Vibrant colors dominate intros
Vendors take chances with '02 offerings
By Lissa Wyman -- Furniture Today, January 14, 2002
ATLANTA —
The little brown wren of the rug business has flown the coop. A bird of paradise has soared in as the industry's muse and mascot. No more muddy colors and dull finishes. Goodbye, brown. Hello, red.
Red is more than a color; it's a state of mind. New rugs at this week's Atlanta International Rug Market are as nervy and self-confident as fresh lipstick.
Tribal designs have an intensity and jagged authenticity that defies the conventional wisdom that Americans will only buy rugs that coordinate nicely with furniture.
There is also a fearless commitment to contemporary forms as American rug design struggles to find its own voice, free from the centuries-old dictates of Persian, Moghul and European formalism.
Even traditional looks have a new liveliness. Rug makers are experimenting with scale, often using both large and small motifs simultaneously. Borders sometimes take on new importance or disappear entirely. Fringe, short and neat as a crew-cut, is making a comeback.
After a decade of double-digit growth, 2001 was a year of stagnant sales, crippling retail bankruptcies and political unrest or war in many rug-producing countries.
It would be easy to play it safe. Instead, the rug industry has decided to go for broke.
The tribal eye
Geometric shapes that reveal the hand of the craftsman speak to the collective unconscious of every culture. The rough-hewn nomadic look is a counterpoint to the polished perfection of ornate Oriental design. The new popularity of tribals signals the return of the rich hippie as well as an interpretation of Southwestern contemporary.
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MOMENI Gabbeh tribal weaving is part of a one-of-a-kind collection handknotted in Iran, $1,500 to $2,500 in approximate 6' by 9'.
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AMS IMPORTS Ayachucho collection of Peruvian rugs, hand woven in the Andes in 100% sheep or llama wool, $1,100 in 5'6"by 8'.
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KAS ORIENTAL RUGS Mohave series is hand- woven in India of 100% natural hemp fiber, $149 in 5' by 8'.
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Seeing red
Red and all its relatives are brightening up the once drab rug showrooms of the Atlanta Mart. Ruby, fire engine and madder-brick red are joined by cousins such as plum, rust and orange. It's an equal opportunity trend that permeates every design category from the most traditional to the most contemporary.
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HAROUNIAN RUGS INTERNATIONAL Royal 975 has a claret red border juxtaposed against a wheat colored ground. The traditional Persian design is hand knotted in India, $3,250 in 6' by 9'.
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COURISTAN Tree of Life is a classic pattern that looks fresh in a life-affirming ruby red. Part of the Gem collection, machine made of New Zealand wool, $699 in 5'5" by 8'3".
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NOURISON Deceptively simple, devilishly complex. The rich co-mingling of colors bring a pared down luxury to Crimson Haze design. Hand- tufted of wool and silk, $2,400 in 5x8.
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SAFAVIEH Elegant in its simplicity, the chunky Tibetan knot construction combines traditional hand weaving technique with streamlined contemporary design. Hand-knotted wool.
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Bare bones contemporary
These rugs reflect a new austerity in design, stripped clean of triviality. Pattern is pared down to essence. Textures are tactile rather than visual. Color complexities are subtle, not overt. Taut energy.
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SPHINX-OASIS The Environments hand-tufted collection in Sphinx's new Oasis division evokes both the lore of the Southwest and the urban energy of The Bauhaus. Canyon design juxtaposes stripes and boxes. $599 in 5'6" by 8'6".
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MER Nicholas has an asymmetrical outside-the-box appeal that has the refinement of Italian contemporary design combined with a casual American appeal. Hand knotted of wool, $1,399 in 5'6" by 8'6".
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TRANS OCEAN Inca Path uses bands of stripes in varying proportions to create a hypnotically rhythmic field of design based on pure geometry. Hand tufted in India of 100% wool, $399 in 5' by 8'.
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Wild things
They can be startling and unsettling, but they are compelling. Far out designs that experiment with scale, color and forms are meant to pierce our jaded consciousness and open new styling directions.
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MOREN/CORINTHIAN DIVISION Designer Linda Jacobs puts an overlay of Greek and Roman antiquities on images of 20th century abstract expressionists in this study in blacks, greys and beiges. Hand tufted in India of wool, $799.
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EBISONS HAROUNIAN Large-scale multicolor feathers float on a snowy stylized honeycomb ground. Is it provenance Native American? Chinese? Indian? Hand knotted in India of wool, $1,699.
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The new traditionalists
Rug design was once governed by rules that no one dared question. Now the strict world of traditional styling is warming to new ideas that remain faithful to the spirit but not always the letter of the old laws. Building on ancient standards of symmetry and balance, these rugs are modernized with fresh concepts of scale, color and non-traditional mixes of figurative motifs.
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828 INTERNATIONAL TRADING Based on 16th century Indian design, the distinctive large-scale Mahal pattern is colored in 21st century plums and gold. Handknotted of New Zealand wool, $799 in 5' by 8'.
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ORIENTAL WEAVERS USA More is always more for Raymond Waites. The Vintage collection has the rococo-Waites touch that combines animal skins with European architectural motifs. Woven of 100% heatset olefin $299 in 6' by 9'.
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CENTRAL ORIENTAL LaSalle from the Regal collection has the unique combination of a double border plus an all-over Persian floral design. Machine made in Belgium of 100% Exellan polypropylene, $299 in 6' by 9'.
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SHAW RUGS Susan Welsh Portfolio collection brings a painterly gesture to patterns that have formal balance but are not confined by traditional Oriental rug figurative motifs. Machine woven of nylon, $430 in 5' by 8'.
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