The Making of "Dream Weavers - Textile Art from the Tibetan

Transcription

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oriental rug magazine
The Making of "Dream Weavers - Textile Art from the
Tibetan Plateau"
by Thomas Cole 26 January 2005
Jozan Magazine has asked Thomas Cole to write an article about the making of his book: Dream Weavers - Textile
Art from the Tibetan Plateau.
My thoughts on Tibetan rugs are quite well known at this time, even prior to
the release of the book, Dream Weavers. I had moved to Kathmandu in
1984 with little background or knowledge in Tibetan weavings, but a firm
foundation in non Turkmen Central Asian rugs and textiles. Curiously, I
was drawn to a certain type of rug distinguished by simple patterns and a
somewhat subdued palette. Eschewed by all who had much more
experience than I, these rugs were cheap and accessible; no one else
wanted them! And from there I started my 'career' in the Tibetan rug
market. I was curious about these rugs and engaged in buying as many of
the old travelogues of travel in Tibet that were re -printed by publishers in
India in an effort to find out as much as I could. I stumbled upon more than
I bargained for and wondered why others had not used the information I
was finding.
In 1990, upon returning to the States to live, I had too much time on my
hands as I tried to acclimate myself to the western lifestyle. In what was
obviously a sub-conscious effort to avoid the inevitable, I buried my head in
serious books on early Central Asian history, starting with Rene Grousset's
"A History of Central Asia". A gift from a dear friend, I actually read this
book and took notes. I was due to speak at the VI ICOC in SF on Tibetan
rugs and thought I should prepare myself as much as possible, though I
had already formulated many thoughts, theories, etc. but mostly
undocumented. At the conference, I met someone else who turned me on
to some other good reference books, incl. Parker's book entitled, "A
Thousand Years of the Tartars" as well as "Contemporaries of Marco Polo". A third person
sought me out as he had heard of my odd interests and sold me a copy of Beckwith's book,
"The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia". With these books in hand, I read, and read, and read,
eventually concluding that my thoughts on the origins of the Tibetan rug weaving tradition were
in fact documented in these scholarly tomes. Curiously (or not),
the Hsiung-nu and the Ch'iang tribes are always mentioned in
these books and play a crucial role in the course of ancient Inner
Asian history, affecting the movement of tribes who later became a
people whose names are possibly more familiar to the students of
Central Asian history as rug people might know it, ie. Tokharians,
Scythians, Kushans, Oghuz, etc.
Writing a book on Tibetan rugs was something I had wanted to do
years ago and finally, at one point in the past, assumed would
never happen. At the time that Adraskand, Inc. mounted the
Tibetan rug exhibition (reviewed in ORR and reproduced on
tcoletribalrugs.com; Articles/ Misc. Articles-Design& Reviews), we
lamented the fact that this show would go undocumented. But
before it was dispersed for good, I had solicited Lawrence King in
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London to entertain the prospect of publishing a book including those rugs. They refused, due
to budget constraints and a change in direction, away fr om such rug book endeavours, a
dangerous venture in terms of profits. So the idea disappeared into the back of my mind, along
with the extensive notes and references that I had accumulated over the years and had, at one
point, written up into a 16,000 word document on an OLD Toshiba laptop.
But the opportunity to publish seemed to be lost, as the incredible collection of rugs I had
gathered were subsequently sold and dispersed, and my own travels to Tibet terminated in
1995 as my business interests evolved with an emphasis on Baluch and Turkmen weavings and
textiles. The 1996 ACOR in Denver re-kindled a bit of interest as an exhibition of Tibetan pile
weavings was organized, some of which were stellar examples of the genre. Bill Liske, one of
the featured speakers on the subject at the conference, acknowledged my presence and
thanked me for contributions I had made to Tibetan rug studies. I watched and listened to the
subsequent speakers and wondered why no one had engaged in more elaborate research.
But there were reasons for that, some of which were involved with personalities and economic
concersn rather than scholarship. The HALI 49 article, "A Tribal Tradition" was a source of ire
among the Tibetophiles and Tibetan rug dealer/collectors in Kathmandu. Misconstrued as
promoting a "Moslem" influence or origin for the Tibetan rug weaving tradition, the article was
reviled and ridiculed by most who had been involved with these rugs from the plateau for much
longer than I. But there was more to it than that, as I had, rather undiplomatically, declared the
later rugs that constituted the bulk of the Tibetan rug market as "forgettable". My apparent
disregard for Buddhist influences was shunned by many as the fascination with Tibetan culture
and the Buddhist religion is naturally prevalent among many who are patrons of Himalayan art.
I had always assumed the rug weaving tradition was a secular craft and, subsequently, was a
bit confused when those who had been involved with the Tibetan rug trade for years tho ught
otherwise.
My own research continued, as I continued to collect more books from the dealers in Asia,
obscure reprints of old travelogues that are generally unavailable in the west for affordable
prices and by 1993 my very rough draft or the basis fo r a book was complete, safely nestled on
the fragile hard drive of one of the first Toshiba lap top computers made. I graduated from that
machine to a Mac and stored that machine in a desk drawer. Translating those documents from
an outdated ClarisWorks program and floppy discs to a Microsoft Word and a cd was not
impossible, but that was not done until 2002. But still the idea for actually putting together a
book was the furthest thing from my mind.
In October, 2003, I received an email from Giuseppe d e Giosa in Singapore, proposing the idea
for a book featuring his collection with my text. I agreed to do it, and after engaging in a bit of
email communication back and forth, a cd arrived with photographs of his collection. I never
heard again about the project for months and months. But in April, 2004 while on a business
trip to Turkey, I checked my email to find that de Giosa had finally received a formal contract
from a publisher in Singapore and that I had two months to deliver a text!! My initial reaction as
I sat in an internet café was to laugh. How could anyone expect me to put together a well
considered text in such a short time and I dismissed it as a dream on his part and decided not to
respond until I returned to the States. Upon my arrival, after chatting with some friends,
including Robert Pinner as well as Daniel Shaffer of HALI, I decided I could do it, and started.
Realizing my own familiarity with my previously written words from so long ago was actually
detrimental to producing a finished text, I engaged an editor and project director for the task,
Lesley Gamble. Her skills and input proved invaluable and the book would have never
achieved the clarity I believe it has without her.
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So I started to write, using my previously wri tten words and research on the history of the
Tibetan people as well as composing the more mundane and required standard words on rug
types, dyes, and designs. It was an arduous task to work with my editor as she had no
personal access to a computer on which to edit text, and we dealt with hard copy editing which,
in retrospect, was absolute madness. But we persevered, and by late June had the makings of
what is now the text of "Dream Weavers". As the de Giosa's needed technical analyses on
every rug and no one in Singapore was really confident enough to do it correctly, they offered
us both airplane tickets to Singapore. In the meanwhile, my thoughts on Tibetan rugs and
ancient history continued to wander. I was alerted to a web site going by the name of the preBuddhist empire which ruled Tibet prior to the 7th century and discovered some interesting
articles written by John Bellezza. I contacted him, we engaged in email communication and his
thoughts and comments were incorporated into the text. Similar questions were posed about
weaving techniques, and I contacted Elizabeth Barber and she, too, offered some salient
remarks and observations that clarified certain points of discussion.
But it is the discussion of designs that I believe really distinguishes this particular book on
Tibetan rugs, a discussion that transcends one on Tibetan rugs and may be applied to
speculation on the origin of all medallion or 'gol' patterns seen in all Central Asian weaving. The
work of obscure scholars as Asika Parpola, a professor based in Helsinki specializing in Vedic
studies, HM Frankfort and his contributions on Bactria and Margiana for Oxford University Press
as well as the work of renowned archaeologists, Frederik Hiebert and VM Masson, clarified the
possible symbolism represented within these medallions. With a final flourish to this section of
the book recounting the female representational aspects of these patterns contributed by Ms.
Gamble, the depth of discourse on the subject of Tibetan rugs and the d esign pool far
surpasses what has been previously published.
The trip to Singapore was exciting, but very difficult in many respects. I knew I had to get these
technical analyses done as soon as possible, as I did not want this formidable task hanging
over my head. The first day there, I sat down, with a strong cup of espresso, and examined 45
rugs before succumbing to fatigue. Finishing the final 23 rugs the following day was easy, and
miraculously that part of the job was completed without delay. Meeting with the publishers to
discuss technical issues as well as with the editors to resolve final questions they had was not
without problems. But we persevered, and with relative ease, got exactly what we all wanted
out of the project including 68 colour plates (rather than a paltry 36 as proposed by the editor in
chief of Marshall Cavendish), and our original text published intact with no major changes.
Photography then became the one final obstacle. The original photographs were digital images
of decidedly poor quality and no one in Singapore realized they were absolutely unsuitable to
use in a book. I gently urged the de Giosa's to think about shooting them again and told the
publishers that these images cannot be used at all. They both agreed rather quickly and new
images were produced rather quickly. Going to press was the final stage of the process, and
given the expertise of the publishers and their experience in the trade, they succeeded in
printing more than 1000 copies for distribution and sale.
A rather long story in terms of chronology, a 20 year saga from my initial move to Nepal in the
fall of 1984 to the publication of the book in October, 2004. A lot has happened over the years,
and a number of people contributed to this book as it app ears in its final form. Those thanks
and acknowledgements are a part of the text itself, so I will not go into it now, but rest assured,
it is literally a miracle that this book is now available to the public and I hope that the everyone
gets the opportunity to read it and understand who the Tibetan people are and why their rugs
look the way they do. Thomas Cole 26 January 2005 Thomas Cole Antique Rugs and Textiles
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Kurd tribes and Kurdish rugs in the Khorasan Province of
Iran
by Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company
Translated from Persian by Fereidoun Haghighi 15 February 2005
Kurd tribes who live in various regions of Iran are the biggest
and oldest Iranian tribes of Arian race who established the
"Mod Dynasty" in the mountainous west where Iran is today,
and for many centuries they lived with dignity and in
prosperity by defending their motherland and have never
faltered in their path and more importantly, they left behind a
rich cultural background that is recorded in history and their
traditional way of living has been continued by younger
generation up to now.
Today, many Kurds live in small villages and engage in raising livestock and agriculture. Their
chief manufacture is finely woven rugs. The Kurds speak Kurdish, a language which is practiced
in Western part of Iran. In the mid 1990 the Kurd population was estimated at nearly 26 million
(source Microsoft Bookshelf) of those more than half lived in Turkey, the rest of them in Iran,
Iraq, Syria and in the commonwealth of Independent states (CIS) from the former (USSR).
Iranian Kurds and their historical migration to the
Khorasan Province of Iran
Kurdish tribes moved to Khorasan region during Safavian
Dynasty and the reason for that was pour political. They were
sent to Khorasan in order to defend the province from atta cks
by Uzbek and Mongolian worriers. Kurds who are considered
to be very determine and jingoistic people by nature did the
job and push the worriers back to where they belong to and
consequently the politic of Shah safavi had worked to its
perfection by using Kurds in order to keep the integrity of the
country intact.
Kurds in Bojnourd, a city in northern part of Khorasan Province
Bojnourd is located in the northern part of Khorasan Province
and in the northeast of Iran. Bojnourd city covers an area of
935,114 square kilometers and is the main rout to connect
the province to the northern part of Iran and its distance to
the center of province is 244 kilometers. Bojnourd city from
north borders Turkmenistan, a neighboring country, with a
boundary of 971.1 kilometers, from east the city of Shirvan,
from west the city of Golestan and from south the cities
Esfarain and Jajarm.
According to the findings of the archeologists and based on
the historical documents left behind the oldness of the city
goes back as far as 500 years.
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Hand-knotted carpets of the nomadic Kurds in Bojnourd
Hand-made rugs that are woven in the villages around Bojnourd such as Jargalan, Maneh and
Samlaghan are mostly Turkmen style rugs which sometimes pure Turkmen designs could be
seen in those carpets and in addition, the knot style of Bojnourd carpets are symmetrical or it is
known as Turkish style knot.
The loom that is used to wave the carpets is horizontal one, as it is shown in the picture below,
and very suitable for the nomadic tribes, and it is the simplest form of a loom and very easy to
disassemble and assemble while they move around in the region as their way of living.
Carpet weaving tools in Bojnourd
Weavers in the region use Dafeh, Scissors and Hook for rug weaving; however, Kilim weaving
and round carpets have their own specialty tool in which only Dafeh is used. The warp and weft
which are fastening on the loom for carpet weaving is usually hand -spun seven times twisted
wool thread.
The twisted threads of wool are colored in two ways Chemical and Vegetal; however the vegetal
dyeing is the order of the day and most rugs are vegetal dyed.
Carpet sizes
Carpet sizes measured in metric system which are practical
in the region are as follows:
2.20 X 2.00 m, 1.20 X 1.80 m, 0.70 X 1.00 m, 1.00 X 1.00 m,
0.80 X 1.00 m, 0.60 X 1.00 m
In addition to the Kurds carpet sizes, there are some colors
that are more noticeable than others and they are as follows:
red color 35%, dark blue 35%, white, yellow, blue and green
colors 30%.
Bojnourd Hand-Crafted carpets are categorized as the followings:
Kurdish Small rugs (Ghaliche), Pa-Dari, Prayer Rugs, Pushti, Nomadic Socks, Square Kilims,
Square Sofreh (silk woven, cover of dinning table), Knee Pad (often made of silk), Bags, Sacks
Hand-knotted carpets of the nomadic Kurds in Ghochan
Ghochan with an area of 533,849 square kilometers is situated in the
Khorasan province and from northeast is in vicinity with Darghaz city,
from south the city of Nishabour and Esfaraien, from west the city of
Shirvan and from east the city of Mashhad.
Ghochan also borders Turkmenistan, a neighboring country, from the
north with some 75 kilometers common borders.
According to the archeological research performed in Ghochan and its
suburbs, it was concluded that because of the Atrak River next to the
heights of Hezar Masjed Mountains near the city, in the past, it was a
perfect place for the cultivation of the crops and with its adequate
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climate it was a perfect ground for development of early civilizations which dates back to an era
before Jesus Christ, B.C.
In the old days the city was called "Asak" and "Ashak".
Handicrafts of Ghochan
Ghochan is famous for its wool coats, felt carpets, pottery and most importantly for weaving
kilim carpets which was and still is very popular among villagers and traditionally it is woven by
the housewives in the Kurd families.
Art in nomadic families
Art in Nomadic families can be divided into two distinctive categories: Carpet and Kilim weaving
and Decorative items for clothing
Carpet and kilim weaving
There are some very important steps taking in the production of Kilim
and carpets in the Ghochan region in a way that the right wool, from
the spring sheep pasturing in the open areas on the hills near
mountains with their best quality ivory white wool, is obtained
meticulously and after hand-spinning the wool hand spun yarn is used
for weaving carpets and kilims.
Here how it is done, the ivory white wool must be washed with fresh
clear spring water which is considered by locals as a very important
step to take and the washing is usually done in the Spring Rivers or
near the Spring Wells.
After the washing is completed, the next step is to spinning the wool
into wool yarn and makes it ready for the natural dyeing. Spinning of
the wool is done with the help of the entire family and once the wool yarns are ready vegetal
dying form the local plants will take place.
Here is a list of some plants that the natural colors obtained from them:
Madder – Red and orange color, Indigo – Blue color, Nettle – yellow and greenish color, Sumac
– brown and grayish color, Hazelnut – light, dark brown and black color, Blueberry – grayish
color, Saffron – golden yellow color, Onion – copper and orange color
Vegetal dyeing is applied on wool yarns and the dye remains superbly permanent and does not
fade easily over the years and give special shinning quality to the carpet after it is finished.
Carpet designs
There are a good variety of designs that are very interesting for outsiders and in many areas
Kurds have their own patterns and motifs which the most important ones are listed below:
Jalili Design, Feelpa Design, Shir & Khorshid (Lion and sun) Design, Ghabi (Frame) Design,
Dourkhani Design, Emamgholi Design, Bazobandi Design, Boteh Jegheh Design
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Dimensions
Kurd carpets are woven in various sizes shown in metric system:
1.00 X 2.00 m, 1.50 X 2.00 m, 1.50 X 3.00 m, 2.00 X 3.00 m, 2.50 X 3.00 m, 3.00 X 4.00 m
Kurds utilize wooden and Iron looms in a horizontal position to weave their carpets of different
sizes and shapes since as it was mentioned previously it makes it easy for them to assemble
and disassemble the horizontal looms with ease in times when they have to move into other
locations if needed.
Kilim weaving in Ghochan
Kilims are woven with two different designs for different purposes and applications in Ghochan;
one is so called half pattern design and the other one full pattern one in sizes of 1.00 X 2.00 m,
1.50 X 2.00 m, 1.50 X 3.00 m, and 2.00 X 3.00 m which they are listed as follows:
- Carpet- or as it is locally called "Farsh" it is woven to cover the floor
- Large woolen Sack- locally called "Javal", it is used to carry things with
it and it is traditionally woven so artistically by newly brides and it is
considered as an item of their dowries when they get married. Its popular
dimension is 0. 80 X 1.20 m.
- Feed bag- locally called "Toubreh"; it is usually woven in dimensions of
0.40 X 0.40 m and 0.40 X 0.50 m. the main users of feed bags are
shepherds who carry bread and food with it to the pastureland.
- Woolen container to keep utensil- kitchen tools and utensils are placed
in it
- Silique bag- locally called "khorjean"; it is used to carry things on the
back of a horse or a donkey which it hangs on the sides of their trunk.
Characteristics of Kurd carpets
Patterns and motifs in Kurd carpets are geometrical with angles which make Kurd rugs
distinctive from others in a way that at the first glance one could easily figure out all the main
geometrical designs which are created by Kurd weavers subjectively (not designed in advance),
just as a painter would paint a magnificent painting with out any models.
Kurd carpets each with its unique characteristic which reflects the personal flair and birth place
of a weaver and they are woven within a person's mind expressing into prominence; however,
quite logically, sometimes there could be lack of consistency in some patterns and/or in some
cases the pattern is not so symmetrical as one could see in other pre -designed hand-woven
carpets, but all those so called imperfection do not mitigate a bit the fact that Kurd carpets and
rugs are purely artistic and beautiful.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company 15 February 2005
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An Introduction to the Oriental Carpet: Structure, Analysis,
and Identification
A week of study with Dr. Jon Thompson
June 21-25, 2005 - The Nickle Arts Museum, University of Calgary,
Alberta, Canada
This intensive week of study with Dr. Jon Thompson promises to
introduce students to the large and complex field of Oriental carpets,
says Dr. Michele Hardy, Curator of Decorative Arts, to Jozan
Magazine.
The course aims to provide students with a framework for
understanding the different categories of carpets with reference to the
weavers' social and cultural circumstances, she continues.
Topics
According to Michele Hardy topics covered will include: fibre
identification, preparation of the materials (combing, spinning, plying),
setting up the loom, weaving operations, and means of pattern
transmission. The course will also examine natural and synthetic
dyestuffs, discuss their relative advantages and shortcomings, and
propose guidelines for recognising certain dyes by eye. The focus will
be on older carpets rather than contemporary pieces.
Course format will include illustrated lectures, special hands-on sessions, and exclusive
viewings.
Dr. Jon Thompson
Dr. Jon Thompson is the May Beattie Fellow in Carpet Studies, Ashmolean Museum, University
of Oxford directing the work of the Beattie Carpet Archive. He teaches courses on carpets and
textiles of the Islamic world at Oxford and at the British Museum. His publications include : Hunt
for Paradise: Court Arts of Safavid Iran 1501–1576 , edited with Sheila Canby (2003), The
Nomadic Peoples of Iran edited with Richard Tapper (2002), Carpets: From the Tents, Cottages
and Workshops of Asia (1993), Silk, Carpets and the Silk Road (1988), and Turkmen Tribal
Carpets and Traditions, with Louise W. Mackie (1980).
The Nickle Arts Museum
The course is hosted by The Nickle Arts Museum, University
of Calgary in Calgary, Canada, which provides a rich
environment for the study of Oriental carpets.
For further information contact Dr. Michele Hardy, The Nickle
Arts Museum, tel (403) 220 4137, fax (403) 282 4742, email
mhardy@ucalgary.ca
Jozan Magazine 8 March 2005
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ICOC Andalusia November 3-13, 2005
An ICOC Educational Experience: The Architecture, Carpets and Textiles of Moorish Spain and
Portugal
By Dennis R. Dodds, Secretary-general International Conference on Oriental Carpets (ICOC)
March 17, 2005.
History, culture, architecture and art of Andalusian Spain are
inextricably linked to an Islamic design heritage that began there
some 1,300 years ago. The astounding wealth of culture in al -Andalus
became a turning point in the successful recovery of the Iberian
Peninsula after the collapse of Rome. On this tour we will visit major
cities and places where fine buildings, since transformed, but with
their integrity intact, still resonate with the ancient call of the caliphs.
While the expulsion of the Moors in the 15th -century essentially
ended an important period of Iberian history, the rich subtext of their
unique language of pattern lingered in the mudejar style that followed.
We will see numerous examples of Moorish and mudejar design in
the museums of Madrid, in the legendary cities and palaces o f AlAndalus, and in Lisbon.
Weavings in Spain and Portugal were often influenced by early
Turkish, Persian and European models, yet express their distinctive Iberian palette, technique
and unique twists on style and pattern. We will see important carpet examples in Madrid’s
Instituto de Valencia de Don Juan and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums, as well as in Lisbon’s
famous Calouste Gulbenkian Museum and Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga.
This tour launches a new activity within ICOC’s mission for increasing our understanding of
weaving traditions, blending the culture and history of a region with its carpets and textiles.
Future ICOC tours will focus on indigenous weavings and others on visiting the finest examples
found in museums and private collections.
All of us interested in the art, history and medieval culture of these civilizations share a
remarkable intellectual and aesthetic journey. These experiences influence our values and add
meaning to our perception of the world.
We invite you to join us.
Dennis R. Dodds, Secretary-general International Conference on Oriental Carpets (ICOC)
Contact Dennis R. Dodds
More information: ICOC Voucher offer ICOC information about the tour
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The Hali Fair 2005
The Hali Fair will take place 9 to 19 June 2005 in National Hall,
Olympia, London. Some 100 leading dealers from twelve countries,
will be exhibiting at the eighth annual HALI Fair.
Participants will be coming from as far as Hong Kong, New Zealand,
the USA and Turkey as well as eight European countries.
Visitors will find textiles, carpets, rugs, embroideries, exotic costume,
kilims, tapestries, and Islamic and tribal artefacts at the Fair, which is
divided into three zones: Traditional, Tribal and Design.
On Wednesday 15 June 18.45 Dr. Jon Thompson will hold a lecture "Great Carpets and their
Makers".
Traditional Zone
The Traditional Zone is occupying some two thirds of the
display space and is devoted to antique carpets and
textiles of the world.
The visitors will discover carpets from urban workshops
as well as rugs crafted on village and domestic looms or in
nomad encampments. Textile specialists from around the
world will present decorative and domestic weavings and
costumes from six continents; Europe, South and South
East Asia, the Middle East and Central Asia, the two
Americas and Africa.
Carpets are a central element of the Fair's international reputation,
with examples of both antique and 20th century works.
Examples for sale include:
- a fine woven part wool part cotton kilim, Qashq'ai, South West
Persia, circa 1900
- a Pinwheel Kazak rug from South West Caucasus, 19th century, 187
x 228 cm
- The Toms Dragon Carpet from the Shirvan region, Caucasus, late
17th/early 18th century, 186 x 405 cm, wool pile on a cotton
foundation
- a rare and very fine 18th century Ushak saph carpet
Buyers will also find smaller pieces such as yak wool Tibetan prayer
rugs.
Among textiles the visitor will find a variety of woven and embroidered
art, kantha embroidery from Bengal, suzanis from Uzbekistan, tie dyed textiles from North Africa, ikat weave from Asia, tapestries in the
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European tradition and much more.
The HALI Fair is one of the largest and most important fair of its kind in the world with over 100
dealers from around the globe.
See more examples from Traditional, Design and Tribal Zone.
Find more information at www.halifair.com
13 April 2005 Jozan Magazine
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Exhibition of Iranian rugs in Japan
April 19th 2004 Khosrow Sobhe reports:
Following the exhibition of Iranian rugs in Shoto Museum of Art in Tokyo, and in response to the
interest shown by the Japanese people, the Okayama Orient Museum is going to hold a
government-sponsored exhibition named as, "The Splendor of Persian Carpet" p resenting
antique rugs of Miri private collection and recent examples of Miri Creations, in the City of
Okayama in Japan, starting April 16 th-May 29th, 2005.
The reason for this exhibition to be held in The Okayama Orient Museum is that 60% of the
ancient pieces of art in this museum, relating as far back as 5500 years ago, are attributed to
the country of Iran.
A lecture "Persian Rugs, before and now" has been held by Ali Soleymanieh April 16th. A
lecture "Visiting Iran & Miri Establishment" will be held by Akhihito Iijima, Curator of The
Okayama Orient Museum, April 30th.
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Arak carpets - Sarough rugs
20 April 2005
Historical and geographical features of Markazi
province
Arak City is not older than 200 years; but before Islam,
which is 1400 years ago, a part of great Median Empire
was called Arak. The area was razed during Arab attack.
Some 100 years later the area was named Iraq -e-Ajam
(Non-Arab Iraq), which consisted of nearly 1000 villages
and was 9000 km2.
For 200 years ago Fathali Shah ordered to build a castle
for the royal troops in the region, which after it’s population
growth was named Iraq. 100 years later in 1800s it was renamed Arak.
Arak carpet production - background
In accordance with the neighboring cities like Qum, Kashan and Isfahan carpet production
history, it’s logical to consider the same history for Arak carpet production. It is said in history
books that when Shapur II (an ancient emperor of Persia) was crossing the region, he was
offered with a carpet. Founders of the new city called for Industries and specialists of different
arts and crafts. There are reasons to say many designers and weavers from Kerman, Isfahan,
and Kashan came to the new Arak.
The city being built on commercial roads, once to protect them was now a fresh opportunity for
businessmen. In 1874, some traders from Tabriz were the first to export some carpets from the
region. Two years later in 1876, the Swiss Ziegler company founded an office in the city,
Followed by many other foreign companies like New York
Tawshandchian, East company, Levan Davoodian company and
many others. Most of these companies had dyeing places of their
own. In 1924 a nationalization took place in Iran Carpet Industry and
the business was since ran by The Iran Carpet Company.
Carpet centres of Arak
Existing Carpets of those times are mainly named Sarough, Farahan
and Arak. Before the foreign companies arrival perhaps there were
many designs and colors, but according to Scissile Edwards, During
1939 to 1942, only three major patterns were accepted, Mushk -Abad,
Sarough, and Mahal.
Quality wool and dyes
Being near the mountains and ranges as the main source for good
quality wool, and the Kevir (Desert) as the source for many natural dyes, and being surrounded
by many agricultural villages having not much to do an the land during hard and long winters
made the region a perfect place for carpet production.
Economical aspects
During Ghajar Period to World War I Arak was an important production and trade centre. The
city produced 10% of Iran carpets. In 1939 there were more than 10.000 looms in the city.
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Technical features
The Arak carpet has Persian knots, and is hand woven. Looms are vertical and the warps are
fixed on the loom on the ground. Previously double wefts were used but single thick wefts are
now common. Wefts are blue and if background is simple, then deep blue or black is used.
Although 15-20 raj carpets are among the humble, low standard carpets, Mushk -Abad carpets
gain international fame due to their fine dyeing, motifs and good quality wool. This is also seen
in better quality carpets ( Sarough ) of that time with 35-40 and 45 Rajs. Saroughs are woven in
Farahan.
Later the carpets are categorized into three major groups, Mahal, Mushk -abad and Sarough - all
with Sarough designs. Imported fine fiber - Kork - became popular at that time.
Simple designs and good dyeing practices took away the need for silk and brought fame to the
industry.
Dyes and dyeing
Arak carpets were famous for two colors, Sarough Dooghi Farahan
blue and Mushk-Abad Runasi. In addition to those dominant colors,
green, crème and straw yellow colors were used. Using runas (rarely
red grains), vine leaf, pomegranates peel and walnut peel were
common practices.
Weaving
The advantages of the Arak carpets were good weaving, good knots,
logical sizes, using good wefts and etc, which satisfied the customers.
Design and pattern
Another attractive aspect of the Arak carpets are their simple and
primary patterns. There are no signs of S afawid Patterns with complex
motifs and patterns.
Periods in Arak carpet production history.
First period:
More than 100 years ago, when native and local patterns are dominant. To be compared with
current patterns, they are like West Iran village carpets with row patterns and primary motifs like
Fish, Boteh, and medallions brought by weavers from Kerman and Kashan.
Second period:
Beginning of commercial flourish in carpet industry of the area, where the designs are changed
to satisfy European taste. Qubelene, French flower, and simple background patterns were
dominant.
Third period:
From the time American companies enter, imposed patterns and colors make a total change
and in 30 years simple patterns, sharp colors and long wefts gives a decorative and
nontraditional look to the carpets.
Fourth period:
During the years between 1930 to 1950, a renewal takes place under support of The Carpet
Institute and The Fine Arts Office. Though many skillful designers are migrated to Tehran, many
good carpets were woven at the time, and the Americans came back with certain needs.
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Fifht period:
Returning to native and local patterns and leaving the world market; but no sign of the old rich
patterns and dyes. Arak carpets of this era have a pattern called DASTEH -GOLI.
Other Arak designs to be named are LACHAK-O-TORANJ
(Medallion and triangle), SHAHABBASI, JANGALI,
SHIKARGAH (Hunting ground), TREE AND SWIFT,
BRICK-SHAPED, FISH, AZIMI, ALLOVER, FOREST,
SHEIKH SAFI, ISLIMI, GARDEN BALSAM,
HAJKHANOMI, BOOTEH, BOOTEH MIR, BROKEN
ANTLER, MOSTOFI, GRAPE, VINE LEAF, and
CHAGANI.
Great designers of Arak were Isa Bahadori, Asadollah
Dahighi, Abdolkarim Rafiei, Asadollah Ghaffari, Hosein
and Hasan Tehrani, Jafar Chagani, Zabihollah Abtahi, Asadollah Abtahi, Seyed Hajagha Eshghi
(Golbaz), Ezzatollah Ebrahimi, Mohamad Bagheri, Parwiz Minaii, Gholamreza Baderestani and
Haj Reza Saiidi.
Aspects of current carpet production in Arak
30% of today carpets are normal and Koloftun with 25 Rajs.
30 to 35 Raj carpets are woven in most parts of the province.
40 to 45 Raj carpets are produced in Delijan and a part of Farahan.
45 to 50 Raj carpets are woven in Sarough and surrounding villages with patterns and material
from Qum.
55 and higher Raj carpets are woven with Kork wool and silk unde r support of Qum traders.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company, 20 April 2005
Note: Dates from the original article are converted from the Persian Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar
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Natural Persian dyes
Iran Rug Co has established a laboratory and is running a research project on
vegetal dyes
Oldest signs of mankind’s use of dyes go back 150 to 200
thousand years ago. Some cylinder bones containing ochre and
oily solutions are found and estimated to have that age. In west
Iran (Persia), some beautiful dishes and glasses having paintings
and drawings of animals in black, purple and red colors on a crème
or white-yellow background, belonging to the “Susa” civilization
(3000 BC) are found.
‘Medes’ (2000 BC) used dyed animal fibers. The purple mantles
that army commanders of the powerful ‘Achaemenid Empire’ (1300
BC) used, were famous. These clothes were dyed using a special shell. The ‘Achemenians’
supported industries and brought glory to the trade.
The ‘Pazyryk’ carpet – the oldest known carpet, proves the complex and advanced weaving and
dying industry in old Persia. It is indeed a Persian rug since it contains absolute Persian sign s
and motifs, similar to those on ‘Persepolis’ walls.
Dyes
Before synthetic dyes were used, all dyes were made using natural
and vegetal sources. Chemical compound extracted fro m coal and
then oil expanded the chemical dye producing industry. Many rug
producers now use chemical dyes as it is much easier and
cheaper, but most Persian producers still insist on natural dyes
since they cause no side effects and health problems.
Persian dyes
Presence of color in human life is because of its integration with
nature, but oriental colors express people’s feelings and their reflex
to exterior tensions. During certain eras, Persians developed color as a powerful mean of
expression in fine and decorative arts. Undoubtedly the mystic and subjective ideas of Persians
contributed a lot to development in use of color in traditional Persian arts like Ceramics,
Miniature, and tile-works.
Persians, for sure, were masters of using colors in weaving, painting and carpet weaving during
8th century till the end of ‘Safawids’. Some of the remaining masterpieces are shown in the
greatest museums of the world. The colors are still in glory after more than 500 years. Persian
dyeing masters lovingly spent days on making a dye for a carpet and created ever lasting,
unique colors.
Contrary to what people think, the number of materials used to make different dyes is small.
Most of these dyes are a mixture of few primary elements like ‘Red grain’, ‘Runas’, ‘Walnu t
peel’, ‘Vine leaf’ and some other herbs depending on the area.
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Runas (Dyer’s madder)
Most precious natural vegetal dyeing element. The plant grows all
over Iran but gains the best quality in deserts. It contains different
pigments like ‘alizarine’ (brick red), ‘pupurine’ (purple), and
‘rumiadine’ (red-purple), which differs upon the climate. To process
the Runas, they dry the roots of the plant after pulling them out in
late autumn. As per requirement, they grind the needed amount
and mix it with other elements. It gives great looking buff, orange,
red, brown, purple and green colors when mixed with other
pigments like walnut peel and indigo. Also crimson –the most
common color in hand woven carpets, is made of Runas.
Red grain(Cochineal)
Brilliant ruby color used in east Iran carpets is obtained from a little
insect called kermis, after the Persian word QHERMEZ, meaning
‘red’. Kerman city is also believed to be named after that –the city
used to be a source of export. All the body of this insect contains
red pigments, the ground of which is solvable in water. It gives
amazing different colors of pink to deep purple in reaction with metallic compounds.
Neel (Indigo)
Natural indigo is known for centuries and has been cultivated in India and south Iran. It gives a
deep blue color on cotton fibers, and also due to it’s alkaline nature, is able of dyeing wool.
Although it’s a barrel dye and has a complex and hard method of using, it i s used for making
blue and green colors.
Other vegetal dyes are used locally, according to availability and local traditions.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company, 19 May 2005
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Sartirana's Renaissance
Sartirana Textile Show & Exhibition of Central Asian Carpets and Textiles
Press release from Alberto Boralevi, Florence, May 25th 2005
Dear Rug Friends,
Do you remember Sartirana Castle in Italy?
In 1991 Between Warp & Weft was organised there. It was
the first just Textile Antique's Fair ever held in Italy and it was
then repeated three times. After fourteen years we have
decided to try it again, looking for a renaissance of antique
rugs and textiles culture and market.
Sartirana Textile Show is a new Dealers Fair, originally
imagined by Alfio Nicolosi, with Edoardo Concaro's cooperation and mine. It will be hosted again by the Sartirana
Castle, that this year will celebrate the 25th anniversary of its
renown Antique's Fair: Mostra Mercato d'Antiquariato.
Sartirana Textile Show will be held in the fascinating premises of the Pila, an agricultural industrial old building that had been originally used for rice manufacturing. The parallel Antique's
Fair in the nearby Castle will grant a vast audience of visitors.
Participation of selected Italian and Foreign Dealers will be by invitation only. Besides the
Dealers fair we shall organise also an Exhibition of Central Asian Carpets and Textiles from
Italian private collections, that will be accompanied by lectures.
The selected dates 8th-11th September coincide with the opening and
first weekend of Sartirana's Mostra Mercato d'Antiquariato, but the
antique's show as well as part of the textile dealers will stay on also i n
the second weekend: from September 15th to 18th
If you wish to participate in this renaissance and live a very stimulating
experience…
If you want to meet old friends and new dealers…
If you like to see an outstanding display of antique carpets and textiles to
buy and sell…
If you desire to widen your awareness of the international rug market…
If you crave to relax four days in the peacefulness of Lomellina's co untryside with good wine
and risotto…
Sartirana Textile Show will be the best place for spending a late summer weekend.
If you want to receive an invitation card - send me an email or call at one of the numbers below.
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Don't miss Sartirana's Renaissance, an historical event in the carpet world.
Yours faithfully
Alberto Boralevi
Organising Office: Alberto Boralevi, Via S.Spirito, 11 - Florence - Italy
Tel. +39 055 211 423 - Cell. +39 335 542 7107 - Fax +39 055 265 0560 - E-MAIL aborale@tin.it
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The Robert Pinner Lectures 2005
To coincide with the fair 2005 the Hali Fair has announced a programme of lectures in memory
of Robert Pinner.
The lectures include:
Saturday 11 June:
1.45 Opening by Daniel Shaffer, Executive Editor of Hali
2.00 James Reid: Magic Feathers. Textile Art from Ancient Peru
3.00 Stefano Ionescu: The Saxon Churches of Transylvania and their Rugs
4.00 Caroline Finkel: The Ottoman Sultans and the Holy Places of Islam
5:00 Jacqueline Simcox: Chinese Textiles of the Ming Dynasty
6.00 Michael Franses: Suzani Dowry Embroideries from the Emirates of Bukhara & Kokand
Sunday 12 June:
2.00 James D. Burns: Antique Rugs of Kurdistan
3.00 Jenny Balfour Paul: Indigo
4.00 Robert Chenciner: Madder
5:00 Gebhart Blazek: Berber Carpets in the Context of the 20th Century
6.00 Bevis Longstreth: The Pazyryk Puzzle: Where, Why and by Whom?
Evangelic Parish Church Medias - photo courtesy Stefano Ionescu
Transylvanianrugs.com
Jozan Magazine 27 May 2005 - rev 2 June 2005
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Preview - Bruun Rasmussen auction 14 June
2005
Bruun Rasmussen International auction 14 June 2005 at 1 pm includes
146 Oriental rugs and carpets.
Visiting the auction I was so lucky to "catch" Henrik Schleppegrell Bruun Rasmussen' expert on Oriental rugs and carpets.
We had a pleasant conversation on Oriental rugs in general and about
the selection of rugs at the auction particularly.
Behind Henrik Schleppegrell you see the auctions most rare carpet - a Safavid carpet ( lot
2158) from the 16th century.
I suggest you take a look at a selection of interesting Persian, Turkoman and Caucasian rugs
from the preview:
Lot 2059 - An antique Beshir main carpet from the end of the 19th century.
Size 538 x 185. Estimate 8.000 - 10.000 DKR
Lot 2115 - A semi-antique Kirman carpet ca. 1930. Size 290 x 200 cm.
Estimate 15.000 DKR
Lot 2089 - Antique Shirvan gallery carpet from the end of the 19th century.
Size 438 x 134 cm. Estimate 50.000 DKR
Lot 2093 - An Antique Daghestan prayer rug from the 19th century. Size
134 x 98 cm. Estimate 8.000 - 10.000 DKR
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Lot 2036 - An antique Afshar saddle bag front. Size 86 x 47. Estimate 4.000 Lot 2124 - Semi-antique Amogli carpet ca. 1930-1940. Size 305 x 229 cm.
DKR
Estimate 40.000 DKR
Find more information at www.bruun-rasmussen.dk
Ivan Soenderholm, Jozan Magazine 28 May 2005
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Nain rugs and carpets
21 June 2005
Naein ( Nain )
History books don’t say anything about Naein rugs
although the city itself, is more than 3000 years old. Till
60 years ago Naein was famous for it’s ‘ABA’ (mantle).
As the Iranians’ taste of clothes changed, the demand
for mantles slowed down and the people of Naein put
all their effort on carpet weaving.
Naien design undoubtedly, is not a native local design.
People took the design from Isfahan but used their own
colors affected by the desert. Light colors used in Naein
carpets are signs of sun and sand. These are the colors
of the life beneath the surface of the desert. Color of
kindness, serenity, and clarity. In that way, product of
the most damaged villages of the world becomes the
most famous, and attracts the eyes of all beauty lovers.
Carpet is a gift from heaven for Naein people. It’s one
of the few –if not the only source of income for these
people, but unfortunately, in some neighboring
provinces, they weave Naein like carpets sell it as
Naein rugs.
Naein City is a district of Isfahan Province, in central
parts of Iran. It has 13 rural districts and 830 villages.
150000 people live in more than 53000 square
kilometers. Its all desert. The job of almost all people is
rug weaving, except the government employees and
some merchants.
The central mosque of Naein is one of the four remaining mosques of the old style. It is believed
to be made 1400 years ago. The style has influenced all the architecture of the next
generations.
During Safawid era a lot of masterpiece building were made.
Great masters of tile-works left everlasting artworks all around the
city. The city was ruined and the people were massacred by the
Afghans who attacked Iran (Persia) and put an end to the
Safawid Dynasty. The city was rebuilt 200 years later. Old parts
of Naein are very amazing. Each part was protected by a wall and
had a separate mosque, market, and other needed buildings.
Being on a desert, water shortage and drought have always been
the greatest threat to Naein people and many water stores –deep
and wide pools with a roof were built around the city. The oldest
water store is the Musalla water store. The product of Naein in old
days was mantles which were famous in all Islamic countries.
Rug weaving in Naein
There is no evidence to prove an old carpet weaving in Naein.
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Possibly the glorious mantle weaving left no room for other crafts like rug weaving. As the
industrial weaving grew, the mantle weavers had no other choice than changing their crafts.
Rug weaving started exactly 84 years ago when late Mr. Pirzad founded a sc hool where
children could learn rug weaving after primary education. He employed two Naeini masters who
had worked in Isfahan for many years to teach the children. Naein people, who were masters of
fine weaving, soon became famous for their rugs. In 1942 t here were 250 looms in Naein
according to Cecil Edwards.
Among the weavers are the names of Habibian brothers whom their name is still a sign of proud
for Naein rugs.
KHUR and BIABANAK and JANDAQH
As districts of Naein, there are very few villages between these small towns. Jalal Abad, Chah
malek, Ordit, Mehrejan and Garmeh are villages built in ever -dry desert. Hot summers and cold
winters of this land seem to be intolerable. But people still stay and fight the nature.
Naein Rugs
Naein style is woven in many areas like Tabas, nishabour, Bojnord, and Bardaskan.
Unfortunately these rugs only seem to be like Naein, but with no quality of real Naein rugs. We
here talk about Naein rugs woven in Naein and it’s rural areas and districts.
Features of Naein Rugs
MATERIAL: the wool used in Naein rugs is usually finer than the standard Persian wool. It’s
called KORK and is soft and fine as hair. The warps used are similar to those used in Isfahan.
Wool and cotton is more common than silk in Naein.
DESIGN and PATTERN: The most common used are Shah-Abbasi,
Medallion and triangle, and Islimies, which all are among the most
Old Persian patterns. Amazing order of traditional motifs and
brilliant colors brought world fame and glory to Naein rugs.
Gonbadi, Haj khanomi, Mihrabi, All-over, and All-over Medallion are
other common patterns of Naein rugs. Recently, production of round
and octagonal rugs brought a new identity to Naein design. Fine
work of master designers guarantees this identity.
DYEING: Naein rugs have much of their fame because of special
dyes and colors used in them. The rugs produced in other areas in
the name of Naein rugs, don’t have this quality; they use chemical
dyes sometimes. There are 11 main colors and 4 secondary colors.
Crème, light Khaki, deep Khaki, brown, crimson, indigo, deep blue,
light blur, dark red, and mousy are the main colors and jasper
green, moss green, green and pink are secondary colors.
Natural elements used to prepare these dyes are pomegranate peel, walnut peel, runas,
esparak, vine leaf, and kermez.
WEAVING: Naein rugs have Persian knots and double warps. Weaving standard is high and the
rugs are made precise. Looms are wooden. Mainly women do the weav ing. They say that
although we can not have a little garden in our yards, we weave heavenly gardens on our rugs.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company, 21 June 2005
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Isfahan - a brief overview of rug & carpet weaving
29 June 2005
Isfahan ( Esfahan ) was called Key during Akhamenid era and Fereydun Shahr was a fertile and
glorious land called Partica in those times.
Isfahan has always been an important city of Persia; being the capital of the country for seve ral
times or at least the center of province or Satrap.
The hard effort that the Great King Abbas (of Safavid Dynasty) put in reconstructing the city,
brought world wide fame and glory to the city. The title ‘Half of the World’, given to the city, was
some how an under estimate of the city with all its beauty and supremacy compared to other
major cities of that era.
The Safavid Kings, being art lovers, wanted to have the
best of everything. This made a great opportunity for
masters of all arts, and the remaining art pieces of that
era, like ‘Naqhshe Jahan’ square are still attracting the
hearts and eyes of art lovers from all around the world.
The greatest square of the world with dimensions of
150 in 512 meters, is the peak of arts and crafts of the
old world. Great architecture of Ali Qhapu, Shah
mosque, and Sheykh Lotfollah Mosque with all its tileworks makes one admire the whole beauty. It’s such a
great feeling to stand under the dome of Sheykh
Lotfollah Mosque and realize that this is the same design woven onto great Rugs of Isfahan.
Master weaving workshops of the royal house was located
between Shah aquare and the Chehel Sotun Building. They used
best quality material and worked under direct supervision of Great
King Abbas. Master pieces left from that time are now an honor for
the most famous museums of the world. The attention of the Great
king and his decedents gave a rebirth to the 2000 years old art of
Rug weaving of Persia.
Isfahan Province, now with over 15 districts and many counties, is
still a very important part of Iran and a major tourism and industrial
center. The city being located as the center of a province which
houses from Bakhtiar nomads to Nain Artists, is considered as a
major weaving pole of Iran. In the beautiful and very old Bazaar of
the city, one can find best of different styles of Persian Rugs, from
Bakhtiar Yalameh to Isfahan Kork and Nain. Also beautiful
Bakhtiar kilims and fine silk and kork Qhaliches woven by Christian
minorities have their own niche.
Isfahan rugs i.e. the kork and silk rugs now woven, is one of the finest Iranian rugs. The motifs
and patterns of this style are traditional and have roots in ancient, pre-Islamic motifs of old
Persia.
Moving the capital city of Safavids from Tabriz to Qhazwin, brought a lot of artists to the city as
well. This was the start of founding a new school of arts later refer red to as Isfahan. The special
sign of this style is the use of ordered and spinning Islimies. They have several types and the
famous ones are Yari and Dahan Ajdari. Along with them, usually pomegranate flowers -later
called Shah Abbasi flowers were used.
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The main feature of the tradition style was the imbalanced ----- design and the fine details. Also
the common colors used were deep rust, blue, indigo, crème, and dirty yellow.
After some hundred years, during the era of Qhajar Dynasty, new motifs under i nfluence of
European paintings entered the designs. The new designs called Gol Farang or Naqhsh e
Qhajar became famous and favored among the weavers. The common colors of this period
were red, pink and yellow.
The most common traditional designs are Medallion and triangle, mixed with different flowers
and Islimies. Famous Isfahan designs are Medallion and triangle, Islimie, all over, hunting,
dome, Chogan, Vase, Tree, and Flower and Bird.
Famous designers of Isfahan
Master Ahmad Archang: He never was a student of a well known
master. Just wandering in beautiful sights of Isfahan moved his soul
in such a way that he devoted his life to designing. Khotai and
Islimie along with Dahan Ajdari flowers that he designed, came to
live on the rugs of Isfahan for ever. He died in 1990
Master Rashtian: He was born in 1929 in an artist family of Isfahan.
He was a great miniaturist and designer and trained many students
who became masters later.
Master Reza Shakeri: he was born in 1916 and is known as the
master of coloring and dotting of Isfahan.
Master Karbasian: he was born in 1926 in Isfahan and was a
student of Master Ahmad Archang. He became a master himself
and designed a wide range of Islimies and Khotais.
He always said that my and all the other designers teachr, has always been the great Naqhshe
Jahan square.
Master Isa Bahadori: he was born in 1908 in Arak. He educated from Kamal ol Molk school and
got his B.A. in Arts. His creativity in different arts was up to level of genius. He received the gold
medal of Brussels Exhibition and No. 1 sign of Arts of France.
Colors used in Isfahan
The colors of Isfahan rugs are a special feature as well. Generally 12 colors are used and cold
colors are more frequent. Crème, deep blue, blue and earth colors are common.
Designers take the border and background colors into account. For instance, in a warm back
ground they use dark borders. They also use the border color for the flowers as well. This k ind
of coloring makes the Isfahan rugs distinguishable.
The looms used in Isfahan are of the vertical kind. Weavers use Persian knots and double
wefts.
The weavers usually do the colorfull motifs and flowers and then fill the rest with the background
color.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company 29 June 2005
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The Carpet Section in Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum,
Istanbul
Jozan Magazine 28 July 2005
One of the places a rug collector must visit in Istanbul is the
Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum.
The museum is situated on the Hippodrome just beside the
Blue Mosque in Sultanahmet in the old part of Istanbul.
The museum include important ancient rugs and carpets f rom
the 13th century Seljuk period and other important Anatolian
rugs. Among the carpets are several very large Ushak
medallion carpets from the 16th and 17th century.
The museum also includes interesting Holbein Bergama rugs,
Giordes-, Ladik- and Konya Karapinar prayer rugs.
The 13th century Seljuk carpets have been discovered in the
early 20th century in the Alaeddin Mosque in Konya.
Besides the carpet section the museum include several other
13th century Seljuk carpet found in
the Sultan Aleaddin Keykubat Mosque sections. A calligraphy section, wooden works, stone art,
in Konya
ceramic and glass, metal art and a ethnography section.
The Ushak medallion carpets are exhibited in the large
exhibition hall among other large and very old Anatolian
carpets.
The room light in this impressive museum is very
pleasant and the conditions for both visitors and the
exhibited carpets are excellent.
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Ushak medallion carpet 16th century found in the tomb of
Piyalepasa Kasimpasa, Istanbul
Carpet from the 13th century Seljuk period found in the
Sultan Aleaddin Keykubad Mosque in Konya
Konya Karapinar from the 17th century. Found in the tomb of
Sultan Aleaddin Keykubad in Konya
See more photos from the museum
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Arasta Bazaar, Sultanahmet Istanbul
Ivan Soenderholm 31 July 2005
Situated just besides one of the most important symbols of
Istanbul, the Blue Mosque, the Arasta Bazaar has a dignified
location. The place also includes Istanbul Mosaic Museum (
Great Palace Museum ) with ancient mosaics from the 6th
century.
Most of the shops in the small bazaar are selling Oriental
rugs and textiles and the bazaar is absolutely worth visiting
for both rug collectors and tourists.
When I visited the bazaar in July I was lucky to meet Seref Özen, Cocoon, in his Arasta Bazaar
shop. Later I visited his second store nearby in Kücük Ayasofia Caddesi - in a four-floor building
with a outstanding view to the Blue Mosque from the roof
terrace.
Seref Özen is an internationally well known dealer and an
authority and lecturer on Central Asian textiles.
He has been collector for more than 20 years and has done
his passion to his profession as dealer and textile designer
the last 8 years.
There are other esteemed dealers in the bazaar - and I
should have visited them - but that must wait until I return.
And there will be another time - if any city is "CARPET CITY"
it is Istanbul.
More rug and textile photos:
Cocoon shop in Arasta Bazaar
Cocoon design: Felt hats
www.jozan.net
Jajim (Cocoon)
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Uzbek Julkhyr (Cocoon)
Yomud main carpet (Cocoon)
www.jozan.net
Uzbek silk-embroidery (Cocoon)
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The DOBAG Cooperative in Ayvacik
Ivan Soenderholm 1 August 2005
The DOBAG Cooperative, S.S. Süleymanköy Tarimsal Kalkinma
Kooperatifi, has showroom and administration just outside Ayvacik on
the road to Canakkale - in the north-western part of Turkey. And very
close to Assos, the ancient Aeolian city above the tourist resort and
beautiful fishing village of Behramkale.
I visited the cooperative's showroom in July 2005 and had an
interesting conversation with the accountant Digdem Geral. She told
me about the DOBAG project and showed examples of recent
production.
At this moment weavers from 31 villages and 3 towns, Ezine, Ayvacik
and Bayramic, have joined the cooperative. All wool were natural
dyed and the wool spun with winter wool. Prices were calculated by
the numbers of knots in the carpet. All rugs were marked with a village symbol and a weaver
mark. More information about the DOBAG project on world wide web.
Natural dyed DOBAG rugs and carpets:
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Carpet shops - Grand Bazaar, Istanbul
The Grand Bazaar is one of Istanbul's most famous
tourist attractions and also the most famous bazaar in
the world. The reason is probably both size and the
exiting atmosphere in the covered bazaar.
There are between 3.000 - 4.000 shops in the bazaar
and the number of visitors each day probably more than
250.000. The first part of the bazaar was constructed in
1461 under Mehmet The Conqueror.
Though many of the shops in the bazaar are selling souvenirs to the tourists there seem to
be quite a few dealers selling interesting Oriental rugs and textiles to collectors.
The first shop I visited was Yurdan Carpet in Sandal Bedesteni Sok. 32 where I met
Ibrahim Yurdan. Later I visited Yurdan Carpet's main store which is located in Divan Yolu
Cad. 16., Sultanahmet. Yurdan Carpet has a large stock of mainly new rugs and kilims but
is also selling old and semi-old Oriental rugs from Turkey and Iran. Ca. 20 % of Yurdan rug
sales are through their website Yurdan.com.
Özturk Rug House - Özturkler - is located in Takkeciler
Sok. 78 and has an interesting collection of old and
antique rugs. I had a pleasant conversation with Murat
Ôzturk who showed interesting examples of antique
Caucasian, Persian and Turkish rugs from their
inventory.
When I told I personally was most attracted to Persian
rugs from the Malayer and Sarouk area he found a very
nice ca. 100 years old Sarouk he just had bought.
In Gallery Sirvan, owned by the Internationally well
known dealer Erol Kazanci, I saw some interesting
Turkmen antique pieces in very good condition. Gallery
Sirvan is located in Halicilar Cad. 50-54.
The Brothers Textile Arts, in Kavaflar Sok. 42, is
primarily focusing on old and antique kilims and I saw
some interesting kilims from their collection.
Adnan & Hasan, Halicilar Cad. 89-90-92 are selling both
new high quality Ushak rugs of own production and old and antique rugs and kilims.
I have only visited a few of the dealers in the bazaar. I hope in the near future to return to
Istanbul and explore the bazaar again.
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More photos from the Grand Bazaar:
Antique Shirvan Perepedil,
(Öztürkler)
Persian village rug ca. 1850
(Öztürkler)
Sarouk ca. 1900 (Öztürkler)
Old Taspinar rug (Yurdan)
Hereke rug (Yurdan)
Silk kilim (Yurdan)
Adnan & Hasan, Grand Bazaar
Semiantique Soumach (Adnan &
Hasan)
Ushak, new production (Adnan &
Hasan)
The Brothers Textile Arts, Grand
Bazaar
Antique Konya kilim (The Brothers
Textile Arts)
Galerie Sirvan, Grand Bazaar
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Vakiflar Carpet Museum, Istanbul
Vakiflar Carpet Museum is situated in the same building
complex as the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet Mosque). The
museum includes ca. 60 Anatolian carpets from the 16th-19th
century. Especially some 16-18th century carpets found in
the Ulu Mosque in Divrigi in Eastern Anatolia in the Sivas
region are very interesting.
The display and the conditions in the Museum are not
perfect. The rooms are pretty dark and an electric torch is
highly recommended. Anyway - a visit at the museum is a
"must" for a rug collector.
Rug photos from Vakiflar Carpet Museum
Detail 18-19th century Ushak carpet
17-18th century Anatolian carpet.
West Persian medallion design.
Found in the Ulu Mosque, Divrigi
16th century Persian "Vase" carpet
16-17th century Holbein rug. Found 17-18th century Ghiordes prayer rug 18th century Ladik prayer rug found in
in Ulu Divrigi ( the Great Mosque in
found in the Serafettin Mosque in
the Serafettin Mosque in Konya.
Divrigi in the Sivas region)
Konya.
More information on the Vakiflar Hali Museum on world wide web.
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Hereke carpets, Dolmabahce Palace, Istanbul
Dolmabahce Palace was rebuild and reconstructed by Sultan
Abdulmecid in the mid 19th century and is a symbol of the
Ottoman Empires magnificence and decadence.
The palace includes a large number of Hereke palace
carpets made by Hereke Imperial Factory. The factory was
established in 1843 during the reign of Sultan Abdulmecid
and a workshop was established on the palace ground and
staffed with Hereke weavers.
Hereke palace carpets - Dolmabahce Selamlik and Harem
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The Carpet Sale Center in the Haseki Hürrem
Sultan Bath
23 August 2005 Ivan Soenderholm
The Haseki Hürrem Sultan Baths were built in 16th century f or Hürrem
Sultan, known as Roxelana. The building is situated just opposite the
Hagia Sophia Mosque in Sultanahmet, Istanbul.
The building is now used as a carpet sale center and the sales exhibition
includes new Turkish rugs and carpets. Entrance is free .
This old Hamam is interesting and peacefully and you can look at the
sales exhibition without being pressed to buy.
Photos:
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Kashan City - rugs and carpets
Kashan, a city with an area of 2100 ha. lays in central plate of
Iran, 945 meters above sea level. Being on 51’27” east and
33’59” north, it is surrounded by mountains on one side and
Kevir on the other.
Now being a district of Esfahan, Kashan was a part of Jebal
state in old times. The mountain chain goes from Northwest to
Southeast and the longest peak around is Karkas, 3800 meters
high. The city is 235 Km south of the capital Tehran, and 250
Km North of Esfahan.
Kashan history
During the rainy periods of the last ice age, there was a wide
sea in center of Iran. This sea began to dry afterwards and now
the central kevir is what is left from that sea. Mankind began to
settle in villages around this sea and now we find the oldest
civilizations of the world around it. One of these civilizations
belonging to 7000 years ago was The Silk Civilization, which the
remains are 2km southwest of Kashan. The Silk people were
very genius and developed for that time. Items found on the north and south hills of the Silk are
a honour for the greatest museums of the world. Silk was the first settlement in plates and thus,
of extreme interest for archaeologists. They were great potters and painters and used bricks for
their buildings.
There are strong proofs that the Silk was still alive, though weakened by several attacks of
Barbarians, and people lived around during Akhemenid and Sassanian Empires.
After attack of Arabs (1500 years ago) which brought Islam, They became Shiies. The historians
of that era, name Kashan with two things, it’s shiie people, and it’s too many scorpions; the city
was called small at that time.
Most of the old buildings are demolished by several earthquakes, but the ones remaining show
the glory of the city 400 years after Islam. The Saljuqhis kings paid great at tention to the city
and there were several universities, seminaries and hospitals around.
The city was half destroyed by the Moguls and many were killed, but then soon became to good
condition after wards due to it’s weaving and pottery industry. More grea t buildings were built
after the Mogul kings accepted Islam and became shiies.
With the rise of Saffawid dynasty, the Shiie people of Kashan welcomed them and many
clergies from Kashan gained fame. The city was then considered the religious capital of Per sia.
Bazaar of Kashan was improved and the Great King Abbas made a new four -way market in the
center of bazaar. Many old buildings were renewed and many new buildings were made. Fin
garden is a masterpiece left from that time.
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The city was twice attacked by Afghans at the end of Saffawids, but only the villages were
captured.
The life was calm during the Qhajar period. The city being destroyed by a huge quake, still was
pioneer in weaving and other industries. Many great buildings were made during this per iod.
The city is now famous for one more thing: Golab (Per= Essence of rose). The world’s best
roses grow in Kashan and quite many people are making this product every year.
Rug industry
Kashan Rug weaving industry has had two major historical periods; fi rst, in 16th and 17th
century, and second in late 19th and 20th century. It is obvious that the art and industry of rug
weaving in any area has been a primary job done by villagers and tribes but in Kashan, it’s vice
versa. The Kashan people had a great tradition and method of weaving very fine silk and
Makhmal fabrics before they started weaving rugs; therefore the first rugs woven in Kashan
were even better than many other regions.
The first period known as the golden age, was along with the glorious time s of the first saffawid
kings and specially King Abbas. He paid a great deal of attention to the industries of Kashan
and specially Kashan Rugs. Many gold and silver twisted rugs were woven at this time.
The design seen on Kashan Rugs were very similar to Esfahan but with more dense patterns.
They used birds inside medallions and triangles. Small flowers and blossoms and special
medallion and triangle patterns containing nice and special Shah Abbasi flowers were the
significance of Kashan Rugs. Some designers of Kashan belive that the medallion and triangle
pattern was first used in Kashan and then went to other weaving places. One of the unique
patterns belonging to Kashan is the Muhtasham design. Qhotbi, brick, broken antler, tree and
hunting ground, are other patterns used in Kashan.
Dyes and dying method of Kashan was and still is one of the best. They used live colours with
high contrast in old times, but now because of the taste of the market, they use milder colours.
However it is said that Laki (Dark Red) background was first used in Kashan.
Most of the looms are now in people’s houses and the women do the weaving while they’re in
the house and taking care of everything.
Ehsan Afzalzadeh Naini, Iran Rug Company, 5 September 2005
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New York International Carpet Show
6 September 2005
The first New York International Carpet Show (NYICS) will take place
27-30 September 2005 at Javits Center/North Pavilion, 37th Street and
11th Avenue, conveniently located in Midtown Manhattan. The trade
show targets architects and interior designers and buyers who own
carpet galleries and retail stores. It is expected to be the first of an
annual showcase of modern high-end carpets.
Opening hours will be 12noon - 5pm on 27 September, 9am - 5pm on
28-29 September, and 9am - 3pm on 30 September. Admission is free
and pre-registration is not required.
Among the most well known participating vendors are Woven Legends,
Zollanvari, Haynes Robinson, Stile BK, New Moon, Lapchi, Amadi,
Yayla and other key importers.
"Top European importers who would like to introduce their premium
carpets to the American buyers next year are welcome to visit the
show in anticipation of exhibiting in the autumn of 2006", says the
organizer of the show Dennis R. Dodds to Jozan
Magazine.
Dennis is an architect and Secretary-general of
ICOC. He has long been active in promoting
awareness and appreciation of Oriental carpets to
collectors and to the public.
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Woven Palette - Rug designs by Barbara
Jacobs
17 September 2005: Colorful "new twist" on Tibetan rugs. Color is Key in The
Barbara Jacobs Woven Palette, the first in a series of rug designs by Barbara
Jacobs created for Pandith’s Oriental Rug
Gallery, Boston, Mass.
“Marketing psychologists agree that
color accounts for 60% of our
response to a place, and that
includes our homes,” says Jacobs to
Jozan Magazine. "This new group of
floor coverings follows my underlying
philosophy as a colorist: color, even
in home furnishings, can—and
should—be used with a purpose, to help create environments that
meet our goals for a particular space whether it be a home or an
office" she continues.
According to Barbara Jacobs she based her designs on a unique
“Beyond the Trends” approach to using color in furnishings for the
home and office. The “new twist” refers to this approach combined
with an innovative weaving process.
Colors in “The Woven Palette: Arts and Crafts series”
range from softly neutral and warm to dramatically rich
and vibrant.
"Because a rug can be the primary visual field, and
often the focal point of a room, these designs are
intended to complement each other and offer variety
with continuity when used in adjacent rooms", she says.
According to Anwar Pandith the hand knotted rugs are made in India
using an innovative weaving process: A mixture of thick, 4-ply twisted
fine Afghan Ghazni and New Zealand wools are blended with select,
high-quality Dhariwal Indian wool. This fiber combination creates very
durable and strong yarns, woven using a combination of Tibetan and
Turkish knots. The wools are hand carded, hand spun and naturally
dyed.
More information:
Contact: Barbara Jacobs website: www.integralcolor.com
More rugs:
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Geo Borders: Smokey Teal
Leaves Lines: Aquatic,
detail
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Leaves and Lines:
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Matisse, The Fabric of Dreams: His Art and His Textiles
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC, until September 25th 2005. Exhibition review by Valerie
Justin.
In Milan, at the 1999 ICOC a large exhibit showed paintings of the Renaissance and
surrounding centuries, each accompanied by analysis of the
Oriental Rugs in the paintings.
In 400 years from now, if there are paintings from the 20th
century to look at, what will be said about the textiles in
Matisse’s paintings? If records of the exhibit, Matisse, The
Fabric of Dreams: His Art and His Textiles; and its Catalogue
still extant, it will reveal that the textiles so omnipresent in the
paintings are not there simply as rich embellishment but are
the font, the reservoir from which is drawn Henri Matisse’s art.
The Exhibit shows groups of textiles, hanging, close to the
related paintings. They are all labeled from “private collection”;
they are textiles that belonged to Matisse himself, recollected
from many sources by the curators. It is easy to identify the
textiles in the paintings, loose but unquestionably replicates.
Many appear in their entirety. The textile designs are not used
to become something else (it is prevalent these years for
fashion and home designers to use kilim and oriental rug
motifs as patterns in their shirting and upholstery fabric) . A
purple and white caftan (identified as Ottoman, 19th c) worn by the seated woman in ‘Purple
Robe and Anemones’, painted in 1937 is proudly itself. A velvet jacket appliquéd with gold trim
(‘Ottoman or Moroccan’) is found in one of the gorgeous Odelisque paintings (the “seated
Odelisque from the Cone Collection at the Baltimore Museum).
Matisse was born into the life of textiles. Born to a weavers’ family in northeastern France, he
grew up in Bohain-en-Vermandois, a center of textile production highly regarded for its luxury
silks and taffetas. Generations of Matisses had earned their living at the loom. “He grew up on a
block surrounded by weavers; embroiders’ and designers’ workshops, and among people
preoccupied with finding fresh ways of combining and exploring colors.” Contemporary acc ounts
agreed in the supremacy of “the Bohain weavers’, delicacy and richness of their colors, their
unerring sense of design and their insatiable appetite for experiment” Fine French furnishing
fabrics are in Matisse’s collection and in the paintings.
It is interesting to know from a chapter in the book/catalogue written by Hilary Spurling,the chief
curator of the exhibition, that Matisse’s art education was in great contrast to the open mindedness found in textile production. At the Academy drawing was tau ght like a dead
language, use of color forbidden. In the weavers’ workshops on the contrary individuality was
highly prized. I suggest that Matisse’s visual sophistication was both genetic and environmental.
There are fine French furnishing fabrics in Mati sse’s collection and they appear in some of the
paintings. Among the textiles in the largest display in the first gallery are a 1760 Toile de Jouy
printed cotton, a 19th c otton ikat identified as possibly French provencal, a Javanese Batik, a
Moroccan silk sash and an embroidered silk. But I feel that his major textile loves were North
African, African (Congo Kuba cloths) and Polynesian.
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Very dramatic in the galleries were a pair of Moroccan transparent lattice screens with prayer
rug mihrab designs. They were made of colored cottons appliquéd to heavy cotton and pierced
to resemble fretwork screens common throughout the Islamic world. When shown in front of
light they make shadows and intricate surfaces used in several of the paintings. Islamic design ,
calligraphy and arabesques appear throughout.
Kuba raffias, woven by men in the Republic of the Congo from the raffia palm leaf and
embroidered by women with dyed raffia, were signs of wealth and standing (smaller pieces
were used as units of currency) Kuba raffias adorned the walls of Matisse’s his Villa where he
moved in World War two. He had purchased them, known as African velvets, when they were in
vogue in Paris in the 1920s. Their designs appear in many paintings. In his studio Matisse
juxtaposed the Kuba clothes with bark cloth brought back from his 1930s trip to the South Seas.
Two large pieces of this work are in one of the galleries. (the cloth known as Tapa was the bark
of breadfruit or mulberry trees, soaked and pounded and covered with strips of raised designs.)
Matisse said he could look at them for hours pondering the mysteries of their instinctive
geometry.
A remarkable result of that Polynesian trip was perhaps the triumph of Matisse’s last art, the
magnificent paper cutouts. The cutouts feature free form sea anemones, fish and other water
creatures, waves, leaves that float on vivid blocs of brilliant colors and became the most direct
way Matisse developed to express himself. Two huge tan and white silk screened works (Algae
1947) filled a wall of the final room in the exhibition shared with the ecclesiastic copes Matisse
designed for the famous Chapel of the Rosary in Vence in southern France. His copes with their
minimalism of motifs and startling color contrasts remind me of the early Byzan tine vestments I
saw at the Hermitage in St. Petersberg.
As for actual carpets, I found that an Algerian rug, most probably a kilim, figured in several
paintings. It had a wide red border with minimized garland motif and a black field with just
suggestions of flower heads. I found one (1924) in “Interiors Flowers and Parakeets”. Anothr
appears in “Dishes and Fruit on a Red & Black Rug”. This was bought by Schulkin, the Russian
textile magnet, in 1906 and is now in the Hermitage Museum.
Schulkin was one of the largest Matisse collectors. It is nice to think of Matisse and Schulkin
discussing rugs and paintings and their interconnections. Another of painting bought by
Schulkin now in the Hermitage, the 1923 “The Painter’s Family”, contains a carpet that was
poddibly a Heriz.
Another rug in a painting from the Philadelphia Museum was a dark colored runner partly
covering a large orange carpet whose origin I was unable to place.
Another rug, in “Piano and Checker Players” (1924), most likely a Balkan kilim, proba bly also a
Schulkin possession.
Early critics talked about Matisse’s revolutionary art “He confused two senses; the art of the
painter and the art of the tapestry-maker” (1910-Jean Francois Scherb) ”Matisse’s painting in a
gallery furnish the walls in sumptuous fashion and match the tonalities of the handsomest
carpets”(Michael Puy).
Apparently the great appreciation of carpets came to Matisse after a famous Munich exhibit
which he visited in October of 1910 – at the end of his life he said of those masterpieces of
‘Mohammedan art’ “revelation thus came to me from the Orient”.
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Matisse also said, toward the end of his life, that in the Odelisque paintings (studies of scantily
and exotically dressed women) the textiles were as important as the models. He layer ed the
textiles to create a tension and then softened them to convey “the impression of happy colors –
a balance of deliberately massed riches”.
“Matisse’s lifelong love of colored cloth came wide awake once he realized its potency for
modern painting, a discovery that proved as fecund, in its way, as Picasso’s of African
sculpture….Matisse played the ambiguity between pattern and a picture of a pattern, setting up
resonances of color so strong that you seem to hear, feel, taste and small them” (Peter
Schjeldahl, New Yorker).
The textiles shown in the exhibit are nice, even fine, examples in their categories. They are not
knock-out pieces. There are no carpets; great carpets can be seen right there in the Met in the
Islamic galleries. This exhibit of the art of Henri Matisse demonstrates the relationship of
inspiration and creativity. The inspiration Matisse derived from the patterns, designs, and
cultures of diverse peoples empowered him to create these great works.
Until September 25th 2005. Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
Matisse, The Fabric of Dreams His Art and His Textiles Book is available in hardcover or
paperback at the Museum or discounted at Amazon.com although at Amazon it is back ordered
and I have not yet received mine.
21 September 2005 Valerie Justin, Sag Harbor
Web site: Vanishing Textiles
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Hunting "Reasonable Rare Rugs" on the World Wide Web
by Detlev Fischer, 3 October 2005
Jozan Magazine has asked Detlev Fischer, a German rug collector and frequent Internet user, about his personal
view on seeking rug information and interesting rugs for sale on Internet and about his hobby- Oriental rugs - in
general.
When we moved to a new flat, we found that we had a wooden
floor to cover. I went to the rug department of a department store,
had enough sense to dislike the colourful monstrosities, and went
instead for a simple red-and-black Afghan carpet with a gul pattern
(of course I had no notion of guls at the time). I lugged the carpet
home, on my way secretly relishing the stares at the plasticwrapped tube.
There it was, unrolled. I fondled it, lay down on it, looked at its
back, looked at the octagonal things that make up the pattern, the
things that I later heard a dealer call with authority 'elephant foot',
the things that I would later learn to have been the subject of
endless controversies. The first scent of endemic uncertainty, the
can of worms opened. The rug's colour scheme was quite dark.
There was admittedly little life in the colours; they looked dull and unvaried. The carpet was firm
and stiff, the wool sort of bristly - the whole thing appeared supremely utilitarian. It could not be
called a luscious carpet by any means.
A simple home decoration task had failed (not admittedly so, at first), and had given birth to
something else, an interest that was at first still faint and feeble, perhaps still squashable with
sufficient resolution. Two weeks later, I chanced upon a rug store in Hamburg's Altstaetter
Strasse (the place now hosts a copy shop), a shop filled with floral garishly coloured stuff that
did not attract me at all. After I described what I wanted, the rug dealer disappeared to the
basement and returned with a Persian Baluch rug with a thick pile, soft shiny wool, and
wonderful shifts of colour in the red field, "all colours vegetal". The orange details he claimed to
be saffron-based. I was suspicious about his claims but I was hooked; I h ad never seen
anything like this before. For 300 Euro it was mine. When I came home and put this new rug
across my Afghan rug, the dullness of the latter was painfully
highlighted. I felt I had to get rid of it, and fortunately, the
department store took it back, weeks after the purchase, for a full
refund.
This was the start of my career as a rug addict. The next rug I
bought on a business trip to Palermo, a newish rather well made
Teke Ensi lacking the horizontal bar of the cross. At the time, the
pattern reminded me of the design of a deranged counting
machine.
Only then did I begin to explore what was offered on the Internet. I
had no idea that such a huge number of rugs wa s sold over Ebay. I
don't know why I fell for a rug with a cream-coloured field and a
rigid diagonally-repeating pattern showing an angular maze of
branches and flowers. The moment I took it out of the box I knew I
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had to get rid of it. The seller refused to take it back, but assured me I would be able to sell it at
the same or a better price (the offer had been backed up by what I would call the grandmother
claim: "bought by Grandma in the seventies for 3800 Deutschmark, and as good as new"). I
used the same strategy for selling it on, and took the time to research, via the email addresses,
the identity of the two main bidders who were fortunately both keen on getting this piece: a trade
union representative and a Bavarian local CSU politician. The piece we nt to the politician,
indeed for just slightly more than I had paid for it. I think this was the only time I ever made a
profit in an Ebay resale.
This set the pattern for a number of purchases: I would buy over Ebay, place the purchase on
the floor, attempt to convince myself that it was fine and likable, and finally put it up on Ebay
myself. Once I returned a piece that was sold with the affirmation "condition: fine" but was
indeed quite worn; another time, a huge, boring, busy and worn Shiraz made me sne eze badly,
so I concluded that its former owner must have had a cat (I have a cat hair allergy). At least,
since the price range of what I bought was usually somewhere between 10 and 100 Euro, the
losses I made were not too painful.
Around that time I also chanced upon the first interesting rug shop, run by Mohammed Tehrani
at Neue Gröningerstr. 10 in Hamburg. I walked in, said I would like to see what was on offer,
and Mr Tehrani and his wife calmly unfolded rug after rug for me. I mainly remember a few bold
and shaggy Gabbehs that I could not appreciate at the time: compared to the densely packed
pile of the rugs I owned, they looked somewhat ragged. When a Qashqai came up, I asked for
the price, and immediately realized that I was in an entirely different ball game: after all, these
were all antiques, as the Tehranis patiently explained. Mr Tehrani took the trouble to identify a
similar Qashqai rug in a glossy book he took from his shelf, and to point out on a map t he area
where the Qashqai live and used to migrate. He recommended I should read and learn a bit
before buying. I ordered my first rug books, Jenny Housego's Tribal rugs and P. R. J. Fords
Oriental Rug Design. Finding out from somewhere that Freud had had a Shekarlu Qashqai over
his couch, I briefly thought I had found my niche. Unsuccessfully I tried to obtain Lois Beck's
anthropological account "Nomad: A Year in the Life of a Qashqa'I Tribesman in Iran".
Besides reading the rug books, I checked out information on the Internet. Barry O’Connell's
Oriental rug notes and Jozan provided endless resources for browsing and learning more about
rugs. Entering rug discussion lists such as Yahoo: Orientalrug and Yahoo: rug fanatics allowed
me to post questions on Ebay items before the auction ended - risking of course that the added
exposure to a group of rug aficionados might increase competition and drive up the price. So I
usually asked only about items that I had no intention to buy, or asking after the auction had
ended and the rug was mine. Some of my requests started a veritable war of attribution, which
was a good learning experience and another proof of the endemic uncertainty sur rounding old
rugs. With so many claims and counter-claims, with experts plainly contradicting each other,
where were the grounds for sound evidence? And did it matter so much?
I became fascinated by what may be called the epistemology of rugs - the construction of
"evidence" from various and often competing forms of knowledge ranging from ethnological
research to hearsay, intuitions and rampant speculation. I like the never -ending stream of
cautious assumptions, bold attributions, learned references, acerb ic asides, blunt objections
and painstaking refutations. I like to imagine how the acquired positions and stakes in this fuzzy
field of knowledge relate to personal stories and histories of those engaged in these arguments.
Even those with years of first-hand expericence in rug-producing countries that may have
broadly settled for particular attributions of, say, "Baluch" rugs (that is, rugs formerly lumped
together as Baluch, but actually often made by other tribes) may suddenly be confronted with
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starkly contrasting attributions by someone who has gone 'native' (read, for example, an
interview with Jerry Anderson, From the Horses Mouth-Talking 'Baluch' , originally published in
HALI 76, © 1994, and the reply by Andrew Hale). It is this struggle for knowledge that I find
more fascinating than any "truth" about any particular rug.
From time to time, I returned to the Tehrani store, looked at the beautiful rugs with the eyes of a
hungry dog, accepted a cup of tea, chatted a bit, and extracted Mr Tehrani's opinion on some
items I had identified as potentially interesting on Ebay. He took this with great patience,
explaining why most of the things I had bookmarked weren't any good. The free advice I had on
potential purchases added to a bad conscience: I felt that sooner or later I should buy
something from Mr Tehrani, or stop bothering him. I felt that I fell into the most despicable
category of customer, the one that takes up valuable time, wants g ood advice, but goes
elsewhere for purchases. The truth is that the things I fancied I could not afford, while those bag
faces that I could afford I did not really fancy. In the mean time, I had taken a liking for Afshar
weavings because I thought of them as interestingly eclectic and at the same time powerful. I
fondled an old Afshar bag face with beautifully executed botehs for a considerable time; an item
for sale on commission. I contemplated whether I should spend 800 Euro for something that
would have to go to a wall. I was closer than ever to go for it, driven by an unfortunate mix of
acute tactile and visual pleasure and a nagging bad conscience. I marvelled at length to what
extent dealers might be aware of, exploit, or deliberately ignore the hidde n mental states and
feelings of guilt of their potential customers. The old phrase of "have to think it over, will decide
the next day" saved me from purchasing this admittedly beautiful item. I just did not return. I felt
so bad that I avoided the shop for almost a year.
Today, I no longer attempt to deny that I am somewhat obsessed with rugs. Collectors of all
sorts of things like to joke about their obsession, justifying it that way. If I think soberly about it,
there is little to justify. For me, it is mainly a pre-sales game: regularly scanning the antique
textiles sections of ebay.de and ebay.com, returning to the "new items" section of
cloudband.com, checking out certain dealers at the rug sales section of jozan.com, checking
online catalogues of auction houses such as Rippon & Boswell, Bonhams, Christies or
Sothebys; then, returning to various specific rug dealer sites. The same way as some people
take a detour to walk past a particular spot they like, I visit these sites and repeatedly look for
considerable time at particular cherished items that I cannot justify buying. For some time, I was
attracted to a quirky highly irregular small Kurdish or maybe Genje rug with diagonal stripes that
was listed in the Persian Tribal section of Haliden.com. One day, it was gone, and I regretted
not having had the courage to buy it it time.
There are moments of desperation when the typical line "price on request" (yes, I prefer to see
prices next to the items) triggers a mail to the vendor, sent out in the knowled ge that the price
quoted will most likely be far too high for me to afford. I may variously request close -up photos,
ask about condition and materials, or bother repair people like Walter Brew of Harlequin
Thunderstrand in order to get a quote on the restoration of a distressed but beautiful rug. This
can go on and on for hours, accompanied by a feeling of numbness and disorientation, of lost
purpose, and an aching back. The moment of acquisition (ambivalent like an ill-constructed
vanishing point in a painting) is habitually put off (because there is only so much to spend, and
because there isn't really enough floor space for new acquisitions anyway, at least not in areas
with little traffic.) The endless stalking, gazing and drooling must be put into relation to the
moment when a rug that I have actually acquired in an internet auction (without ever touching it)
arrives at the doorstep. I tear open the parcel, I am shocked by the contrast between my
anticipation and the reality of the rug - even when the rug is fine. The truth of the rug needs time
to sink in, and I feel dizzy, nauseous. The moment that should be the fulfilment of the desire is
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actually hollow, stale, tainted by a nagging feeling that my obsession is exposed as misdirected
and the money foolishly spent. Not because I might never be able to sell the rug without a loss
(which is probably true, at least in the short and medium term), but because there is so little
actual use of the rug. I might actually put aside the parcel unopened, neglect it as if to
reprimand it for my folly of buying it. One flatweave fragment, wrapped tightly in a grey bin bag,
has been sitting on my shelf for several weeks before I got around
opening it.
Once, after a string of Ebay rugs that I put up again for sale or passed on
to friends, I felt I had landed a coup. I had set the alarm clock to three o'
clock in the morning to bid for a damaged unusual Kurdish long rug
offered by Antiqueaday. I won the auction, and soon got emailed requests
from two people, one of them a well known Turkmen expert and internet
rug dealer. Both had missed the end of the auction and asked me whe ther
I would sell the rug to them. This only strengthended my resolve to hang
on to it and get it restored. I asked the vendor to send the rug to Walter
Brew in the UK, and months later collected it expertly restored outside
London's Kentish town tube station.
I know that many people think the internet is a poor medium for
appreciating rugs, digital photographs (especially at low resolution) being
a bad substitute for the real thing. For sure, digital images often cannot
accurately reproduce the colours and texture of a rug, let alone the tactile
quality of the wool and the weight and handle of a rug. On the other hand,
experience can "fill in" information, especially for particular types of rug
that one has seen and handled before. Good close-ups of a rug, a hand
opening the pile, or an image of a rug draped over a chair can provide
approximations of tactile qualities. Ebay vendor Antiqueaday is a paragon
for consistently excellent rug images. In most cases, ebay vendors will be
willing to send images at higher resolution and answer questions about the condition. Finally,
the "high-end" vendors on Ebay as well as on other platforms such as Cloudband are prepared
to send out rugs on approval, which allows the buyer to inspect and handle the rug at leisure,
and to return it with no questions asked. The only risk is having to cover the shipping cost.
Much has been said about the risks of buying on Ebay, the fraudulent offers, the scams, so I
think I can pass that over. A search for "Ebay" at the Yahoo:Orientalru g mailing list will provide
more information on this topic than you will be willing to digest. I simply keep returning to a few
Ebay vendors that I have bookmarked and whom I trust - some because they are on Barry
O'Connell's trusted resource list, some because they also sell on professional sites such as
Cloudband and seem to have a consistently attractive inventory, some others because of the
good things others have said about them in some group mail or on some web site.
Some instinct has always told me that hanging rugs will be a decisive and fateful state change
in my collecting career. I have till today backed away from putting rugs on the wall. As long as
there is empty floor space, it may still be possible to justify a purchase from a mainly utilitar ian
perspective (at least for any rug that is not too fragile to serve on the floor). It is comforting to
believe that one does not yet fall into the category of the mad collector who collects beyond his
actual needs, someone who (as stories have it) puts rugs into cardboard tubes and stores them
underneath his bed, someone who permanently worries about moth damage to items in
storage, someone always in fear of, or in stoic opposition to scathing remarks from his wife. The
Xanthippean dimension of collecting that is occasionally hinted at seems the saddest aspect of
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all. In any case, I had decided I should not buy more rugs than I can put on the floor, and I still
think of it as a useful rule of thumb to reign in the collector's bug.
"Hanging rugs" is the clearest departure from a utilitarian justification of rug purchases. Hanging
rugs would mean accepting that I buy items mainly for purposes of interior decoration,
something that I profess to abhor. Behind this may be a romantic or Gibsonian ideal that the
natural habits of some (human) animal produce the suitable interfaces of its habitat, and that the
looks of these interfaces are strictly a side effect, not to be tampered with. "Hanging rugs" is
also a clear negation of the use value of the item, a depar ture from the context for which is was
made. I feel as if I owe it to the weaver to use the rug as originally intended (or close to that
intention), even if it might over time suffer further damage under my feet. But then, do I really
think much about the actual weaver of the piece? To be honest, I do not - at least not often.
Perhaps the wear that I cause as I tread on a delicate rug is meant to erase from my mind the
stigma of market-driven appreciation, of the hyped-up commodity value (sorry for the crude
Marxist vocabulary). And finally, a complacent little moral seems to be surfacing. The way the
history of a piece (faded repairs included) has left its mark touches and pleases me. Is it not the
rule of all things that they get used and eventually fall apart? Is not the acceptance of such
decay a token way of teaching myself a little lesson in mortality (the lesson of a bigot, to be
sure)?
Which leads us to perhaps the most uncomfortable reflection of this relatively innocent habit. Is
it not necessary to scrutinize a bit why on earth your typical educated westerner, your guy in his
forties with a profession and a family, suddenly takes such an interest in the supposedly
primitive or authentic or archaic art of rug weavers that lived several generations b efore our
time? Where are the motives, the incentives, the rewards? (Sally Price has written an interesting
book on the relation between the Western art lover and the primitive artist: " Primitive Art in
Civilized Places") And what does this habit lead to? Is there not something unsightly and
wretched about a guy spending his precious lifetime slumped over a PC for hours on end,
gazing at small images of rugs that, like distressed phantoms, appear for a b rief span of time in
auction listings before some remote hammer soundlessly relegates them into the inaccessible
darkness of some private floor or collection? What else could have been savoured, understood
or achieved instead? Is this not a rejection of the vital possibilities of immersed experience, a
"no, thank you" hurled at life itself? Or is this a sweet unmeasured realm, the blossoming of a
space where nothing must be achieved, where no relation demands or exerts? Where links are
leisurely followed and searches made, where rug discoveries lead to spurious activities (tracking
items, saving images, sending price requests), activities that slowly sink to the bottom of the
browser history, leaving no trace other than the growing cob web of diffuse rug -related notions?
An cob-web then pointlessly getting better at catching (or rather, letting go of) the visual
information on thumb-nail sized images of rugs as they scroll upwards at considerable speed?
These questions shall remain rhetorical. Being an artist by training (and still practicing art
besides paid work), one way to explore my obsession with rugs was to start weaving - not on a
proper loom, but with a paint program, slowly composing lines pixel by pixel (each pixel a knot).
After more than a year, I am still slaving on my first rug which I hope to complete soon.
Detlev Fischer, 3 October 2005
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Art Deco Rugs - Home decor
by Allan Arthur, Cyberrug.com
Oriental rugs are a fashion statement for the home. Designs and color ways
respond to pressures in different markets, depending on what the fashion
demanded. What's hot on the runways of Paris and New York, often eventually
progresses into fabrics for the home for use in draperies, wall paper, and furniture
coverings. Once in use in fabrics for the home, the next logical step is to create floor
coverings that will coordinate with these fabrics. The bold colors and stream line
designs of the art deco period, soon gave rise to what we now know of today as the Art Deco
rug.
Famous designers in Europe began to create floor coverings in
the bold designs needed to coordinate with the trends of the
day. But labor costs in the west for hand made rugs, produced
an end product that was very expensive to the consumer. In the
late 19th Century, the Oriental rug industry in Northern China
grew tremendously. Hundreds of hand knotting carpet
"factories" cranked out traditional Chinese rugs for export
throughout the world. The production was high, and the labor
was inexpensive. Western entrepreneurs and designers turned
to Northern China to take advantage of the inexpensive labor.
Experimentation with color certainly began sometime early in the 19th Century. By the 1920's,
manufacturers were combining traditional Chinese motifs with new and untraditional color
combinations. This created a truly unique type of rug. The traditional blues, yellows, reds, and
ivory of the Chinese rugs, were replaced by wild and bold colors
of greens, purples, fuchsias, and gold. You will find exotic colors
on my site such as mango red, sea foam green, turquoise,
periwinkle blue, and tangerine gold. Favorite Chinese figures
were kept, such as hanging lanterns, pagodas, curved bridges,
and elaborate vases. But these designs were enlarged and
given more prominence in the rug, often replacing the quiet
symmetry of the Chinese designs with abstract and
asymmetrical patterns. Bamboo, vines, trees, lotus flowers, and
Chinese flowering plants became stylized splashes of color that
meandered across the field of the rug, and crossed from field to
border, and back again. Probably offending the Chinese sense
of order, and replacing the neatly designed borders that framed older Chinese rugs. Sometimes
large unidirectional outdoor garden designs were created. Dragons, phoenix bir ds, and
butterflies still graced the landscapes, but splayed across the rug and the corners of a rug in
what I like to call an Egyptian Revival style. Occasionally, the Chinese motifs were discarded all
together, and strictly geometric designs were used. T hese rugs with no Chinese influence in
design are probably the most rare.
The earliest famous manufacturer of these rugs in China was actually a woman, the American
Helen Fette. While working for the Methodist Mission school, she first began by selling a f ew
rugs to raise money for Chinese famine relief during the famine of 1920. Around 1921, she
partnered with a Chinese rug manufacturer named Li Meng Shu to form the Fette -Li Company.
The Fette-Li Company eventually became the largest producer of Chinese ru gs in the 1920's30's in the Peking area. In Peking area rugs, the foundation threads, called the warp, lie side by
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side. This gives the rug a more floppy handle. Early Fette rugs have this same construction.
However, if the knot is turned slightly, they can be packed tighter, resulting in what we call a
stiffer "handle". Most Fette rugs have this type of weave.
The most famous maker of Chinese Deco rugs by far though, was the American Walter Nichols.
He is so well known, that many people generically refer to all Chinese Deco rugs as Nichols
Rugs. He was born in New York City around 1885. Walter Nichols began his career in China as
a wool grader about 1920. In 1924, he started his production of Nichols Chinese Rugs in the
port city of Tientsin (Tianjin) in Northern China. Tientsin area rugs have a different construction
than that of Peking. While weaving the rug, the knots are turned completely sideways. This way
twice as many knots can be tightly packed into the same space. This creates a densely made
carpet with a smooth finished back with a very stiff handle. Combining this weaving technique
with his knowledge of high grade wools, the "Nichols Chinese Super Rug" was born. Thick plush
wool rugs like nothing before.
The success of Nichols rugs drove others to copy his
production. Remember that there were hundreds of hand made
carpet "factories" in Northern China. But even Fette and Nichols
"borrowed" designs from each other, and we sometimes see the
same design made with the two different constructions. Both
Fette and Nichols marked their rugs with their name. Normally
with a small 3 inch square piece of fabric sewn into one of the
corners on the back. The tags are almost always gone because
of abrasion and washing, but also because inside the tag, that
worked like a pouch, the companies placed colored wool tufts of all the colors used in the rug.
People would rip off the tags to get to the color samples, so they could u se them to shop for
fabrics. Nichols also stamped his rugs along the white cotton fringe " MADE IN CHINA BY
NICHOLS". The cotton fringe wears faster than the wool pile and is often worn away. I have
only seen this stamp on rugs I thought to be from the 19 30's and later. It is not clear yet if
Nichols stamped his rugs in the 1920's. The only way we know that a rug was made by a
specific company is if it still has it's tag or stamp. I am always interested in photos of any rugs
that still have their stamps or tags, and copies of the tag, so that I can document rugs that can
be attributed to specific companies.
As far as dating a Deco rug, there are no hard and fast rules. But here are some generalities.
Earlier experimental pieces before 1920, were probably wo ven closer to the traditional Chinese
format in the floppy Peking weave. However, there was some production in Tientsin. I suspect
they would have had colors that responded to the the richly colored silks and velvets of the
Victorian period. Since Nichols did not start his business until 1924, it is certainly not correct to
refer to any of these rugs as "Nichols Rugs".
In general, by the 1930's, the American market wanted simpler
floral designs in more pastel or lighter colors. The borders were
also dropped, and the "corner floral" design became popular. In
the 1940's, deeper richer colors became popular again, but for
the most part, the simple corner Floral designs remained. Also
in the 1940's, more French Floral designs became popular. The
finished edge of a rug along the sides is called the selvage. It is
done by the weaver while the rug is on the loom. Early Chinese
rugs have a white cotton selvage. By the 1930's and 1940's,
many rugs were finished with a colored wool selvage that
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matched the wool pile along the edge of the rug. Early Chinese rugs are not carved. They might
be "incised" along the edge of designs though. By the 1940's, deep thick carving became
popular, and these rugs more closely resemble Chinese rugs from the 1980's. Production was
somewhat slowed by Japan's Occupation of Northern China in the early 1940's. So most of the
production happened in the economic boom of the 1920's, slowed some for the Great
Depression, and then picked up again in the 30's until WWII. By 1949, the revolution in China
was complete, and China was for the most part closed to the West. So not as much production
happened in the 1940's. I can think of no reason that Chinese ru gs would have been made
again in Western designs until President Nixon reestablished diplomatic relations with the
Chinese. I must admit though that I am not sure what European countries may have traded with
China in the 1950's and 60's, but none that I kn ow of. Certainly, some rugs must have been
available in Hong Kong, but for the most part, 1948 was the end of Chinese Art Deco rug
production.
So Chinese Art Deco rugs were made from about 1910 to the late 1940's. They were made in
response to specific demands in the home fashion market and filled a specific niche. Anyone
that has period fabrics on their Art Deco furniture, or wall paper on there walls from the 1920's
and 30's, will know why these rugs were so popular.
Allan Arthur
Sources:
"In Search of Walter Nichols" by Elizabeth Bogen, 1996, Museum Books, inc.
"Chinese Rugs: The Fette-Li Company" by Margaret Setton, 1991, Oriental Rug Review
Republished in a new layout 4 October 2005. Copyright to this article and images belongs to
Allan Arthur. The article was first time published at Cyberrug.com.
More Cyberrug links: Original Nichols' pamphlet, Tags and stamps on Art Deco rugs
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Tribal Carpet Festival in Tehran
7 October 2005, Khosrow Sobhe reports:
The First Tribal Carpet Festival was held in Tehran 28
September to 4 October. In this festival, many aspects of the
tribal rugs were exhibited. There were many round tables in
which the experts exchanged ideas on how we can preserve
the culture of rug making in the tribes. Many weavers exhibited
the art of tribal carpet weaving on their horizontal looms.
According to IranMania the director of the National Carpet
Center, Morteza Faraji referred to the positive impact of such
exhibits and said that the carpet industry should be viewed
from various perspectives including safeguarding cultural heritage, economy, job generating
and preventing migration to cities.
Photo courtesy: Rugart.org
Khosrow Sobhe, Sobco International
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Giant Leaf Tapestries - Exhibition in NYC
by Valerie Justin 22 November 2005
A group of Verdure tapestries called Giant Leaf Tapestries is
being shown in New York City. The tapestries are possibly the
earliest renderings of the newly discovered great forested
landscapes of the New World.
To see these exuberant tapestries hanging in a Manhattan
brownstone is to enter into the fantastic once-upon-a-time
landscape that was the Americas circa 1500.The gre at curling
blue green/light green leaves massed against mysterious dark
backgrounds dominate the space - looking carefully one sees
exotic birds; parrots, wild turkeys and herons, vines are
entangled in the dentated or serrated leaves, wild roses are
central in several of the pieces. In “Giant Leaf tapestry with
serrated leaves and hounds” two elegant hounds are Old
World dogs and might have actually accompanied the original
explorers. The explorers, (could the artist have been among
them?), also noted leaves torn and damaged by the feeding
insects and snails shown in natural detail in several of the
tapestries.
Giant Leaf Tapestries were acquired by the rulers of England and Europe. Inventories of Henry
VIII show he owned sets in every palace, as did the Roman Emperor Charles V. Being in a
grand hall in candlelight. its walls completely covered with these powerful natural images, would
have been dramatic - creating the experience of being enclosed in a primeval forest. They were
first woven in the early 1500s after Vasco de Gama and Christofo Colombo had brought fauna
and flora from the Americas to Europe causing an explosion of interest in botany and spawning
the study and understanding of the medicinal properties of plants, and wide interest in their
cultivation.
The absence of historic and religious subjects, the naturalism of these scenes, and the
accuracy of their observation changed the treatment of subject matter in tapestry design.
Replacing the more formal “mille fleur” depictions of frame -filling flowers, proto Giant Leaf
Tapestries appeared; a charming one in the exhibit shows a confrontational lion and griffin of
medieval appearance.
These tapestries are not marked with makers’ names and there are no extant drawings (the
cartoons) – specific knowledge of their birth seems still elusive. They are woven with wool and
silk. The warp count is given as between 11 and 16 threads to the inch.
The exhibition includes complete examples (the longest shown is 13’1” but is only 4’5” wide
because it was woven as a wainscot tapestry to cover a wall above the paneling). Also included
are fragments from large tapestries that had been altered for furnishing bed canopies. The
fragments are beautiful and somehow touching , as I often find fragmented art to be. Acc ording
to the catalogue “frequently the cartoons were over 150 square feet and cumulatively a set
could be over a thousand square feet”.
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Some of the tapestries (there are fourteen) are bordered with simple narrow bands (red is an
effective border color in the first one on view; reds not being prevalent in most of the tapestries possibly due to the higher costs of red-dyed wool and silk.) On the other hand, the border of
Giant Leaf Tapestry with Dentated Leaves is very wide and elaborate, extending into the field
on all sides. It is a stunning frame filled with luscious garlands of fruits and flowers.
As the vogue for Giant Leaf tapestries grew, their production spread - they were woven in small
and large tapestry centers in Flanders and France for most of the 16th century; many of their
weavers migrated to Paris as well as to Germany and Denmark.
In Kronberg Castle in Denmark, a surviving Giant Leaf tapestry shows a rhinoceros along with
exotic birds and other creatures, a mix possibly created by an ar tist without a clear mastery of
the new geographical information. (A live rhinoceros being transported from Goa by a
Portuguese ship had caused a sensation in 1515.)
Other Giant Leafs can be seen at the Louvre, the Victoria and Albert, many museums in
Europe. In the United States they are represented at the Art Institute of Chicago, The Rhode
Island School of Design, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Museum of Fine Arts Boston
included two of them in its 1967 Catalogue of TAPESTRIES. The author states th at “literally
hundreds of similar tapestries survive in public and private collections.” However, this exhibit is,
according to the catalogue, “the first ever devoted to the subject of Giant Leaf tapestries”
The exhibit is the inaugural show at the New York City gallery of S. Franses, the London historic
tapestry and carpet specialist. The excellent catalogue, ‘Giant Leaf Tapestries of the
Renaissance 1500-1600’, includes essays on their development, their revival in the late 19th
century (William Morris was the leading exponent), complete plates with descriptions and
technical information. Available from FRANSES . 132 Eat 61 St. NY NY 10021.
Photo Caption: Detail of Giant Leaf Tapestry with Serrated Leaves and Hounds Catalogue #2
22 November 2005 Valerie Justin
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Preview - Bruun Rasmussen auction 13
December 2005
Bruun Rasmussen International auction 13 December 2005 at 2 pm
includes 161 Oriental rugs, carpets and textiles.
I visited the preview at Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers 27 November
and had the pleasure to meet Henrik Schleppegrell, Bruun Rasmussen'
expert on Oriental rugs and carpets.
Actually Henrik Schleppegrell earlier had sent me images of selected
rugs from this auction ( see International Auction 13 December ) but the visit was a opportunity
to take a few more of my own choice.
Lot 2391 - Tekke Torba ( A pair of Tekke Torbas 110 x 39 cm (2) Estimate
5.000 DKR SOLD 5.000 DKR)
Lot 2453 - Semi-antique Tabriz carpet ca. 1920-40. Estimate 60.000 70.000 DKR. Size 500 x 350 cm. SOLD 90.000 DKR
Lot 2454 - Detail Bakhtiari rug ca. 1930-40. Size 565 x 417 cm. Estimate
80.000 DKR. Not sold.
Lot 2538 - Antique Chinese carpet from the Ningxia Province ca. 1900. Size
306 x 166 cm. Estimate 10.000 DKR. SOLD 22.000 DKR.
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Lot 2460 - 19th century Turkoman maincarpet from the Tekke tribe. Size
225 x 205 cm. Estimate 80.000 DKR. Not sold.
Lot 2481 - Antique Bidjar rug. Ca. 550.000 knots pr. square metre. From the
beginning of the 20th century. Size 2008 x 136 cm. Estimate 20.000 DKR.
SOLD 18.000 DKR.
Find more information at www.bruun-rasmussen.dk
Ivan Soenderholm, Jozan Magazine 27 November 2005 - rev. 19 December 2005.
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Metro Rug Alliance Show in New York City
by Dr. Khosrow Sobhe www.rugidea.com
The second annual Metro Market Week began on Monday,
Sep. 26, 2005 to Friday, Sep. 30, 2005 in New York City and
New Jersey. Seventy five companies participated in the event.
Unlike any other rug show, these importers and wholesalers
held the exhibition in their showrooms and headquarters. The
management of the show and the board members were all rug
dealers and importers of New York and New Jersey area.
MRA, had a participants' list, which was published in the
event's magazine, on the show's website, and other trade
journals. The show had a 64-page full color professional and informative magazine published by
Peter Woodaman, the publisher of Rug Insider magazine.
In the MRA magazine, besides the complete information on all the 77 participants, there were
all kinds of information on the New York/New Jersey region attractions, bus and subway
system, calendar of events, restaurants, airlines and etc.
Many educational and social events, unique incentives and discounts were available only during
the show. Improved transportation in and around the New York/New Jersey region, made the
buying experience even more convenient for the visitors. Discounted hotel rooms at leading
New York/New Jersey hotels were also provided.
In this year's Metro Market Week, and on the second day, Sep.
27, 2005, an exciting Gala Dinner, co-sponsored by
Architectural Digest magazine hosted more than 500 guests. It
included several speeches, prize drawings, and live
entertainment with folk Indian music and dance. Preregistration was required through the website or filling out the
registration form. Five pairs of Broadway Show tickets, and
thousands of Dollars of cash credit prizes were part of the
bonuses which were given away in the dinner gathering.
Many of the visitors were satisfied with the show and believed that they could find rugs that they
would not be able to find in other rug exhibitions. They me ntioned that in the warehouses and
the headquarters, they had more items to select from with a wider variety of items and
collections. Besides the work and rug business, New York is always exciting, attractive and
where the action is. People love to visit the "Red Apple"!
The exhibitors were also satisfied with the volume of sales they had. They did not have to travel
to other cities to set up their booths which would cost them a fortune with the cost of airplane
tickets, cargo transportation, workers, hotels and etc. They remained in their offices and
showrooms, took care of the everyday job and responded to the customers. Each participant
had paid only $3,000 to the MRA to be included in the event. That doesn't look bad at all!
Dr. Khosrow Sobhe www.rugidea.com info@rugidea.com 30 November 2005
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Exhibits at the Textile Museum and the Sackler Gallery
A richly varied day in Washington D.C. December 8, 2005
by Valerie Justin
The three textile exhibits at the Textile Museum and the Ottoman
Costumes at the Sackler Gallery provided a richly varied day in
Washington, D.C. The “richly” applies particularly to the extraordinary
opulence of Style and Status: Imperial Costumes From Ottoman
Turkey.
Read, if you can, the review by Holland Cotter in the December 5th
N.Y.Times. When he describes the “power look favored in 16th
century Turkey” he calls the fashion for oversized overstuffed
outerwear, “the Phat Farm effect turning a person of average build
into a walking sport utility vehicle.”
The more than 60 pieces of sumptuous silk and metallic -thread
embroidery are almost all 16th century and from the Top kapi in Istanbul. Silk clothes such as
these provided a convenient way to show off the wealth and culture of the grand and
cosmopolitan center that Istanbul had become.
For textiles and carpet collectors and afficiandos, the continuity of the basic style of clothing
from its Central Asian Timurid and earlier roots becomes obvious in the caftans and boots of the
exhibit “Silk & Leather – Splendid Attire of Nineteenth-Century Central Asia”. That exhibit, small
and very fine, was guest-curated by John T. Wertime. The exhibition’s fascinating pieces are
from the 19th and early 20th century but the wall labels refer to sources in wall paintings,
miniature paintings and sculptures and coinage as early as 2000 B.C. and after a gap in
information another period in the early A.D. centuries.
The 38 objects are beautiful; made from Uzbeki resist -dyed ikat silk and embellished with
couching and the stitches of local womens’ embroidery work Before the Uzbekis raised their
own silkworms, silk had been acquired by the pastoral nomads from the Chinese. Silk became
an obsession for them and obviously remained obsessional up through the Ottoman period. The
silks in the Ottoman exhibit were mainly of Turkish manufacture; (the velvets, also prominent in
many of the garments, were largely of Italian origin). Also of interest to rug enthusiasts, the
various versions of the cintamani design are displayed in a series of golden garments;
enormous gleaming kaftans woven of golden silk and embroidered heavily in gold -wrapped
threads. one with the cintamani design of three balls in a triangle. another with the curving wave
above one ball- three of them in a huge showcase lit from above. Here is one of them as seen
in the exhibit announcement.
The Textile Museum Silk & Leather is subtitled Splendid Attire of Nineteenth-Century Central
Asia – An Exhibition in Honor of Caroline McCoy-Jones. In addition to the caftans the ancient
traditions survive in caps, hats, boots and belts worn by men and women, girls and boys. These
are shown along with their accessories, all embroidered. The work of the Tajiks, shown in a
child’s tunic and a cap of saturated indigo and deep red, is striking in its dramatic
simplicity.Long, narrow belt-like embroideries are called braid covers but the labels (and
catalogue essay) are unable to explain how they were used in girls’ hairdos. Can anyone help
www.jozan.net
2005
page 61
jozan
John Wertime solve this puzzle? The exhibit catalogue is available from the Textile Museum,
2320 S St.,NW, Washington, DC 20008.
Two other exhibits are currently at the Textile Museum; Rozome Masters of Japan (until
February 12, 2006) displays hangings by contemporary artists in this wax -resist dyeing
technique. The technique has existed in Japan from the 7th c. with the largest early collection
found in the Shoso-in Repository in Nara . Rozome artists now are studio artists working as
painters with personal styles covering the spectrum of styles and experimenting with the
techniques of brush-applied wax and dye directly on the cloth. Textiles from the TM collection
complement the contemporary installation displaying a variety of textiles of various periods with
the other traditional Japanese techniques of wax resist: bound resist, stencil resist and paste line resist.
Gods and Empire: Huari Ceremonial Textiles (until January 15,
2006) would be a splendid exhibit for newcomers to see as an
introduction to the wizardry of early South American textile art.
Although very specialized and curated by Ann Pollard Rowe,
the TM’s expert Curator of Western Hemisphere Collections,
this can be approached for the sheer joy of the iconography
and amazing technical mastery of this 8th-10th century culture.
These are tapestry-woven textiles probably made for religious
and ceremonial use. One of these, in fragmentary condition,
has been reassembled to its full loom size of 10’wideX2’ high,
and a computer produced print on the wall above shows how
the full textile could have appeared. The section shown abov e shows the face of what might
have been a deity figure flanked by winged animal -headed attendants. No records from before
the Spanish conquest are available to interpret the complex iconography of these textiles but
analogies to the later Inca religion are suggested. These textiles, woven in the two phases of
Huari culture included, are exceptional fine; the condition of the cloth and the dyes too are
exceptional. They are awesome and great fun to observe.
December 17, 2005 Valerie Justin
www.jozan.net

The Making of "Dream Weavers - Textile Art from the Tibetan

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