Khotan

Ancient Fruit, Modern Fabric…Khotan and Pom from ZAK+FOX

THE POMEGRANATE

Once when I was living in the heart of a pomegranate, I heard a seed saying, “Someday I shall become a tree, and the wind will sing in my branches, and the sun will dance on my leaves, and I shall be strong and beautiful through all the seasons.” Then another seed spoke and said, “When I was as young as you, I too held such views; but now that I can weigh and measure things, I see that my hopes were vain.” And a third seed spoke also, “I see in us nothing that promises so great a future.” And a fourth said, “But what a mockery our life would be, without a greater future!” Said a fifth, “Why dispute what we shall be, when we know not even what we are.” But a sixth replied, “Whatever we are, that we shall continue to be.” And a seventh said, “I have such a clear idea how everything will be, but I cannot put it into words.” Then an eighth spoke – -and a ninth — and a tenth — and then many — until all were speaking, and I could distinguish nothing for the many voices. And so I moved that very day into the heart of a quince, where the seeds are few and almost silent.
-Khalil Gibran

I’m sad to step away from inlay and the Orientalists, but I am sure I’ll be back. In the meantime, I’ll use this 1875 portrait by William-Adolphe Bouguereau as a gentle segway to today’s post, full of rumination on my passion for pomegranates, both real and decorative.

The pomegranate originally came from Persia and the western Himalayas and has been cultivated for millennia throughout the Middle East, Mediterranean and European regions. Traders carried it along the Silk Road and spread it through China and Southeast Asia. The name itself is a play on Medieval Latin for ‘seeded apple’ and many believe that the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden was perhaps instead a pomegranate, not an apple. Sacred to all religions and referenced in many ancient texts from the Book of Exodus, the Quran, the Homeric Hymns and the Mesopotamian records, to name a few, it has traditionally been seen as a symbol of abundance and posterity. Supposedly, Muslims believe that every pomegranate contains an aril that came from the garden of paradise, so they must all be eaten to be sure you get that one.

Pomegranates have become a common motif in our lives here in the Middle East. They are featured in the recipes and juices we eat all the time and I buy containers of the little arils (individual seeds) in the supermarket for snacks and to throw in salads. If they are as healthy as everyone says, then we are turning into superhumans. Throughout the region, I also keep noticing them as decorative ornaments, from the gates of the Armenian Church in the Old City of Jerusalem…

…carved in the paneling of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem…

…on an exquisite antique embroidered coverlet in a favorite antique shop here in Doha.

But my favorite place to find the motif is on old Khotan carpets – a passion I have written about before. There is just something about the perfection of balance in their design, the best being in the pieces I call ‘pomegranate vase’ or ‘scrolling pomegranate’.

I don’t need an excuse to effuse over two of the newest fabric designs by ZAK+FOX, both of which were inspired by pomegranates and my beloved East Turkestan carpets. The first is simply called Khotan and it has all the warmth and charm of its namesake. Textile designer Zak Profera finds “a lot of inspiration in rug patterns, perhaps because they often aren’t translated into fabric. [With Khotan] I wanted to create something that had a heritage feel, but wasn’t a true “document” piece. I also envisioned it more as a geometric and less of a floral — though I think the beauty of the design is due to the fact that it’s a balance of the two. The repeat is not complicated, but the embellishments — like the leaves and the young pomegranates — creates a wonderfully organic, rambling vine-like design which continues endlessly.”

Available in two colorways, Rubia and Goldwork, which really have spectacularly different feels, something I find quite unusual in a single fabric. The Rubia literally looks like a worn and faded Khotan carpet and is visually strong and graphic.

Goldwork is soft and incredibly aged and almost burnished looking. The fabric itself, made of thick 100% linen, has a rich tactile quality to it in person. “It was important to get the weight of the linen right for Khotan, otherwise the texture and depth of the design would fall flat,” says Zak.

If Khotan reaches out and grabs you instantaneously, Pom is more subtle as it works its way into your consciousness. Pom is influenced by the less common ‘cluster of three’ style Khotan carpet, with its simple stylized repeating pattern.

A versatile small-scale pomegranate print in Khaki, Rubia or…

…a deep grayed blue called Byzantine, it has such a variety of uses and a chameleon-like ability to work with anything. For Pom, Zak “wanted to create a small-scale pattern that would riff off of Khotan — they aren’t matchy-matchy, which I think is the kiss of death in design — but the border of Pom uses the same vine/leaf elements that Khotan carries.”

For Zak, Pom is “also my first border pattern — which I plan on creating a lot more of — because it allows for so much more when using it in application.” You all know about my long-standing obsession with bordered fabrics and the way I am putting many to good use in the house here. Courtney has the same fixation and she has used Pom perfectly in upholstering this chair cushion and using the border as the edge.

I’ve noticed both fabrics popping up on other Instagram feeds as well. Here Khotan in the Goldwork colorway and Pom in Byzantine plays well with a David Hicks fabric and some solids in a scheme by Emily C. Butler.

And Khotan in Rubia on the armchairs in this Lake Tahoe living room spotted on Taylor Jacobson’s feed, strikes an ideal cosy but exotic note.

And as for me, I am contemplating my own pomegranate schemes while getting ready to eat lunch.

The ZAK+FOX website has more spectacular photos of these fabrics as well as Zak’s other dreamy designs. My Japanophiles should be sure to see the Kiyohime collection and the amazing animated narrative that accompanies it.

Apr 30, 2014 By tokyojinja in Design Motif, Interior Design, Textiles Tags: Courtney Barnes, Emily C. Butler, fabric, fabric borders, Khotan, Orientalist, Pomegranate, Taylor Jacobson, ZAK + FOX, ZAK+FOX

Preferring Patina Over Perfection…Chipped Porcelain, Threadbare Rugs and Old World Glamour at Tissus Tartares

Before the earthquake, I’d been having a great email chat with a reader who collects inban (Japanese transferware), in particular, the chipped, unwanted bargain pieces. She uses them to store her jewelry and other small items, spread across her dresser. This being Japan, she lives in tight quarters, so if something gets knocked off and broken, she doesn’t mind much. I loved the idea of her collection, beloved but a bit broken. Afterwards, I checked with her and none had been destroyed.

At the end of February as well, I found this great Meiji period square platter at the market. It is beautiful, painted in a really rich cobalt with iris and butterfly, but it had a few small firing flaws.

Firing flaws can be caused by many things. Sometimes a piece going into the kiln would touch another item, or a bubble might pop, or some ash would get into the glaze. The detail below shows the flaws up close and they have gotten dirty over time. They will probably wash out, but I don’t really care.

For some, unblemished perfection is the standard but for me, without patina there is no soul, no depth, to an item. I want to see the echoes of wear, of use, of small damages even – perfection is for museum pieces. Most likely as well, perfection is unaffordable. Antiques with flaws make the unaffordable, attainable. And if you had all the money in the world, when would a piece be good enough? The example rare enough? The provenance historic enough? How would you choose what to buy if you did not need that magic intersection of cost and condition?

One of the places this is seen most clearly is in the world of Oriental carpets. My weakness is for worn, almost threadbare rugs. Perhaps it is a kind of sour grapes, as room size antique Persians in great condition tend to start in the serious five figures. By I love the softness of the faded colors and the indescribable quality called patina.

Take Khotan rugs, for example. Often referred to as East Turkestan or Samarkand rugs, they were woven in what is now the eastern-most province of China, long the central crossing of the Silk Road. They are a conglomerate of cultures and history – part Chinese, part Arabic, part Indian, with a European reference. One of the most common, and my favorite, East Turkestan motifs is that of the pomegranate-tree or pomegranate-vase, usually woven in the towns of Kashgar or Yarkand. Surrounded by a series of borders with fretwork, trefoil and cloud patterns, a series of stylized pomegranates grow from a small pot in symmetrical patterns. Most East Turkestan carpets are long and thin, about double length to width, and very large ones (over 12 feet long) are rare and hard to come by. Almost all are old, having been woven no later than about 1940, and most often earlier, and the dyes tend to fade and soften with time.

For a little fun comparison I have assembled a smattering of similarly sized pomegranate East Turkestan examples that fall all along the price and condition spectrum.

“For the uninitiated, Doris Leslie Blau is to rugs what Harry Winston is to jewels—the best,” says designer Carey Maloney in the blog Rural Intelligence. I had to use the quote, as there is no better way to say it. But like Harry Winston, the best is expensive. Doris Leslie Blau has numerous examples like this one, all in the $20-25,000 range.

Not long ago, designer Wendy Haworth featured one in her One Kings Lane sale, half price at around $5000.

Examples can be found on eBay in the $1000-2000 range, although condition can be quite hard to judge. It’s a question of just how threadbare is it?

My pomegranate rug has definite wear to the pile and a few repairs, but the colors are mellow and smooth. I bought it at Chine Gallery on Hollywood Road in Hong Kong eons ago. I was sad to see they didn’t have any on my recent visit.

Although I did see this large and unusual colored one down the street for sale at Chu’s Fine Arts & Tibetan Antiques.

Rose Anne de Pampelonne used a pomegranate East Turkestan carpet in her living room, a room that like the rug, is a mixture of European and Asian design. More photos of her home can be found here at Elle Decor.

My love of aged rugs is not limited to those from the Samarkand region. I am equal opportunity with Persians, kilims and the like. Designers Roberto Peregalli and Laura Santori Rimini are masters at creating the old world look and faded antique carpets are one of the key components. This room is a perfect blend of Turkish overlay onto its very Englishness, if you know what I mean…

Newer to the game of old world elegance are Olya Thompson and Nathalie Farman-Farma with their new fabric line Tissus Tartares. The two women met and bonded over a love of romantic Russian style, the European Russia of Tolstoy and the Czars, “the rich and sophisticated interplay between East and West as it is found in Russian, Persian and Central Asian designs”.

Featured in Vogue at the beginning of 2010, Thompson’s Brooklyn brownstone captivated me. This February, Farman-Farma’s London home was featured in The World of Interiors and The Wall Street Journal ran an article about their textile line later in the month. While their fabrics are a standout in their interiors, it is the mix with the carpets and the accessories that make the rooms.

The sofa in the photo above and below is covered in their “Ikat” fabric.

Pillows in both homes made from other fabrics in the line including “Jar Ptitsa” and “Eté Muscovite”.

Farman-Farma’s London home features chairs reminiscent of those in Muriel Brandolini’s interiors, a boteh motif (paisley) covered rug and the prettiest sheer curtains.

I believe the lampshade in the corner sports their “Fleur de steppes”.

The daybed under the window wears “Lemontov”.

The guest room is covered with “Casse-noisette”.

When I first moved to Japan almost seven years ago, I couldn’t help but continue my incessant browsing of the Brooklyn real estate market as if it was important not to lose sight of it. As time went on, I became content with the idea of Japan as my home. One of the unfortunate results of the earthquake is that I have resumed the habit, almost like a nervous tic. Well, lo and behold, Olya Thompson’s Brooklyn Heights townhouse is for sale, first for $5.395 million, but now it has come down to $4.95 million. I wonder if she will throw in the furniture and rugs for that price? It is fun to compare the realtor’s photos with those from the magazines, as they show the utilitarian spaces like the hallways and kitchen. Click here to see the listing.

And speaking of natural disasters, it is always hopeful to read about those who have recovered and rebuilt. Karina Gentinetta and her husband have recreated their New Orleans home from the ground up to look as if it was never damaged. Recovered items that most would have considered destroyed, such as a silver tray, now boast what she calls their “Katrina Patina”. Most impressively, her old world glamour has been achieved on the tightest of budgets. More photos of her lovely home and the great story here.

Gentinetta’s rug is so worn and threadbare, it is actually torn straight up the middle…

Next Day Addendum: Just for counterpoint, I can’t help adding this amazing room by Tom Stringer, featuring the most unusually colored East Turkestan pomegranate-vase rug in a very modern interior. One of the charms of Khotans is that they really can swing either way. Gorgeous!

(N.B. Most of this post was written months ago and then never got published. While some of it is older news, I can’t bear to scrap it as it is all topics that are dear to my heart.)

Image credits: 1. L. Twaronite, 2-3, 7-8. me, 4. Doris Leslie Blau, 5. One Kings Lane, 6. eBay, 9. Elle Decor April 2008, photo credit: Roger Davies, 10. Elle Decor April 2008, photo credit: Roger Davies, 11. Vogue January 2010, 12, 14-15. The Wall Street Journal February 25, 2011, photo credit: Paul Costello, 13, 17, 19, 21. Tissus Tartares, 16, 18, 20. The World of Interiors February 2011, 21. The New York Times April 6, 2011, photo credit: Sara Essex.

Apr 26, 2011 By tokyojinja in Interior Design, Rugs and Carpets, Textiles Tags: East Turkestan, Khotan, Nathalie Farman-Farma, Olya Thompson, patina, rt, Samarkand, Tissus Tartares