The largest-ever Rug Show opens at the Javitz on Sept. 7 introducing new rug exhibitors, and hosts a roster of must-see design seminars with top designers and dealers as panelists.
NEW YORK -- The seventh installment of the annual Rug Show, opening this weekend at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, will be the largest to date and features a roster of new exhibitors, a first-time HALI Antique Pavilion and a slate of must-see design seminars.
Among the debuting area rug participants are Alpine Rug, KCEC (Kabul Carpet Export Center), Kehkashan Rugs, Knots Rug, Thirty Six Knots and Turkmen Rugs. This doesn't include new Antique Pavilion exhibitors, which encompass both inaugural Rug Show participants and returning exhibitors showcasing their antique and vintage area rugs at the show's first-ever Antique Pavilion (read full story).
Rug Show newcomer Thirty Six Knots brings its Canadian label south. Shown, a design from Neuva Classic.
"Seminars have become a vital part of our offering at The Rug Show; they have become an opportunity to share the skill set of our very talented community of designers, producers and experts in sales and distribution," said show founder Ramin Mobayan. "Many are in this industry because they are passionate about area rugs and we want to cultivate and encourage that passion."
The fall 2019 Rug Show also includes a full roster of CEU accredited Design Seminars in partnership with Cover magazine that are scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 8 and Monday, Sept. 9. (Register here).
THE RUG SHOW NEW YORK DESIGN SEMINARS
Panelists participating in the seminars include leading interior designers and fine dealers, from top left, Christiane Millinger,Drew McGukin, James Ffrench, Oscar Tatosian. Bottom row, Charles Pavarini, Keith Baltimore, and David Adler.
Intimacy by Rug Star: Relationship & Innovation
Sunday, Sept. 8 from 3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m.
A panel of leaders in the hand-made rug industry will discuss their participation in the Intimacy Project with Berlin's hand-knot studio Rug Star, and how the project re-imagined the dynamics between supplier and seller. Featured panelists: Jürgen Dahlmanns, director Rug Star; Christiane Millinger, director Christiane Millinger Rugs & Textiles; David Adler, director David E. Adler Fine Rugs; and Oscar Tatosian, director Oscar Isberian Rugs.
The Power of the Rug
Monday, Sept. 9 from 1 p.m.-2 p.m.
This discussion takes a comprehensive look at the power of a rug to transform a room. Each panelist will speak to their design practice and the process of selecting a rug. Features Taylor van der Mandele, VP Stark Studio Rugs; Bonnie Sutton, managing director Knots Rugs; Charles Pavarini, III, president Pavarini Design; Drew McGukin, interior designer, Allied member ASID; and Keith Baltimore, interior designer, Baltimore Design Group.
Who Made It? The Real Makers of Design
Monday, Sept. 9 from 3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m., followed by free cocktail party in the Cover Lounge
A panel of leaders from the field of social enterprise and sustainability get real on the impact of supply chain and where we sit as makers, designers, sellers and consumers. Panelists include James A. Ffrench, director of Beauvais Carpets; Matthew Bourne, co-founder Christopher Farr Carpets; Reto Aschwanden, managing director of Label STEP; Sanjay Purohit, director carpet sales, Turquoise Mountain; and Susan Inglis, director, Sustainable Furnishings Council.
RUG SHOW NEWCOMERS
ALPINE RUG
Alpine Rug, Fine Aryana by Turkmen weavers in northern Afghanistan
San Francisco-based Alpine Rug will showcase its selection of hand-made area rugs crafted in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Rug Show's shoppers will be able to browse Alpine's selection of tribal, traditional, modern and contemporary rugs woven by the Turkmen weavers. All rugs are made of hand-carded and hand-spun wool using vegetable dyes.
KCEC
KCEC debuts at the Rug Show highlighting hand-made rugs crafted in Afghanistan.
The Kabul Carpet Export Center (KCEC), a program designed to create jobs in Afghanistan by facilitating the purchase of area rugs by importers and wholesalers, takes a booth at the upcoming Rug Show New York. KCEC was established late last year (read full story) by carpet industry veterans Rob Leahy, Richard Ringrose, Alex Zahir and Stephen Landrigan working together as Impact Carpet Associates, LLC, headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina.
KEHKASHAN RUGS
Kehkashan Rugs, hand-knot Turkman medallion design
Also based in San Francisco and showcasing its range of Turkman area rugs is newcomer Kehkashan Rugs. The company will showcase a range of tribal, traditional and contemporary rugs woven of hand-carded and hand-spun wool using vegetable dyes from its weaving centers in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
KNOTS RUG
Knots Rug, Your Floor is the Canvas collection, Blue Fin rug, a collaboration with abstract artist Arthur Lanyon.
London's Knots Rugs brings its cutting-edge contemporary hand-knotted rugs to the Rug Show at Javits for the first time. Produced in Nepal and Jaipur, India, using the finest quality Tibetan Bikaner highland wool, Chinese silk and nettle, Knots Rugs' designs are crafted with traditional weaving techniques into innovative statements for the home.
Bonnie Sutton, a panelist at the 2019 Rug Show and a company principal, leads the studio's design team, along with designers Linny Moss and Elsa Kretzschmar. Knots Rugs currently curates 10 collections ranging from its witty 17th Century Modern series to its Knots Artist collaborations with leading fine artists.
THIRTY SIX KNOTS
Thirty Six Knots, City Lights collection, NYC
Bespoke Toronto area rug atelier Thirty Six Knots will highlight its contemporary collaborations that often are a partnership between interior designers, graphic designers and weavers in India. The company's rugs range from comfortable home accents to spectacular showpieces in styles that include abstract, organic graphic, shibori-inspired and modernized classic looks. The name Thirty Six Knots is a tribute to the world's oldest carpet -- the Pazyryk carpet discovered in the Altai Mountains in Siberia -- which featured 36 symmetrical knots per centimeter, or in modern terminology, a Turkish knot.
TURKMEN RUGS
Turkmen Rugs brings its range of hand-knotted tribal area designs to the Rug Show for the first time.
Turkmen Rugs, based in San Francisco, owned by the founder of Noor and Sons Rug Gallery, collaborates with Turkoman Afghan weavers and refugees in Pakistan to produce its hand-crafted rugs. The company also imports hand-crafted rugs from other major weaving centers, including India, Iran, Turkey and Turkmenistan. Among the styles of rugs offered by the company are Noor, Mamluk, Ersari, Oushak, Turkmen, kilim and contemporary designs.