Formal and Informal Alternatives

When considering the possibility of decorating with Persian carpets, there may be some understandable apprehensions. In the twenty-first century, it is reasonable to ask if people really want to live in a perfect museum exhibit or in a scaled-down replica of Downton Abbey. The impressive Kashan carpet seen on Shark Tank may seem far too large and powerful to live with in normal-sized homes. We should mention that many beautiful smaller versions of the same classic design (in rug sizes and larger) have been made in the old weaving center Kashan and some are still commercially available.

Then there are the intriguing carpets shown in the medieval settings of Wolf Hall. In Tudor England, Persian carpets acquired by trade through the Ottoman Empire were highly valued. Almost five hundred years ago, they were valued for their practical qualities on the cold floors of draughty castles. At the same time, they served a second function as visual displays of great wealth and power. By necessity, Wolf Hall uses nineteenth and twentieth-century carpets (Kurdish, Turkoman, Heriz and others). Their designs recall historical examples now known only through contemporary paintings by Hans Holbein and other court painters.

In the modern context, a practical first choice might be something like the small Qashqai kelim (flat weave) in front of the sofa in Sheldon Cooper’s apartment in The Big Bang Theory. Notice from this example how a well-designed inexpensive rug creates a feeling of visual separation and provides a unified focus for a conversation area. On a different scale, the large Kashan carpet of Shark Tank has a similar role in focusing energies.

The women of the Qashqai tribal group in southwest Iran became known for the bright colours and bold geometrical designs of their weavings. Their work found a ready market in Europe and North America along with textiles from other nomadic tribal groups such as Bakhtiari, Afshar and Turkoman. Used as wall hangings, smaller tribal weavings and kelims add the timelessness of folk art. Tribal textiles have the ability to bring warmth and colour to home offices, family rooms, guest bedrooms or country homes.

These few ideas suggest there are many possibilities to explore in using Persian carpets in traditional and contemporary decoration.