From Threads to the Pictures: Initiating the Majalaya Weaving History in Character Design for Children's Picture Book

The Majalaya weaving, which is made manually by non-machine weaving tools / Alat Tenun Bukan Mesin (ATBM), became a record of history, culture, art and technology which is embodied through motifs and colors. In the early 1920s, the Majalaya weaving industry was pioneered by three women from Majalaya. However, due to various factors, from interviews that have been conducted with community leaders in Majalaya, as well as observations in the field, there are apparently not yet a media being available that can capture the history of women pioneers and the history of Majalaya weaving and transfer this knowledge to children. Thus, this research is aimed at creating a suitable medium that can preserve the memory of women pioneers and the history of Majalaya weaving. Using a participatory approach carried out by searching the historical data, as well as interviews with community leaders who are also descendants of the pioneers, this research develops several visual storytelling potentials initiated by character design for children’s picture books. Keywords: character design, Majalaya weaving, children’s picture book, visual storytelling