Speakers for July Hook in

Stephanie Allen-Krauss has been repairing hooked rugs for over 40 years.  During that time she’s seen many different designs and found many different ways to repair or restore rugs.  She’ll bring her private collection of old and antique rugs for display, and she’ll discuss several simple ways of repairing and preserving hooked treasures for the future.

DeWitt Mallary started learning about and collecting antique “oriental” rugs almost 40 years ago, and became a full time dealer in collectible antique rugs and textiles in 2008. He has presented papers at the International Conference on Oriental Carpets, the American Conference on Oriental Rugs, and numerous rug societies around America and Europe. He has spoken and /or curated exhibitions at a number of museums. He was a Contributing Editor of HALI, London’s international magazine of oriental rugs, textiles, and Islamic art for 25 years. Since moving to Vermont full-time, he edited the English translation of Turkmen Carpets: A New Perspective, and has been teaching rug courses at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Dartmouth.

Understanding Collectible Oriental Rugs

There is a good deal of confusion in and around the world of oriental rugs. This presentation will define and de-mystify some of the sources of misunderstanding, and provide a new framework for thinking about the differences between, on the one hand, the cultural and artistic expressions evident in older weavings, and on the other, export-market-driven floor covering of the last century or so.

In the process, we will look at pictures of a sampling of great antique rugs and other tribal weavings, and touch on issues affecting the current markets of “collectible” and “decorative” weavings.