Uşak to reflect the art of carpet-making in museum

UŞAK - Anatolia News Agency

Carpet Museum, which will open in Uşak, is suppoted by Devrim Erbil (above), contemporary artist and prepares to reflect the art of carpet-making

Turkey’s first carpet painting museum is set to be established in Uşak under the leadership of an artist and Istanbul Kemerburgaz University professor, Devrim Erbil.

Erbil told Anatolia news agency that the museum would reflect both Turkish painting art and carpet art generally, and focus on traditional to modern carpets.

The art of carpet-making is a gift Turkey has given humanity, Erbil said. “When people say carpet, the first place that comes to mind is Uşak. That’s why we would like to open the museum in Uşak.”

The museum will exhibit many carpets from Central Asia and Turkish carpet art. In addition to carpets the museum will also include Turkish paintings that relate to carpets, he added. The museum will be a visual archive of Turkish carpet art, said Erbil. The carpets will reflect famous paintings and Turkish painters.

The carpets will also have traditional Anatolian regional patterns and will reflect the culture of Anatolia. Noting that the carpets will have many different patterns, Erbil said these patterns reflected the culture of Anatolia and Turkey. “When we look at carpet patterns, we can see that they are different in the Mediterranean, Aegean, Black Sea and eastern regions of Turkey. Carpets are all different from each other and each of them reflects the culture of its origin.”

Today it is possible to see different kinds of carpets in museums, Erbil said, adding that their goal is to exhibit all of them in the same venue.

“There are many exhibition showrooms in Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia. We aim to collect every kind of carpet here.”

Erdoğan said Uşak carpets were one of the most famous types of carpet in the world. This is a great opportunity to present Uşak carpets to the world, he added.

When the team suggested this idea to Uşak Mayor Ali Erdoğan, he was very positive about it, according to Erbil. The project is supported by the local government and university as well as NGOs, he said.

Work on the museum has begun, he said, adding that they would like make a Turkish carpet art archives.

Currently, the team, supported by Uşak University, is deciding how to build the museum.