Kilim half

This stunning kilim , or flat-woven carpet, represents just half of the artist’s full creation; a right half—essentially a mirror image of this weaving—would have been sewn to this portion’s interior edge, creating a complete and powerfully geometric design (recreated below). The design is a result of thousands of years of tradition and aesthetic preference, as well as the limitations of this specific flat-weave technique, which prevents the creation of circular shapes and long vertical lines. When one looks closely at a split-tapestry kilim they will see that almost all of the patterns are comprised of diagonal lines. Kilims were used for a variety of purposes in both village and nomadic contexts in Anatolia, including as storage and saddle bags, pillows, wall hangings, and decorative floor covers like this one. -Kendra Weisbin, Associate Curator of Education, Mount Holyoke College Art Museum (Sept. 2017)