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David & Sue Richardson Qaraqalpaqs of the Aral Delta |
Independent UK-based researchers, David and Sue Richardson, specializing in Khorezm, the isolated region watered by the lower reaches of the Amu Darya lying just to the south of the Aral Sea. Their passion for this region and its people began with their first visit there in 1996 under the wing of the writer Sheila Paine and has grown with each return visit. As avid students of handwoven textiles from around the world they were initially fascinated by the material culture of the Qaraqalpaqs and became frustrated to find that there was very little information available in the published literature. They began by studying the textiles and quickly realized that our understanding of them would be greatly enhanced by an understanding of the complete history of the Khorezm oasis and the wider Aral region. Their book QARAQALPAQS OF THE ARAL DELTA is published by Prestel. |
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October 27, 2012 |
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There will be a field trip to the Hispanic Society of America featuring a gallery tour given by longtime Hajji member Sally Sherrill, focusing on seven of the important carpets in the collection. These will include carpets from Alcaraz, Cuenca and Las Alpujarras (Granada) of the Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. After that Constancio del Alamo, the museum's Curator of Archaeology, Sculpture and Textiles will show us a few of the ecclesiastical velvet textiles recently restored and exhibited in Valencia. Members will receive more information regarding registration and cost for the field trip. |
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Hispanic Society of America Sorolla Room Audubon Terrace Broadway between 155th and 156th Streets NY, NY tel - 212 926 2234 Program begins: 10:30am |
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DATE CHANGE: November 8. 2012 |
Dewitt Mallery Mae Festa: Fifty Years of Collecting |
After 50+ years of collecting Mae Festa has decided to let go of much of her collection, and is having an exhibition, curated by DeWitt Mallary, and sale in conjunction with Peter Pap Oriental Rugs. Hajji members and their guests are invited to the celebratory Opening Reception. |
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1stdibs@NYC 200 Lexington Avenue, (32nd St), 10th floor New York, NY Reception: 6pm to 9pm |
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November 5, 2012 |
Daniel Walker Carpets of Gold and Silk |
“Carpets of Gold and Silk:” Deluxe Carpet Production in Seventeenth Century Iran. Carpets produced in 17th century Iran, under Shah ‘Abbas and his successors, are typically made of luxury materials – silk, soft and lustrous sheep wool of high quality, and metal brocading – in a fine weave. Most plentiful among these are the well-known Polonaise carpets, so named because of their mistaken link to Poland. But there are other examples that differ from the Polonaise. They are far fewer in number, of substantially higher quality, and draw from a different range of design sources. This paper will examine the most impressive among these, a small group of carpets with pictorial designs, taking into account the sources of particular unusual design elements. Daniel Walker came to the Art Institute of Chicago in October, 2010, with an appointment as the Pritzker Chair of Asian Art and Curator of Islamic Art and Chair and Christa C. Mayer Thurman Curator of Textiles. He came to Chicago from Washington, D.C., where he served for four years as Director of The Textile Museum. Prior to that he was head of the Department of Islamic Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for seventeen years and held an endowed chair named for donor Patti Cadby Birch from 1997 to 2005. Over the 37 years of his museum career, Mr. Walker has published and lectured widely on diverse topics related to textiles and carpets, Islamic art, and museology. He has organized 22 exhibitions, including Flowers Underfoot: Indian Carpets of the Mughal Era, named one of the best exhibitions of 1998 by the New York Times. He is currently working on an exhibition of classical Persian carpets for the Art Institute. Photo Credit - Silk Rug, ( Warp Weft and Pile) Metal Wrapped Thread; Asymmetrically Knotted Pile Brocaded 17th Century Iran Metropolitan Museum or Art Detail from the Border |
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The Coffee House Club 20 West 44th St 6th Floor NY NY 10036 Doors open 6:00pm Lecture 6:45pm |
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Dec. 3, 2012 |
Carpets and the Metropolitan Museum of Art:
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Professor Walter B. Denny has taught at the University of Massachusetts/Amherst Art History Program since 1970. His primary field of study is the art and architecture of the Islamic world, in particular the artistic traditions of the Ottoman Turks. Professor Denny's talk will focus on the planning and design of the new ALTICALSA galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with regard to carpets and textiles, and will also take a look at what the future may bring for study of the Met's carpet collection |
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January 15 2013 |
Denise Cain The Steps of the Dragon |
This talk will focus on seventeenth century Caucasian Dragon Rugs. The myth of the dragon traveled along the Silk Road, on the backs of camels through the villages of Karabagh, Tabriz, and Baku, on its way to Europe. That image of the dragon became part of this weaving culture’s outward expression. The legends of the dragon in China and Europe are clear but I want to think about the path that lies between. There we find the footsteps of the dragon as it traveled west and through time. Denise Cain is a Graduate candidate in History, at CUNY, an aspiring collector and former assistant to J.H. Terry in Seattle. |
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February 12 2013 |
Raoul Tschebull Why Nomad Transport and Storage Bags are Interesting |
Woven transport and storage bags from western and central Asia: How they were produced and used and why they continue to beguile collectors. The technology of nomadism, including what nomads wove, of what material, and for what purpose, is endlessly fascinating. Bags woven by nomads and transhumants in an area from Anatolia through Central Asia slide between ethnographic art and rug collecting, especially if they are complete. They come in many formats and weaves and have an epicenter in SW Iran. Mr.Tschebull will show and try to explain the use for as many complete bags with as much variety as possible, and will include bagfaces. He will be bringing 25-30 objects to the meeting. Raoul Tschebull is a long term collector of weavings from the Transcaucasus, western rural Iran and especially eastern Azarbayjan where he has spent time with villagers and nomads. He has been a speaker at symposia in Tehran, Edinburgh, and Baku, and at past ICOC and ACOR conferences, is on the Board of the Near Eastern Art Research Center, is a member of the ICOC Executive Committee and is published in a number of exhibition catalogues, rug and textile magazines. |
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March 12, 2013 |
Eberhart Herrmann "Celestial Geometry as a Soul Carrier to The Other World" |
Eberhart Herrmann introduces a new discipline which he has named Applied Mathematics in Art History. He discusses a few basic patterns, lay-outs and measures used in Oriental carpet and textile art, deduced from the observation of the heavens. He explains transition, infinity, directional, and gateway designs as an expression of eschatological geography and gives a practical example in the origin and development of the so-called C-motif in Oriental cultures. A fascinating and thought-provoking presentation shows the means of unlocking the seal to rediscover the beliefs which directed carpet patterns and indeed many other forms of ancient art until recent times. The results of a lifetime research will be published later this year, or in early 2014, titled: ‘Observation of the Heavens as the Basis of Art History’. Eberhart Herrmann grew up helping in his parents’ business of distinguished Oriental carpets in Munich, Germany. However they wanted him to have a better education than just becoming a carpet dealer and he trained instead as a lawyer - and only later returned to the field of carpet art. He has written 16 books, publishing and discussing some 1800 rugs acquired worldwide for his renowned exhibitions. As he studied and thought about the complexity of carpet patterns he gradually shifted away from many mainstream theories and finally came to solutions for carpet art as well as for art historical research in general - a lifetime result of over 60 years thinking and living carpets. |
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April 17 2013 |
Gisela Helmecke "A Sultan's Present" |
A Sultan's Present - the Robe of Honor in the Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin In 1763 King Frederic II of Prussia sent an embassy to the Ottoman court in Constantinople. The mission was not successful, but as a result a precious robe made of silk brocade returned to Prussia. Only few of such robes have survived, all are characterized by a design of large golden pomegranates on a silver ground. Ms. Helmecke will tell the story of this robe. She will also discuss how this type of garment was used in Ottoman society and its connection to foreign embassies. Gisela Helmecke received her degree in the Science of Art History at Humboldt University in Berlin. She is curator of textiles, metalwork and epigraphy at the Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin and has organized many exhibitions at the museum and abroad. Her main area of interest are medieval tiraz-textiles. She also did work on Ottoman and Kashmir embroideries. Her writings include many articles on Islamic objects. In 1993 she was published in "A Wealth of Silk and Velvet", a catalogue that accompanied an exhibition of Ottoman textiles in Hamburg. She wrote a book about Large Medallion Suzanis which accompanied an exhibition at the Berlin Museum in 2009. In 2010 she wrote the exhibition catalogue for a "Splendour of Colour - Shimmer of Silk" at the L.A. Mayer Museum and Islamic Art Museum in Jerusalem. Gisela Helmecke is a member of the International Study Group "Textiles of the Nile Valley". |
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General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen 20 West 44th St NY NY 10036 Doors open 6:00pm Lecture 6:45pm |
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Jeff Spurr Off the Beaten Path |
Off the Beaten Path: A Yen for the Obscure and Under-appreciated in Textile Art and Basketry. This talk will address Mr. Spurr's love for Non-Western textiles and basketry. He will take a look at the traditions that particularly attracted his attention, often little known in wider collecting circles. Especially from Africa, Indonesia, and Oceania. Jeff Spurr is an independent scholar of Islamic textiles, and of the history of photography in the Middle East. He is also a dedicated collector of Non-Western textiles and basketry from many traditions. During 26 years at Harvard he developed and managed collections of historical photographs (ca. 1850-1970) of the Middle East and adjacent regions, as well as slide and digital collections documenting Islamic visual culture. He has curated several exhibits, and published articles and given papers in both fields. |
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May 22, 2013
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Ratti Center Metropolitan Museum of Art Special Tour |
THIS EVENT IS OPEN TO CLUB MEMBERS ONLY. ADVANCE RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED. We are thrilled to announce a wonderful opportunity to visit the Ratti Center of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This "behind the scenes" tour will be led by Walter Denny. We will be viewing a selection of rarely seen or displayed Turkmen weavings. The cost for the tour will be $50 per person. Note: this does not include the entrance fee to the MET (unless you are a member of the MET already) IMPORTANT: THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THE WAITING LIST PLEASE LOGON TO THE MEMBER'S AREA TO DO SO IF YOU HAVE A CONFIRMED RESERVATION YOU CAN PAY FOR THE EVENT VIA THE MEMBER'S AREA OF OUR WEBSITE. |
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Field Trip KANG COLLECTION and SOTHEBY'S NYC |
On Saturday June 1st the Hajji Baba Club is going on a very special field trip. Members and their guests have been invited to view two important collections. There is no charge for this event. 2:00pm - 3:00pm - We will be going to the Kang Collection Korean Art. They specialize in Korean sculpture, lacquer, paintings and calligraphy, ceramics and metalware, as well as textiles and garments. There is a contemporary exhibit in place at the gallery however they will be showing us a cross-section of their collection. There will be light refreshments served. 5:00pm - 6:00pm - We will then go to Sotheby's. Mary Jo Otsea, vice-president of the Rugs & Carpets Dept. has graciously offered to lead a private walk-through after Sotheby's closes. We will tour the exhibition of important carpets from the William A. Clark Collection owned by the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington DC. The sale is on Wednesday June 5th at 10:00, an event anxiously awaited by Hajji Baba Club members as well as the entire of the carpet world.The auction is comprised of 25 rugs and carpets from the 16th and 17th centuries that were collected by copper baron and then Senator William A. Clark and left to the Corcoran Gallery of Art upon his death in 1925. Included in the collection are the renowned Clark Sickle-leaf "vase"-technique carpet as well as the Lafoes carpet, an Isphahan carpet measuring 44 feet in length, a rare Ottoman Cairene circular carpet and a Mughal silk rug. Ms. Otsea's talk will last approximately 1/2 hour, so for those who would like to see the carpets in greater depth, we suggest arriving at least one hour or so earlier. Members can participate in one or both of these events. Please go to the MEMBERS LOGIN link above to reserve your spot. We will meet at the Kang Collection at 2:00pm and Sotheby's at 4:45pm. |
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Kang Collection Sotheby's NYC |
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June 6, 2013 |
Annual Meeting & Show and Tell |
Our members are invited to the Hajji Baba Club's Annual Meeting & Show and Tell. Members are invited to bring a piece or two, there will be experts on hand to tell them about their rugs and textiles. We will hear about our upcoming season and elect new members to our board of directors. location: |
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