The hand-tufted technique came to India in the twentieth century as a way to translate painterly studio designs into pile rugs without the year-long cycles of knotting. It married the visual freedom of a painter's cartoon to the tactile depth of a wool surface, and over the following decades it became the format of choice for designers who think in colour fields rather than in repeats. This neutral wool piece works that translation in the figure, drawn first as a cartoon and then transferred line by line onto a stretched canvas.

It was hand-tufted in India over 5 weeks by 2 tufters and a finisher. Wool yarn was pushed through a stretched cotton canvas one stitch at a time, sealed at the back with natural latex and a cotton scrim, then carved by hand with long shears to relieve the figure from the ground. The pile sits at twelve millimetres, which is the height that gives wool both spring underfoot and depth of colour at the surface.

The composition

The composition reads as a single graphic gesture in neutral. The figure is carved with a slight bevel so light catches the edges and gives the surface a quiet animation. Wool over canvas, finished by hand to lift the figure above the field by no more than two millimetres of relief, just enough to register at standing distance without breaking the visual unity of the rug.

The piece in a room

size as listed () suits a flat-scale living room, a generous bedroom, or a dining area for six. The pattern holds against modern upholstery and against vintage timber alike. The neutral pairs cleanly with walnut, oak, brass and linen; it works against both painted plaster and exposed brick.

Care

Vacuum once a week, brush head off. Light shedding for the first month or two is normal as short fibres work loose. Treat spills by blotting, not rubbing, and never let liquid sit on the surface. Schedule a professional dry-clean every couple of years to lift accumulated soil from the cotton scrim and protect the latex bond underneath.

Reference

• Medium: hand-tufted wool, latex bonded, cotton scrim
• Dimensions: size as listed
• Hands: 2 tufters and 1 finisher, ~5 weeks
• Pile: 12 mm
• Origin: India

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