The Ruggist
Archive
Begun as a lark in the summer of 2008 the website of 'The Ruggist' has had many iterations. First as highly irreverent blog, then as a professional website for insightful commentary about rugs and carpets; penultimately it languished as a reflection of times past. If you’ve come looking for past articles, you're now in the correct place, the archive section; however please note the articles categorized as 'archive' are no longer updated, nor maintained in any way, and may contain out of date information.

Archive

Begun as a lark in the summer of 2008 the website of ‘The Ruggist’ has had many iterations. First as highly irreverent blog, then as a professional website for insightful commentary about rugs and carpets; penultimately it languished as a reflection of times past. If you’ve come looking for past articles, you’re now in the correct place, the archive section; however please note the articles categorized as ‘archive’ are no longer updated, nor maintained in any way, and may contain out of date information.

You are encouraged to view the archives as they are intended, as contemporaneous commentary and critique reflective of the time the article was originally published.

Archive

Carpets as Therapy | Firesun Carpets

Upon first reading of ‘The Firesun Story’ as Dena Lawrence the Artist behind their creation calls it, one can be forgiven for jumping to ill formed conclusions regarding carpet making as some form of therapy. Foremost amongst them may be the notion of entitlement one must possess to think mental woes can be healed by having artwork reproduced by people whose own problems transcend an entire range of possibilities well beyond Western realities. That is of course the simpleminded logic of today’s everything is offensive society, whereas the real meaning is far deeper and far more meaningful, if one would simply bother to look.

Archive

Rug Preview 2016 | ICFF

The 2016 installment of the venerable contemporary furnishings show ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair) takes place the 14-17 May 2016 at New York City’s Javits Center. Billed by the organizers as a must see ‘high end luxury’ exhibition, this year’s show is back with a wide ranging selection of rug and carpet styles from some of North America’s (and beyond) premier brands. The Ruggist will be on hand to gauge for not only himself, but for you, which carpets stand-out and which truly live up to the luxury moniker. Here’s a peek at a just few we intend to see.

Archive

‘RUGTHKO’ | cc-tapis

The appreciation of capital ‘A’ Art is rightly very subjective, certainly not without controversy, and most definitely variable with time. What is hot, hot, hot now may be cold, cold, cold as soon as tomorrow. For me, artistic expression – in its various forms – succeeds as Art when disagreement, indifference, and lively spirited conversion dominate the discussion of the objet du jour. Take for example the fantastic irreverent and intellectual conversations presented in Episode Seven (7) of Season Two (2) of Mad Men as they discuss the recent fictional acquisition of the work of Mark Rothko.

Archive

A Couturier of Carpets | Jan Kath

I’ve long been a proponent of drawing comparisons between the world of fashion and the world of rugs and carpets; the appeal is simply too irresistible. Iconic fashion houses producing the absolute finest articles of couture clothing with degrees of customization that, to be frank, can at times be envious, contrasted against the monotony of prêt-à-porter and the one-size-fits-some downmarket world of fast fashion; if only the French had a more vulgar sounding word to convey the harshness that comes with producing inexpensive commodity quality clothing. Or do they? I digress.

Archive

Collectible or Knot: The Value of Handmade Carpets

It doesn’t take much time shopping for a handmade rug or carpet until one will encounter the phrase ‘It’s an investment.’ Usually uttered by a well-meaning salesperson in response to an inquiry regarding the relative expense of the carpet then under consideration, its nuanced meaning is quite oft left intentionally vague and unqualified.

Archive

Different Stripes | Reuber Henning

‘How many striped rugs have we seen before?’ begins REUBERHENNING’s Birgit Krah as if she was the one asking the questions. ‘Some are nice, a lot are boring, but stripes have always been fascinating to me. It’s a timeless pattern found in fashion, furniture, and art, even in nature. Never out, always in, the design remains classic and modern, conservative yet freaky all dependant upon how you wear it or [as is the case with carpets] which apartment we put it in.’

Archive

Iranian Carpet Embargo – The End!

It gives me great joy to announce the United States’ embargo and ban on the importation of Iranian produced rugs and carpets has been lifted. In accordance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 16 January 2016 certified Iran had fulfilled its initial obligations under the JCPOA and thus ‘Implementation Day’ came to pass and with it the end of the embargo. Throughout my lifetime the embargo has been enacted and rescinded on numerous occasions in various efforts to force The Islamic Republic of Iran into compliance with geopolitical ideologies we shall not again discuss; politics, religion, and all that.

Archive

Copyright Footnote!

A wise man would have been prescient enough to have completed this article in time to have published on 2 February 2016, and then, à la façon the wonderfully annoying film ‘Groundhog’s Day’ further belaboured you with yet another long winded diatribe in support of copyright via a now second mention of that film. ‘We won’t find out until we grow…’ to quote that film’s use of the iconic song ‘I Got You babe’. Discussion of my relative wisdom notwithstanding, such an opportunistic article was not meant to be for a great conundrum had beleaguered me since shortly after the publication of my last missive on copyright in the rug and carpet industry entitled ‘No Euphemisms, It’s a Knockoff!’ Only in recent weeks has an acceptable solution presented itself and so, without further adieu, I offer a footnote of sorts on copyright in general, and of course what that means to the rug industry. Apologies in advance for the somewhat tedious and essay like nature of this article; I trust those of you who care about more than just to paying lip service to copyright will find it most intriguing. Enjoy!

Archive

Let’s get Intimate w/Jürgen Dahlmanns

Platitudes have already been written about Rug Star, its outgoing and buoyant bon vivant founder Jürgen Dahlmanns, and the critically acclaimed and award winning carpets which bear the individually hand signed ‘Certificates of Authenticity’ of this now iconic carpet house. To belabour and restate any of his accolades would be to do a disservice to a man who, not unlike myself, sees the world through an intellectual eye that imparts a high degree of emotional context to his work. Unlike The Ruggist however, Mr. Dahlmanns enjoys several of the the benefits of his Teutonic origins.