Exclusive Stories

More than marketing hype, the differences at New Moon are tangible.

Erika Kurtz is the second-generation principal of New Moon Rugs, an early pioneer of the modern era’s genre of hand-knotted Nepali-Tibetan rugs. Founded in 1993 by John Kurtz with an unwavering dedication to the highest standards of craftsmanship and design, New Moon continues to foster the deep-rooted commitment to socially responsible business practices upon which the firm was founded. Since 2004, John’s daughter Erika has been guiding the production, design, and management of the business. These are her thoughts on being a woman in the evolving rug and carpet industry.

InConversation with PAIGE ALBRIGHT: We asked proprietress Paige Albright of Paige Albright Orientals in Birmingham, Alabama her thoughts on the state of the “Atlanta” market: the Atlanta International Area Rug Market™ and the National Oriental Rug Show. She responded with thoughts on that market as well as on the relationship buyers have to markets globally. This is her perspective. 

Whether it’s for the war rugs woven during the era of the Soviet invasion, or for weaving in exile in Pakistan during turbulent years under the Taliban, the weavers of Afghanistan are renown for two things: the quality of their craft and the inimitable qualities of the region’s Ghazni wool. Equally as unique is the will of its people, particularly its women—standard bearers of the Afghan carpet—as the country enters into a 21st century global economy.

Brian Robins and Rebecca Lurie are the dynamic business partners who own and operate Kush Rugs in Portland, Oregon. Self-described as a “labor of love,” Kush is the manifestation of the founders’ pursuit of that basic, yet elusive goal: Do what you love! The gallery offers a fresh perspective on a centuries-old art, representing modern, traditional, tribal and custom work from all over the world. This is Robins’ own account of part of that perspective.

As both a leader in the fight to eliminate illegal-child-labor in global supply chains and an observer of the hand-knotted rug and carpet industry over the past twenty-five years, GoodWeave CEO Nina Smith has seen a lot. She shares with Rug Insider Magazine her thoughts on some of those who have affected real change within the industry.

The oriental rug trade has changed tremendously over the past two decades, to the point where the description is no longer even politically correct. It has been replaced by the more generic ‘area rug’ or ‘decorative rug trade.’  The way we do business here at Persian Gallery New York has also evolved enormously over the two past decades. We went from being a traditional wholesale trade business that was very insular and protected, in which a client had to go through a retailer or interior designer to gain access, to a modern, high tech, global operation, where the emphasis is on being digital. In addition to a highly functional website, including high resolution digital images, there is email, social media, live chat and being accessible and available on all of them 24-7. All those platforms require having your product available wherever the user's smart-phone is likely to take them, and with the minimal number of taps and swipes.

The notion of collecting—of mixing and matching—is nothing new in the world of interiors, nor within certain genres of carpets. In fact for many, a proper interior is soulless without the the air of unpredictability so often seen in great collections. But to transcend antique and modern? Rug Insider invited a few esteemed colleagues to show us how.

When researching ‘The Rugs and Carpets of Fallingwater,’ for our Summer 2018 issue, it immediately became apparent that given the current popularity of Moroccan carpets, an article about mimicking the look of Fallingwater would have to be written. A survey of the pages of ‘Fallingwater’ by Lynda Waggoner reveals photographs of room after room of either white, fluffy, and inviting Beni Ourain rugs or more lively and red colored embroidered flatweaves; both of these readily available in today’s marketplace. But is it right, (or Wright) simply to duplicate the aesthetic?