Although Indonesia is about 85 percent Muslim, the new Indonesian batik-cloth exhibit at the Museum of Church History and Art, 45 N. West Temple, focuses primarily on Christian religious themes.

Indonesia's national art form, batiks, is rarely featured in western museums. This exhibit, "For Glory and for Beauty: LDS Batiks from Indonesia," includes 15-20 pieces of individually designed batik displayed in the Theater Foyer Gallery on the museum's lower level.The batiks are on display through Feb. 2, 1992.

One batik depicts Christ's return to earth. In contrast to western representations that typically clothe Christ in simple, white garments to show his humility and purity, this batik represents Christ's glory with intricately decorated robes.

"Indonesians rarely depict a `holy being' wearing white," said Steven Epperson, one of the exhibit curators. "In Indonesia, white clothing is mourning clothing.

"Indonesian art is exuberant and exaggerative because the people delight in embellishment and adornment. Every surface space is filled with ornamentation."

Another featured batik is a detailed landscape that shows how fertile Indonesia is. Plowed fields, geese, water buffalos, and a brimming irrigation canal running through the fields create a landscape representative of Java, home of the exhibit's feature artists.

Church events depicted in the batiks are given a distinctly Indonesian flavor. For example, the story of the First Vision is depicted in a floral setting more like an Indonesian jungle than a New York forest. Also, a batik with the subject of Moroni's visit to the Prophet Joseph Smith is modeled after a well-known painting of the same subject. But in the batik, the wall behind the two figures is made of woven leaves instead of hewn logs.

Other featured batiks include chapels, temples missionaries and religious subjects.

For hundreds of years, Indonesians have used batik cloth primarily for clothing. Gradually, batik became recognized for its artistic merit, and people began to use the cloth as decorative wall hangings in their homes.

"The cloth itself has artistic value," said Richard Oman, senior art curator. "Walking down village streets in Indonesia, you see most women wearing wraparound skirts made from beautifully designed, one-of-a-kind pieces of fabric."

For the artists whose work is on display, making batik is a family occupation. One of the artists, Hadi Pranato, Yogyakarta City, makes a living by creating batiks at one of the most prestigious batik schools in Indonesia. His son-in-law, Joni Susanato, is the other featured batik artist. In the Pranato family, batik making is a four-generation tradition.

In the exhibit, a step-by-step video presentation demonstrates the painstaking batik-making process.

Batik artists use primitive-looking tools and melted wax to imprint unique designs on cotton cloth. The wax-treated cloth is then dipped into colorful dyes. The result is that only the waxed design remains uncolored. After the cloth is dyed, it is boiled to remove the wax. The process is repeated several times using many colors and overlaying patterns.

Brother Oman said that the making of cloth is a "common thread that runs through all of the world's cultures." American quilts, Belgian lace, Navajo rugs, Oriental tapestries and Guatemalan woven straps are other examples of fabrics that have become art forms in their particular cultures.

The museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and most holidays. Information on group tours, exhibits, films and museum programs is available by calling (801) 240-2299.