About Contemporary Oriental Rugs & Carpets

In the last decade or so, the production of new rugs has experienced a renaissance of sorts. The quality of their weave, wool, and design has not been as good since the early decades of the twentieth century. One of the unforeseen benefits of this new trend has been the revival of a particular genre of new production that may be distinguished from the rest - the ‘Modern’ or ‘Contemporary’ design rug.  The roots of contemporary design vary considerably. They may be traced most of all to the first carpets made in a Modernist style, the Art Deco carpets of Europe, America, and China made between the late twenties and the fifties. Another important inspiration came from leading abstract painters of that period like Picasso, Klee, and Miro, and Mondrian, whose work could readily be translated into the medium of woven carpets. Early Scandinavian Modern carpets also contributed to this trend. Contemporary rugs made today tend to draw freely on all these sources or inspirations, combined with cutting edge innovations from contemporary architectural and interior design and painting.  As a result, those buyers with a taste for the clean, abstract, simplicity of Modern interior décor once again have the option of purchasing quality rugs and carpets in this style, without having to compete for the limited supply of Modernist vintage pieces which are rapidly and paradoxically becoming costly ‘antiques.’