Moroccan Tribal Rugs and Carpets
The abstract Moroccan rugs in the following pictures date from the Mid 20th
C. The Moroccan carpets in the following section little relation to either
the urban or tribal rugs of Persian, Turkey or Central Asia.
In most, there is little or no sense of geometry or symmetry, both fundamental
principles in Islamic design.
Moroccan tribal rugs in their most basic form consist of a single coloured undyed wool , decorating an undyed natural woollen field with a random series of lines, that sometimes cross to make a series of different sized diamonds, and with no boarder . These rugs from the Middle Atlas, come from the Beni Ouarain. Both the wool and the freedom of design are exquisite. They were woven as bedding rugs to be used pile side down in the winter, pile side up in the summer. They tend to be carpet sized , in the region of 6 x 10 ft.
Beni Ouarain carpets from the later part of the 20thC tend to have incorporated dyed black wool as the top colour rather than the undyed brown wool seen in earlier examples.
Other rugs in this series of Moroccan rugs come from the Rehamna and Boujad regions, and are both described as coming from the plains of Marrakech. Rugs from both areas display bright and vibrant colours and a care free sense of design. You could almost get the feeling that the weaver had attention deficit disorder, and was doodling on a scrap of paper. One design is started, and stopped. Another started only to be scrapped, when the design is mastered. The weaver continually moves on to pastures new. Even when the carpet displays geometric elements, the distribution of the pattern through out the carpet leads to a lack of symmetry in any plane.
It is a peculiar feature of the rugs from the Beni Ouraine, Boujad, and Rehamna regions of Morocco that the within one rug, the use of several different types of knotting can be found. It would be easy to look at these abstract carpets and come to the conclusion that you were observing “the kings new clothes “ . Scholars have attributed meaning to well known carpets in collections, that I fail to see any meaning in at all , and certainly not their described meanings .
It would be easy to think that you were looking at the work of beginners, children with out supervision, the work of unsophisticated weavers. However, a casual glance at the other weavings from these groups will quickly dispel the idea that the carpets were the work of beginners. Take a look for example at the women’s shawls woven by the Beni Ouarain . Complicated , tight and world class , they remind me of the best supplementary weft faced weavings from the Baluch in both colour and design . In know way the work of amateurs.
Rugs of this type first came to the attention of European artists, in the
early 20thC . Paul Gauguin, an avid rug collector introduced his friend Henri
Matisse to rugs and textiles from the Maghrib.
Later in the 20th C Corbusier championed Moroccan rugs in his Interiors, as did Frank Lloyd Wright in America, using Beni Ouarain carpets in one of his most famous residential projects “Falling water”
During the last few years there has been resurgence in all things Moroccan, the number of Europeans and Americans buying Raids has escalated, and with that that supply of these relatively new carpets has started to slow. We are pleased to be able to offer this selection of abstract, unrestrained, free form gems from the plains of marakesh and the middle atlas.
For further reading see .
From the far west : Carpts and textiles of morocco. The textile museum .Washington
1980
Moroccan carpets : Hali publications 1994
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