rugsbyrugs

In 2022, after completing the Camino de Santiago in Spain, walking 1300 km on foot traversing France, Spain and Portugal,  I felt an inexplicable urge to continue on, I crossed the Gibraltar and found myself in the magical world of Morocco. I experienced a country as a portal alive with color and sound; defined by an incredible culture of hospitality. Through one chance encounter after the next, I was invited into the world of artisan rug dealers and makers. I made friends who took me under their wing, sharing language and culture and gave me a crash course in how these amazing carpets are made, sourced, traded and sold. The more I saw, the more my love for these works deepened.  I touched thousands of carpets -  moving from city to small village - from carpet dealers to artisan maker cooperatives. This collection is an attempted retrospective about that journey; a distillation of what I saw and felt; and the beginning of a lifelong relationship with a place and its culture. 

The practice of Moroccan carpet weaving originated in North Africa in a time before countries had borders. For nomadic people, the barriers and ports of entry were the typographies of the land. Jewish, Islamic and African Berber groups moved with the changing seasons among the mountains, plains and deserts. The wide grassy plains in between expansive mountain ranges puts the world of Moroccan carpets into perspective.  Animals shepherded in the valleys provided food and fiber to the communities in the mountains. This is how the specific colors and patterns used by each tribe evolved. The relationship between agricultural regions and the villages where women have been weaving for centuries is written in the carpets. 

These were the tent fabrics, beds, blankets and floor coverings. In traditional Berber culture, a woman would weave a carpet at every significant milestone and event in her life. The practice of weaving predates written language. The matriarchs of Berber families wove stories, spells and legends into their work. A carpet could describe the terrain that a woman’s family traversed or a path she walked daily. They told stories of family histories, joys and sorrows, teachings and wisdoms, and even great family secrets that could not be put into words. The work is a product of the landscape: the wool, the utility born of necessity, and the art and design emerging from the central human need to communicate and tell stories. 

When we purchase these works, we play a small role in a cultural legacy with roots going back thousands of years. Today, Morocco is rapidly changing. It is modernizing. And this way of life, the practice of weaving, is at risk of being lost. It is a tradition born of hardship: a struggle with the land and a hard-fought battle to persist and survive. It’s the literal fabric of a way of life that is disappearing. Facing modernization, climate change and an ever tenser geo-political climate, producing these works has become even more challenging. At the same time, the role of rugs in the lives of Moroccan women is changing. Making and selling these works is a means to upward mobility. When we look at a Moroccan carpet we are touching a window into another world. Supporting these artisans directly creates new opportunities in rural communities. If we honor that, bring it into our homes and work spaces consciously, we can support the continuation of this cultural heritage.