Fort Street Studio
Fort Street Studio

Fort Street Studio Presents… .

‘A lot of films about carpets follow the same narrative.’ begins Janis Provisor as I speak with her via telephone whilst her and co-principal and co-creative director Brad Davis are on a brief visit to New York City. ‘You typically see spinning, carding, weaving, all the usual makings of a carpet, but we wanted to make things more interesting; to create little vignettes.’ Provisor is referring to a series of short films her firm Fort Street Studio recently commissioned to tell a story with few stipulations and no pre-defined narrative. ‘We more or less gave the filmmakers carte blanche only requiring the films be shot on location in our New York Showroom and that they use our painterly and textural carpets as an inspirational design element. Beyond that, we said ‘Do what you want.”

Over Coffee at Fort Street Studio | Hong Kong

I have long admired the original Wild Silk carpets of Fort Street Studio, especially the latter day ‘Shag’ incarnation which is the stuff of ‘which decadent dreams are made’. The ‘Shag’ however is not what earned the firm their well deserved accolades, nor is it what motivated Hermès in 2010 to tap Fort Street’s joint Creative Directors Janis Provisor and Brad Davis to create a collection of exceptional wild silk carpets for the then new Hermès Maison collection of luxury home furnishings and accessories. That honour, as well the reputation of the firm more broadly, were brought about by the unbridled passion and synergy of two (2) artists – both partners in life and in business – whose combined vision to create something genuinely unique in the world of rugs achieved the rarest of goals: success!

Give Back to Nepal | #givebacktonepal

Nota bene: This post was heavily revised on Tuesday, 28 April 2015 to reflect information available at that time. I spoke with a colleague in Kathmandu earlier this morning and while most of his family are safe, others remain yet to be located. He further reports their homes are destroyed, and the immediate concerns of shelter, food and medicine are top priorities.I would like to stress that many of the efforts listed here will have longer term benefits to Nepal, whereas others benefit the short term needs of the country. Consider donating to organizations with existing infrastructure and the ability to service these immediate needs first, then give to other efforts with longer term impact. Finally, please remember that the long term success of rebuilding will only be helped by your continued business with Nepal. So, to begin again as it were, an uncredited quote from our friends at floordesign in San Francisco via facebook…