Woven Forms | New York Pop-up
12 October - 16 November 2017
R & Company, together with renowned Italian carpet producer Amini, presents Woven Forms, opening October 12 in a pop-up location in Tribeca. After a successful debut this May in Venice during the 57th International Art Exhibition, the carpets will for the first time ever be shown as a group in New York. Woven Forms includes an extensive catalogue and a short documentary film that tells the comprehensive story behind the limited edition works.
Working within the rich history of carpet making in India and Nepal, the countries where the carpets are handmade, the exhibition reexamines the limits of craft and industry by offering leading designers the opportunity to explore their ideas through textiles. Woven Forms presents unique designs by Wendell Castle, Hun Chung Lee, Rogan Gregory, Lluís Lleó, Dana Barnes, The Haas Brothers, Thaddeus Wolfe, Katie Stout, David Wiseman and Renate Müller.
The project breaks the longstanding tradition of artists making carpets by printing a preexisting painting, drawing, or photograph on a rug. Instead, each artist has created a unique design that considers the form, material and process while simultaneously reflecting their individual styles. All works are limited edition pieces that took roughly six months to produce in the world’s leading weaving factories.
Evan Snyderman, partner of R & Company states, “Woven Forms explores the history of the carpet making processes from India and Nepal and challenges the limits of the craft and the industry by offering some of the design world’s greatest talents the opportunity to explore their ideas within the medium of textile.”
The artists were chosen to participate in this project because of their unique talents and their interest in experimentation. The resulting collection pushes the boundaries of the medium, creating an extraordinary collaboration with the weavers themselves, who rediscovered ancient processes as well as new techniques and ways of making in order to realize these designs.