanied by servants and warriors, an ah ppolom is depicted here in this cotton wall hanging designed by Rhina Rehmann. Featuring ivory-colored motifs against a body of Prussian blue, the patterns in the Salvadoran wall hanging are achieved using the batik method, where a wax resist is applied to the fabric before it is submerged in a vat of dye.

Seated on a tiger, Shiva lifts a hand in blessing. Regarded as the celestial overlord of deliverance through destruction, Shiva has his customary trident by his side as a show of divinity. The hissing cobra that slithers around his head symbolizes his potent divine destructivity, and his matted hair is thought to contain the flow of the Ganges River. Shiva is one of the most complex gods of India, embodying seemingly contradictory qualities. He is both the destroyer and the restorer, the great ascetic and the symbol of sensuality, the benevolent herdsman of souls and the wrathful avenger. Unaffected by the whims of the world, he is innocent and guileless, pure of mind and heart. He does not adorn his body with jewels or flowers — he mats his hair and dresses in animal hide.

Ida Bagus Lawa Bargawa is a master of the batik technique, sketching the figures by hand and applying the wax resist freehand, which requires great skill. A different dye bath is required for each separate color in his elegant and complex batik "painting."

Palenque is the name of an ancient Mayan city-state in Mexico, where a famous tomb resides within the confines of a pyramid. This cotton wall hanging recreates the images and characters depicted on the surface of that tomb, portraying the great leader Pakal, surrounded by Mayan religious motifs. El Salvador's Rhina Rehmann designs the wall hanging, achieving the motifs using the batik method, where a wax resist is applied to the cotton fabric before submerging it in a vat of Prussian blue dye, with gold-colored accents added afterward by hand.