Rug Societies

From ORR 15/5,

American Conference on Oriental Rugs Board

In April, Connie Henderson was re-elected to the board of ACOR while Mark Hopkins was elected to replace board secretary, Emily Sanford, who retired after three years of service. Paul Ramsey serves as president, and other members of the board are Rosalie Rudnick, Wendel Swan and Mike Tschebull.

The New Boston Rug Society

The Boston group's April 12 meeting featured member Jeff Spurr in a fascinating presentation on textiles of the Kuba Kingdom of central Africa, illustrated with slides and textiles from Jeff's own collection. The Kuba people are best known for their raffia-pile weavings but also work raffia into many other techniques.

The May 19 meeting was unique. Using slides, the members reviewed a series of rugs in pairs, studying each pair in turn, then privately identifying, dating, and rating each for artistic merit. A panel of six of the more experienced NBRSers -- Julia Bailey, Ralph Bradburd, Lawrence Kearney, Gerard Paquin, Rosalie Rudnick, and Alan Varteresian -- discussed the rugs and voiced their opinions.

The group has just finished out the year with a very successful season and a new record of 105 members. The first meeting of the new season will be in mid-September. Details to be announced.

Oriental Rug Society of N.S.W.

At the Annual General Meeting in February, the Executive was re-elected and some changes were made to the Committee. Michael Gallagher continues to serve as president, Gail Broadbent as vice president, Pamela Leuzinger as secretary, Neville Voges as treasurer, and Leigh Mackay as registrar/editor.

For the April gathering, visiting art historian and author on textiles and their use, Jasleen Dhamija, presented a wide-ranging illustrated talk on the cultural context and ritual use of textiles in India.

The remaining meetings for 1995 are to be held June 8, August 10, October 12, and December 7.

Princeton Rug Society

The Princeton group's fabulous and famous annual Rug Picnic was held in early June in the exceptionally beautiful garden of members, Jill and Derek Weatherill. Each member brings a dish feeding five people more than the number in his or her party and contributes $2.50 per person to the general expense of the picnic. After a brief annual business meeting, the regular program is a Show and Tell, for which members are urged to bring rugs and textiles. As last year, Peter Scholten acted as commentator and expert analyst.

San Francisco Bay Area Rug Society

"Navajo Weaving from Native Blanket to Quasi-Oriental Rug" was the topic of SFBARS member, Dr. Stephen C. Jett, at a May 31 meeting held at Tony Kitz Oriental Rugs. Professor and former chairman of the Department of Geography, University of California, Davis, Dr. Jett has written two catalogues as well as scholarly papers on weavings, textiles, basketry and the relationship of the textile arts of the Middle East to the rugs created by Native Americans.

TGLA, INC/Textile Group of Los Angeles

The TGLA Grant Fund awarded $500 in support of the exhibition catalogue that accompanied a lecture entitled, "25 Years of Fiber Art," delivered on May 13 by Joan Austin, professor of art at San Diego State University, in conjunction with "California Fibers: 25th Anniversary Exhibition" at the Downey Museum of Art.

The group also made donations to three museums. Two Western cowboy shirts to the Autry Museum as a token of appreciation for the museum hospitality to the group. A book, Labors of Love: America's Textiles and Needlework 1650-1930, by Weissman and Lavitt, was donated in memory of Helen Neufeld to the LACMA/DSR&DC. Also donated is Ms. Neufeld's memory was Ray Kea's Settlements, Trade, and Politics in the Seventeenth Century Gold Coast; the gift was made to the Fowler Museum Research Library.

In June the group enjoyed a walk-through of the exhibit, "Fabric of Life: Japanese Folk Textiles" with curator Sharon Sedaka Takeda in the Japanese Pavillion of the LACMA. In July Brian Morehouse will speak on yastiks.