The pandemic has taught us in recent months to give space a new face. The limitation of movements made us rediscover the physicality of space, which we have learned to measure challenged on the test bench of social distancing. In the last few weeks how many times have we felt the need to isolate ourselves within our habitats, perhaps sharing with boyfriends, children, parents, roommates? How many times have we lived together in the same environment and dedicated ourselves to different activities? And how many times have we found ourselves on the mat to train or on the living room rug to meditate? The carpet has become for many people a room, a place to cross, to isolate oneself, to hide. After all, over fifty years ago, in “The order of things”, Michel Foucault theorized it by coining the term “heterotopia” to indicate those real places, found in every culture of all times, structured as defined spaces, but “absolutely different” from all other social spaces. If for Foucault utopias are fundamentally unreal and consoling spaces, heterotopias identify themselves in really existing but heterogeneous and sometimes disturbing places: localized utopias that creep into the continuity of physical space creating a substantial discontinuity and defining an illusory space. For Foucault the archetype of heterotopia was the Persian garden, reproduced on oriental carpets. This perspective contributed to changing the perception of contemporary carpets from a decorative accessory to an essential component of interior design. In this photo gallery we propose 10 carpets that combine artisan techniques and manual processing and look at the sustainability of the fibres used from linen to silk, to polypropylene for outdoor use.
The contemporary carpet as a localised utopia
Ten contemporary carpets teach us to measure the space just beyond our body, what Michel Foucault called “heterotopia”.
produced by Amini Carpets
produced by Amini Carpets
produced by Amini Carpets
by Matteo Cibic
produced by Jaipur Rugs
produced by Jaipur Rugs
produced by Mohebban
produced by Mohebban
produced by Mohebban
produced by G.T.Design
produced by G.T.Design
produced by G.T.Design
produced by G.T.Design
produced by Tai Ping
produced by Tai Ping
produced by Tai Ping
produced by Tai Ping
produced by cc-tapis
produced by cc-tapis
produced by Expormim
produced by Expormim
produced by GAN
produced by GAN
produced by GAN
produced by GAN
produced by Illulian
produced by Illulian
produced by Illulian
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- Giulia Guzzini
- 03 July 2020
A fruit of the collaboration between Amini and the archives of the most significant creative figures of the XXth century, the Design Icons collection is now enriched with the art of René Gruau, developed in tandem with, and on behalf of Fede Cheti, the Milanese entrepreneur and designer particularly renowned from the ‘30s to the ‘70s. The new carpets are two: Danza, abstract and Valparaise, figurative.
by René Gruau, developed in tandem with, and on behalf of Fede Cheti
by René Gruau, developed in tandem with, and on behalf of Fede Cheti
An extension of last year's collection designed by Matteo Cibic for Indian carpet brand Jaipur Rugs, Domestic Jungle is inspired by the lush nature of the Andaman Islands, an Indian archipelago in the Bay of Bengal. With this series of rugs, the designer aims to bring home an unexpected landscape traced by the organic lines of plants.
by Matteo Cibic
by Matteo Cibic
Loft is a series of carpets creating entirely by hand that refers to hybrid suggestions. Three are the collection’s macro families: Abstract, All Over e Placed.
Designed by Deanna Comellini, this rug is hand tafted and made of Tencel, one of the most eco-friendly fibres currently on the market, obtained from easily renewable sources, thanks to a production process with low environmental impact from which soft, light and breathable yarns are obtained, which are also biodegradable as cellulose derivatives.
by Deanna Comellini
by Deanna Comellini
by Deanna Comellini
A collection of meticulously hand-knotted wool and silk carpets, Flourish includes ten designs, a collection of studies on the sensuality of flowers, proposed by the Chinese carpet brand Tai Ping. Each piece has its own colour history inspired by the pure and varied tones and shapes of flowers.
Part of the larger Gesture collection, signed together with Patricia Urquiola, Sabine Marcelis, Yuri Himuro and Mae Engelgeer, the Lines carpet series by Philippe Malouin is characterized by a simple palette of white and monochrome. Drawing with wax crayons, Malouin has drawn parallel lines that each weaver has reproduced by working on a different skein of yarn and reproducing the irregularities of the original sketches.
by Philippe Malouin
An undulating outdoor rug designed by MUT design for the Spanish brand Expormim, Link is made from hardwearing polypropylene ropes braided together to form a richly-textured base layer. This is interspersed with a decorative strip of wider rope, forming raised ridges across the body of the rug and a playful scalloped pattern around the edges where it is fed back into the weave.
by MUT design
Belgian designer Charlotte Lancelot has created three new color combinations for her collection of Diamond kilim rugs for the Spanish brand GAN, made of recycled fibers from plastic materials (100% recycled PET). Diamond is now introduced in more natural tones, such as Orange-Wine, Blue-Brown and Green-Grey.
by Charlotte Lancelot
by Charlotte Lancelot
by Charlotte Lancelot
Knotted and carded by hand, Illulian rugs are declined in shades of orange: from vitaminic orange peel, carrot, apricot and pumpkin to tangerine and papaya through coral and fluo.