Description

An antique over-size Oushak that captures the contrast between the feelings of a classical urban and a village tribal rug perfectly and balances it with graceful inventiveness. Its large scale all over floral design may be inspired by the classical motifs of Persian city rugs, yet coming from a place of long and distinguished tradition of rug making, this Oushak rug manages to convey a character completely of its own that is at once bold and whimsical, sophisticated and chic.

The large, angular and slightly zoomorphic outlines of the scrolling vines and the almost geometrically conceived, generously scaled palmettes and peonies across the field exude a more primitive energy in their rendition of these classic ornamental motifs. A verdant vase-like figure at the top half of the field seems to not serve a function of centralizing or foregrounding the florals around it and the rather realistic looking boughs blooming with dainty floral heads meandering across the centre and the bottom half of the field do not create a sense of a garden. This deliberate quirkiness in the field is enhanced by the more visibly tribal motifs in the main border and the guard strips.

Yet the soft glow of its masterfully restrained color palette confers this rug with a delicate sensibility. The olive green background, the touches of soft rust red in every individual motif and the very light salmon pink and ivory in the border mellow the boldness of design, shroud it in a warm haze and render it into a highly decorative, versatile and cosmopolitan piece of craftsmanship with silky, lustrous wool that is admired for its timeless style.