Friday, June 24, 2011

Introduction to the Sixth Set of Snippets: Artisans and Artists in a Persian Market

This next set includes brief introductions to a number of artists and artisans we visited while in Iran. This is by no means a comprehensive index of all the men and women working in the arts and crafts business. But it does give you a peek into the importance of these crafts in the traditional culture of Iran.

The big question is: Will the traditional culture of Iran last? Or will everything modern take precedence? Again and again, we heard artisans say that they were worried about the future of their art because their sons and daughters are not interested in learning the trade. My hope is that more masters, such as Ali Saee, the metal worker discussed below, will bring in apprentices to study under them. And that young people, so many of whom are unemployed, will choose to learn a craft as a viable alternative to unemployment or a more “modern” job.

Persian Carpets and the People Who Make Them and Sell Them

Carpet weaving and selling is a significant part of Persian culture. In traditional houses, family members and guests remove their shoes at the door and come into a space, no matter how big or small, that is covered with as fine a selection of Persian rugs as the family can afford. The fine rugs are passed down from one generation to the next. Most communal activities take place on the floor: eating, resting, talking. Now, of course, times have changed and many families, like the Sanganians, have chairs and a dining table. But the reverence for carpets remains.

I am not the person to tell you everything you might like to know about the intricacies of making or buying carpets. I appreciate them as works of art, made by incredibly skilled men and women, often in quite humble surroundings. Visit your local carpet store, like one I frequent in Berkeley, Noor and Sons Rug Gallery. They will give you all the information you need.

In Tehran, we visited the Carpet Museum, a beautiful space with more gorgeous carpets than you can imagine. Here are a few of my favorites, including the two above. The one to the left is a copy of the oldest one  from the 5th century BCE. The original is in the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.

We saw a traditional loom set up for demonstration purposes only, I suspect, at a caravanserai in Meybod. This sort of cotton carpet, often seen in blue and white, is used to cover the floors of mosques in this part of the country.

In Esfahan we visited two carpet stores and were shown a wonderful selection of rugs: traditional, nomadic, silk, wool, using natural dyes or synthetic dyes, old, new, big and small. I was tempted by several of them. Fortunately several of my traveling companions were more than tempted and purchased some beauties. So I could, without guilt, soak in the designs, colors, history and workmanship without having to pay the price. I may regret my decision. But there you go.

You can see from these three that I am more drawn to nomadic rugs than to the more traditional designs.

A Fabric Printer

We had been to visit the Jameh Mosque in Esfahan and walked back through the market that connected that mosque with the main Imam Square in the center of town. It was a long walk. After we had walked about a third of the way, Reza, our guide, started asking shop owners if there were a tea house in the market where we might stop for a much-needed break. None suited him. Either they were too small to accommodate the 12 of us or they were too grungy. So he hit upon a splendid idea: find a shop selling something interesting, settle us in for the sales pitch, and pretty soon glasses of tea would appear, as is customary in those situations, to help convince us to purchase their wares. The plan worked perfectly.

The shop he found sold hand-printed cloth. There was an elderly fellow in the front of the space demonstrating how it was done; it was clear that it was hard and exacting work. He was charming, with a lovely twinkle in his eyes. Even though I didn’t believe for a second that he had produced all the cloth in the store by himself, he was fascinating to watch. No doubt there is a workshop someplace with a lot of people stamping away. But never mind, it was a lovely experience and we got our much needed rest and a cup of tea.

I bought some napkins with little tassels which I thought made them look different from the napkins you might find at Cost Plus or Pier 1. Katherine Fulton isn't so sure about the tassels. The design of the fabric includes the Persian paisley design we saw on the salad in Yazd. The paisley design comes from the outline of a cypress tree with a little wind blowing through its pointy top. Scroll down through the salads until you find the right one. You'll spot it.

SUYL - All the Single Ladies

This week Kelly's Korner blog is hosting Show Us Your Life - Singles. As soon as I saw this on the schedule, I knew I had to write a post about my sweet friend....Meredith.

Meredith and I meet several years ago when I joined our sorority, Phi Mu. Meredith later became my big sister in our sorority, my maid of honor and most importantly, a life long friend!




Meredith is full of life and so much fun to be around. Her laughter is contagious.

She went to the University of Oklahoma. Meredith loves a good OU football game....Boomer Sooner!




In her spare time Meredith LOVES to travel. She has honestly been to more places, than anyone I know. Here we are last summer on a girls trip to Playa de Carmen, Mexico. This is one trip we will never forget.




Also, she loves to spoil her sweet dog CeeCee.




Somewhere out there is a sweet, loyal, honest man that is perfect for Meredith.




P.S. - I forgot to mention she's an AMAZING cook. She can whip up anything in a matter of minutes. Guess what....it always tastes so good!!!!

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