Eclectic and Earthy in NYC

Loving on this eclectic and down to earth space from our recent install in a NYC apartment.

The feel is clean, modern, and minimal with natural textures and reflective surfaces juxtaposing dark accents and plush fabrics.

There’s something about the way that Chinese Deco carpets pair with crushed velvet couches that has a sophisticated air about it. The soft warm tones and minimal dark accents of the rug make it a perfect fit for this room. 

Love the look? Here’s some comparables for you to swoon over. 

Let us know if you love one enough to try it at home!

The Whiteley, London | Kelly Behun Studio

As seen in Wallpaper Magazine, Kelly Behun was asked to design the first model residence at The Whiteley – housed in a historic former department store near Hyde Park, London – and reimagined by Foster + Partners Architects into a project comprised of 139 apartments as well as a Six Senses hotel & spa; all a short walk from Hyde Park.

Kelly used Chinese carpets in a few of the spaces – the perfect accompaniment to her punchy and eclectic style. Bold color and reflective surfaces juxtapose soft tones and subtle textures for a cohesive space which communicates harmony through contrast.

The moody sophistication of color rich spaces connect with the peacefully cultured opposition of the living areas - a yin and yang of energies for work and life. Richly subdued colors in the artwork, the accents, and the carpets bridge the two vibes.

Ready to get bold in your home? Here’s a whole pile of comparables for you to bring that Kelly Behun look to your floor.

Contact us when you’re ready. ;)

Mid 19th Century Central Asian NingXia Carpet

24013

Ningxia North Central China

17’10”  x 17’10”

C. 1850

Warp: cotton, off white, handspun, Z-4-S

Weft: cotton, off white, handspun, 2 shoots alternating

Pile: wool, 3 strand, handspun

Knot: asymmetric, open left, 48 knots per square inch

Sides: one cord, offwhite cotton wrapped

End: no original finish

This is a particularly large example of a Mandarin official’s carpet with a central medallion displaying nine lion dogs collectively symbolic of success on the national Chin Shih examination which provided guaranteed entry into the national administrative bureaucracy and the wealth devolving therefrom.  The nine lion dogs are a rebus for success in the national bureaucracy. The apricot ground features 11 full or partial rows of tree peonies, flower and stem. This carpet is particularly large and clearly was made for a highly placed official or the wealthy family of a recent graduate of whom great things were expected. The principal was probably Buddhist as indicated by the embroidered ball and precious objects in the medallion. The clouds surrounding the lion dogs form a broken, polychrome circle rather than the usual continuous cloud wreath. This is one of the several features indicating a bespoke order rather than a piece made for the market.

Another indicator is the exceptional size, as the standard square Ningxia Mandarin carpet is about 12 to 14 feet square. The main border continues the color combination, with a now apricot ground and peonies among floral arabesques. The blue inner stripe is unusual with butterflies alternating with paired peaches of longevity. Surrounding the whole is a wide, dark blue plain band. The drawing is balanced in all directions, with nothing cut off or left incomplete.

The medallion has three peony rows below and four above, but it seems well centered.  To have added another row at the bottom would have been technically more correct, but it would have made the carpet less than square, and squareness was an essential requirement. The notion that these square carpets were made for conforming dais platforms can be dismissed on an even cursory look at traditional Chinese houses. There are no daises. The only dais platforms are in the Forbidden City Imperial throne rooms and this is not an Imperial rug.

The condition is extraordinary. Such carpets were woven for the largest room of the house, the ancestor hall, and brought out only on important occasions like funerals, weddings, visits or holidays. Otherwise, they were rolled up and stored away. The handle is particularly thick and solid, and indicates a turn away from the softer and looser characteristic earlier Ningxia weave. Very few large Ningxia carpets are known and even fewer are in this exceptional state of perfect preservation.

The peony is a traditional Chinese carpet design, but it is usually combined with butterflies, bats, fretwork or other elements. The close and allover display of peonies is very unusual. The flower heads reverse direction at the approximate horizontal middle of the carpet. The carpet was originally more of a lacquer red as indicated by the verso. The logwood dye has, as is usual for Chinese carpets, changed to a mellow apricot. 

As is standard, Ningxia carpets are not dated or inscribed, and it would be impossible to ascertain the original patron of the piece.  In any case, his dwelling would have been most substantial with an ancestor hall twenty or more feet in width. The intended owner would have been highly placed in any case.

The exact workshop practices of the dozen or so workshops active at the time are not known, but the weavers, Hui Muslims, worked on vertical looms. Whether they employed partial cartoons for this exceptional piece is unknown, but it surely was well supervised. The central medallion probably had some sort of graphic guide, however.

Written by Dr Peter Saunders.
To view this rug on our website, click here.

Game Boards on Chinese Rugs

In the world of Chinese rugs we find a subgrouping in which seemingly inanimate objects are pictorially portrayed in a couple of ways. Wether these objects float around the field, or are visually arranged as a still life, it is clear that their continued usage over time pegs them as not inanimate, but rather objects of historical or cultural importance. These objects tell a story about history and tradition, and are symbols of cultural pride.

In this post we will look specifically at game boards, in particular the game of Go (Weiqi) – an abstract strategy board game in which the aim is to surround more territory than your opponent. The game was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago and is believed to be the oldest board game continuously played through present day. If that’s not something to be proud of, I don’t know what is.

“The standard Go board has a 19×19 grid of lines, containing 361 points. Beginners often play on smaller 9×9 and 13×13 boards, and archaeological evidence shows that the game was played in earlier centuries on a board with a 17×17 grid.”

wikipedia

Similarly, the game of Fangqi is played traditionally in Northern China as a training tool for Weiqi. Board sizes for this game vary by region – with NingXia employing a 7×8 grid, and Xinjiang utilizing a 7×7 grid for example. The rules may also vary depending on the size of the board, but the basics remain constant throughout place and time.

I suppose the real question is, can the grid size of the boards displayed be used as a point of reference to aid in the proper categorization of a carpets’ origin? After copious amounts of hours counting grid squares of board games on rugs, I have determined that the answer is generally no. The size of the grid seems to align more with the overall size of the carpet rather than its place of origin, and a 6×6 grid seems to be the most standard configuration in the woven representation of the game.

Regardless of the accuracy of visual representation, the fact that this board is most often displayed with other objects of cultural importance (such as calligraphic tools, scrolls, and pottery) it is obvious that this is a symbol of pride for an ancient culture who’s contributions to society have endured the test of time.

Peking Chinese Silk and Metal Thread Rug

Stock ID: 23742

Peking Chinese Silk and Metal Thread Rug

Peking, Northeast China

4’ x 7’

Early 20^th Century

Silk pile of Asymmetric Knots with Gold Metal Thread Brocading

Inscribed: “For Palace of Harmony usage only”

Most of the silk and metal thread rugs, ostensibly, according to their inscriptions, made for the Imperial palaces in the Forbidden City, display five writhing, scaly dragons, one central and full faced, the others more in profile in the corners, all executed in knotted silk pile on flat-woven gold grounds.  This one, in perfect condition, shows a meditating Buddha with an enormous flaming halo, seated in a Lotus Position, between stipple shaded rocky mounds displaying irises/ peonies.  Above is an umbrella signifying royalty, and scattered about are cloud bands, cloud knots and precious objects including: a cord knot, vase, wheel and scroll (?).  At the bottom of the field is a scalloped and frothy sea with curling surf and droplets of foam.  The usual stylized mountain rising from the waves is absent, replaced by a wave peak.  Out of the sea climbs a vine supporting the Buddha’s lotus seat.  The Buddha holds some sort of fruit, perhaps a citron or pomegranate, in his left hand, with the other lowered in the position of Calling the Earth to Witness.  He is crowned and wears a double jeweled collar with a pendant ornament.  His chest is exposed, but otherwise he is robed.  The top knot on his head (urna) is consistent with the usual Buddha iconography.

This rug looks to be taken directly from a Buddhist thangka hanging scroll.  It was clearly designed as a wall-hanging, and displays none of the usual symmetries of even the most luxurious Chinese dragon silks.  There are the remains of hanging loops on the upper plain-weave end band.  The main red border shows tilted flowers somewhere between chrysanthemums and peonies, connected by leafy arabesques.  The central border shows a T-fret pattern with simple knot corners.

The originally bright gold ground has tarnished to an attractive brownish tone.  The metal thread is composed in the usual Chinese manner: with gold leaf adhered to a paper substrate and then wrapped around a silk core.  Metal thread without a silk core tends to break and cannot be woven smoothly.  The silk pattern stands in relief against the metal thread ground much as in Persian Souf technique rugs.  The combination of silk pile and metal ground is found on antique Kashgar carpets from Xinjiang, but the use of the technique in Peking seems to be a circa 1900 innovation.  The weave is medium and extremely even.

To view this rug on our website, click here.

North China Main Hall Carpet

#20993

Main Hall Carpet

Probably Suiyuan, North China

Early Nineteenth Century

8’5” x 11’10”

Structural Analysis:

Warp: cotton, off white, natural, Z-4-S;

Weft: cotton, off white, natural, Z-6-S, Z-7-S, loosely plied,2 shoots alternating, equally slack-wavy;

Pile: wool, Z-2, thin yarn, granular surface texture;

Knot: Pl/0 degrees alternate warp depression/horizontal 5 per inch x 5 per vertical inch = 25 per square inch;

Sides: 2 cords each of two body warps, weft attached; closely weft covered in figure eight style;

Ends: not original;

Weft/knot ratio:50/50, a few weft wedges in outer border along edges.

Remarks:

The oatmeal field has an overall pattern of bats, knots and shou discs and is clearly adapted from a silk brocade textile pattern. The textile patterning continues in the main border where a swastika fret on a terracotta ground displays cartouches with a non-repeating series of silk brocade sections. There is a T-fret inner border with neatly turned corners and a pearled innermost stripe.

There are a few comparanda to 20993 to be noticed.  One appeared in the Yamanaka Sale, American Art Association, NY, 7-8.1. l909, lot 142, 4.11 x 8.8 with an old ivory field one way patterned with bats and peaches.  The inner border was also pearled while the main displayed cartouches with Taoist symbolic objects alternating with reserves enclosing knots (bought by Topalyan for $370) interestingly, #20993 is also ex-Yamanaka, sold at his sale, AAA,4-7. l2. 1929, lot 769 (for $275). The size given there is 8.1 x 11.9, probably a slight mis-measurement of the width as the picture is identical with 20933.

There are several cogent reasons to doubt a Ningxia origin. The Z-6,7-S wefts with relatively fine individual strands differ from the more usual Ningxia Z-4 (or occasionally Z-2 or 3) yarns with thick and irregular component strands.  The selvage, though Ningxia in general setup, is far more completely covered than the usual sparse, quick Ningxia edges. The pile wool has a particularly granular and almost coarse texture with thicker individual fibers. The pile of Ningxia carpets is generally silkier and softer. The knots are more discrete.  The general surface impression is visually and tactually distinct from the overwhelming run of Ningxia pieces.  The field tone is not Ningxia off white, but a shade closer to pale tan, it was never yellow.  The 1929 catalogue also calls it “tan”.  The madder derived terracotta in the border is not usually found in Ningxia pieces.  In general, then the facture significantly diverges from that expected in Ningxia rugs.

It has been asserted [fn. Hongqui] that students/workers from Matuo Akhun’s shop in Ningxia migrated to, among other places, Suiyuan in the early 18^th century to establish their own carpet ateliers.  They would have taken learned shop practices with them, modifying them to fit differing materials and clienteles.  The hand never lies: the actual production methods would be carried over while the more superficial pattern aspects might vary more.  

The verso on a quick look appears Ningxia, but a closer perusal reveals variations that sow doubts in the mind of the observer.  Suiyuan might be a viable attribution.  Although Suiyuan is best known for “grains of rice” patterned pieces in 4’ by 6’ or 5’ by 8’ sizes, there is no reason that a commissioned special order piece could not have been larger.  A close comparison to other rugs usually assigned to Suiyuan would be useful here.

The carpet was acquired by the present owners and had sustained severe moth damage in the borders.  It has been sympathetically restored and now can be definitively compared with the 1929 catalogue illustration, whereby the identity of the two pieces is established. Provenance: ex-collection Yamamnaka; sold at his sale, AAA Galleries, NY, 4-7.l2. l929, lot 769, for $275.

To view this rug on our website click here.

Variation of Mandarin Nine Lion Dog Carpet

#20853

Main Hall Carpet

11’9” x 12’

Mid 18^th  Century

Structural Analysis:

Warp:cotton,off-white,natural,Z-4-S,somewhat irregular;

Weft:cotton,off-white,Z-4-S,winder plied, quite irregular;2 shots alternating; wefts thick and soft;

Pile:wool,Z-4;

Knot: PL/0 degrees warp depression/horiz. 6 x vertical 5 = 30 knots per square inch; knots somewhat irregular, some quite thin; [check for T knots along edges]

Sides: two cords each of two body warps, inner directly weft-attached; figure eight sparsely weft yarn wrapped;

Weft/knot ratio: 60/40 wefts predominant.

Remarks:

This is another variant on the popular Mandarin nine lion dog carpet.  The polychrome cloud wreath has exuberant, almost Baroque volutes at the four cardinal points.  The intermediary wreath sections were in field tones and have faded, making the composition rather hard to discern: the wreath would have been more salient before the changes to the long, curved, intermediate sections.

The dominant, dark blue lion dog appears at the top of the medallion and has a wide, particularly expressive face, complete with character creases and a canine snout.  The dog has real personality and individuality, unlike most of the animals in similar carpets. The main dog is alert and lively, with curved and slightly droopy ears.  All the dogs have light colored forepaws and small over pelts.  The creatures are well spaced and not crowded in the medallion.  The protected (protégé) dog is particularly small.  The main dog seems to have no parallels among published carpets and were any to appear, an attribution to the same workshop should be considered.

#18830 NingXia 15’0″ x 15’3″ circa 1770

The corners of the field employ double peony arabesques forming simplified “heart” points at the right angles.  The development here is much more schematic than l8830 and need not indicate the same workshop of origin.  Sprays of tree peonies, butterflies, leafy twigs, fractional tendrils and grassy clusters are spotted throughout the now buff field.

The dark blue peony main border is notable for the rare diagonal corner palmettes from which emanate foliate sprays in both directions in order to make a perfectly symmetric turn.  A bold T-fret inner border in salmon and dark blue has neat T’s in three corners and a single hook in one.  This is a certain indicator, if one is still needed, that no scale paper cartoons were available to the weavers.  Specifically, there was no formal illustration of how to make a fret border turn a corner.

#18355 NingXia 13’6″ x 13’10” circa 1750

As with our other examples, this nine dog main hall carpet was probably woven to the order of a successful Mandarin administrator.  Each of our large lion dog carpets seem to originate in a different shop, although 20853 and l8355 may be more clearly related than the others.  The extreme technical uniformity across the entire local industry deprives us of any unique idiosyncrasies and hence pattern is the sole evidence for differentiation.  One must also keep in mind that the same shop evolved over time, producing different carpets for different clients, changing the design pool when useful and implying a rotating work staff.

To view this rug on our website, click here.

Peking Carpet with Adapted Silk Textile Design

#19307

Beijing Carpet

Northeast China

370 x 417 cm

Circa 1880’s

The field design on this top condition antique Peking (Beijing) carpet is adapted from silk brocade textiles.

The beige field displays a taupe-rust allover pattern of grape leaves and short, curled arabesque segments accented by coiled, archaic navy dragons and tiny rosettes. The dragons center lightly defines eight lobed medallions.

The central dragon and its encircling double medallion are somewhat larger than the others. The dragons are in a 17^th century Ningxia style and ultimately depend on ancient archetypes on bronzes and ceramics.

The medallions are arranged in a 2-3-2-3-2-3-2 layout. The pattern stops just at the border frame and does not pass under it.

The ivory main border alternates ecru stencil-style lotus palmettes with bi-tonal medium blue and navy vine leaves, with attached tendrils. The plain outer border is in a rusty taupe shade.

There is light carving throughout to accentuate the pattern. The foundation is all cotton, and the Tibetan wool pile is of excellent quality. The handle is relatively pliable, and the texture is thick and meaty. This carpet has no repairs and is in top condition.

To view this rug on our website, click here.

Remarks on 2 Ningxia Daybed Covers or Small K’ang Format Rugs

#19168

Daybed Cover or Small K’ang Format Rug

Ningxia, North Central China

4’8” x 7’6”

Circa 1800

Structural Analysis:

Warp: cotton, off white, natural, Z-4-S, tightly plied;

Weft: cotton, off white, natural, Z-3,4-S, winder plied; two shoots alternating; some sections of weft passages fat and irregular;

Pile: wool, Z-3, Z-4;

Knot: PL/no alternate warp depression/6 per horizontal inch x 5 ½   per vertical inch = 33 per square inch [check for T knots along edges]

Weft/knots: 60/40.

Remarks:

The most interesting aspect of this Ningxia rug is the underlying allover pattern on the salmon buff (originally red) ground. Five scalloped medallions in a 2-1-2 layout are composed of peonies and sprays enclosing central fret elements. The larger, central motif on a yellow ground has peonies and sprays matching those of the lemon-yellow main border. Here the central device centers on a rosette. The subsidiary medallions are more overtly cruciform.

All these medallions are simply overlaid on a field of irregularly colored, but evenly positioned rosette dots. The continuous overall pattern passes beneath the medallions and borders. They do not interact with or attach to the textile spot pattern. These dots are a pile rendition of the effect produced by tie-dyeing nodes of fabric: The Chinese pu-lo technique. Although this attractive effect easily lends itself to rugs, actual surviving antique pieces seem to be quite rare and we have not been able to locate another early example in literature.

All four main border sections are symmetric out from their respective centers. The side borders have a “M” as midpoint while the end stripes employ peonies instead. The corners of the main border are formed from floriated sprays, the end ones compressed, and the side ones stretched. The salmon “T” fret inner border has more problems at the corners: there are three distinct attempts at resolution and only one at the top right and bottom left is successful.

In general, 19168 looks older than 20978 (seen below) and has a wholly distinct verso.

To view rug 19168 on our website, click here.

#20978

Daybed or Small Kang Formal Rug

Ningxia, North Central China

4’ 10”x 6’9”

circa 1800

Structural Analysis:

Warp:cotton,white,natural,Z-4-S,tightly twisted;

Weft: cotton, grey-white, mostly Z-4-S,some Z-2,3-S,winder plied, very soft and thick; two shoots alternating, straight to slack; some wefts more compacted than others;

Pile:wool,Z-3 or 4;

Knot: PL/no warp depression/horiz.5 x vertical 5 = 25 knots per square inch
[check for Knots along edges]

Sides: 1 cord of two body warps, closely weft covered;

Ends: n.o;

Weft/knot ratio:50/50 to slight knot predominance.

Remarks:

Irregular verso, large knots.

Ningxia rugs are not usually dark blue. This charming small rug has a broad circular lotus (or peony?) wreath encircling a central pair of lion dogs, the smaller clinging to the back of the larger. The lion dog of 20978 is distinctly roll-poly and friendly, not fierce or even barking. The lotus wreath is itself a collage, featuring lotus palmettes, intermediate peony leaf sprays and tiny fretwork sections.

The medallion is bracketed at each end by five tree peonies graded in size and framed by fret corners, each with two dragon heads. The overall effect is not far from the slightly larger Moore-Mumford no.285 daybed example, also with a dark blue ground. Here there are five peonies at each end of the field and a simple, singe larger polychrome cloud wreath around two distinct lion dogs.

The border of no.285 is a classic peony or lotus “S” pattern, whereas in 20978 there are thick dark blue leaves and diagonal small flowers in the scrollwork.  The field peonies of the two rugs are similarly stylized and geometric. The leaves and stems of 20978 are, however, more naturalistic than the correspondents of no.285.  In particular, the two-tone leaves of the latter are stiffer and less convincing than those of 20978.

The Moore-Mumford dog was rather optimistically dated to the late Kang-Hsi period, perhaps on the basis of the brocade pattern inner border, but given what is now known of the c.1700 design revolution in Ningxia, a date not far from 1800, or at least in the last quarter of the l8th century is much more possible.

To view rug 20978 on our website, click here.

Rugs of the Week

Chinese Art Deco Minimalism

Today, minimalism reigns in much of the decorative carpet world. No borders, no traditional patterns, no classic design protocols. It is all so new, or is it? You might be surprised to discover that border less carpets, with minimal or even no patterns, in monochrome colors, were a considerable design thing in America in the 1930’s. The Great Depression affected domestic carpet demand. A flood of Persian goods shouldered aside the dominant Chinese carpets in the 1930’s and exports plummeted. Prices fell and manufacturers’ cost had to be reined in. This meant less design and faster weaving times, reducing labor costs. The trend from jazzy 1920’s Art Deco to more hard edged, more graphic 1930’s Art Deco can be seen in carpets from both European and Chinese sources.

Nichols was the leading, most stylish of the American firms in Tientsin, and most attuned to decorative trends. This group of progressively more minimalist Nichols antique Chinese Art Deco carpets is the result. One of the first things is to eliminate the borders, producing a uniform single allover tonality. On this is laid an asymmetric, two corner pattern.  In our number 20288 (11’9″x 8’10”, 1920), the saturated navy ground is open except for two mountain “coins” in one corner and one diagonally across. These are most subtly embedded in tone-on-tone striated segments. The rich midnight ground does the talking here, a minimalism with a real presence.

Chinese Art-Deco Rug #20288, Size 11’9″ x 8’10”

Minimalism does not have to mean self effacing. Orange-pink, never found in nature,  gives a real punch to our 22091 (12’0″x9’0″, c. 1920) with bamboo fret and writhing dragon  diagonally opposed in the corners. The same tonality appears in number 22131 (15’10″x12’0″, early 1900) which is totally without any pattern, no secondary colors. This is as minimalist as you can get, except the tonality is not. Today, minimalist means taupe, tan, beige, ivory, straw or some other non-color, totally inoffensive, total ignorable. You just can’t ignore Deco Chinese minimalist carpets.

Chinese Art Deco Rug #22091, size 12’0″ x 9’0″

Almost as restrained in pattern is our royal blue carpet number 22616 (13’2″x10’0″, early 1930) with a design wholly delineated by carving alone. The color is magnificent and the subtle pattern makes the viewer’s eye work a bit, which should happen when appreciating a work of art. A close-up picture gives an idea of the subtle style of this piece.

Chinese Art Deco Rug #22616, size 13’2″x10’0″

Finally, two carpets with the same open fields, and geometric bud and rectangle opposite corners are number 20997 (11’4″x8’8″ c. 1930, royal blue) and 21781 (11’3″x8’6″, c. 1930, cardinal red) are wholly in the 30’s style, sharply drawn with a pars-pro-toot rendering of floral ornament. The corners cannot be ignored, but the almost minimalist fields easily dominate.

Chinese Art Deco Rug #20997, size 11’4″ x 8’8″

Chinese Art Deco Rug #21781, size 11’3″x8’6″

What these and other “minimalist” antique Art Deco Chinese carpets have in common are strong, saturated tonalities, superb physical texture and real personalities. Nothing wishy washy or non-committal about them. They have a commanding  presence. Thus minimal need not be synonymous with invisible or ignorable. They worked with Art Deco furniture, the first Western unornamented furnishing style and they will work with whatever you throw at them!.