He added that Vietnam and Brazil are the two other potential markets for the promotion of Iran's carpet exports.

Iran is the leading exporter of hand-woven carpets. Persian rugs are highly sought out for their intricate design and skilled craftsmanship.

Carpet-weaving is undoubtedly one of the most distinguished manifestations of the Persian culture and art, and dates back to ancient Persia.

There is an estimated population of 1.2 million weavers in Iran producing carpets for domestic markets and international export.

The country produces about five million square meters of carpets annually, of which 80 percent are sold in international markets.

The United States, Europe (specially Germany and Italy), China, South and Central Africa, along with neighboring countries are the most important markets for Iranian made Persian Carpets.

Source: http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9102111750

(Reuters) - Business could not get much worse for the Persian carpet dealers who over the past half-century have turned Hamburg's historic red-brick warehouses into an unlikely centre of the global oriental rug trade.

U.S. sanctions forbidding the import of Iranian-made carpets into the United States, even from third countries, have deprived the rug sellers of one of their largest markets at a time when sales are already depressed. New sanctions on payments to and from Iran have only made life harder.

Exquisite hand-knotted carpets with intricate patterns that traders once hoped to sell to hotel chains, embassies or mansion-owners, are now stacked high in dimly-lit storerooms where the smell of wool hangs heavy in the air, their magnificent colours hidden from view.

"You will find more carpets here in Hamburg than in all the bazaars of Tehran," said Monireh Nobari, whose father left the Iranian capital in 1954 to set up the carpet business in Germany she now co-runs with her brother.

"A few decades ago there were 300 carpet traders here importing from Iran. Now there are just 45. We've lived through crises in the past, but we don't see how things can continue."

Her firm does little more than buy to order now that sanctions have been tightened by Western countries that say Iran is developing the capability to make atomic weapons. Tehran says its nuclear programme is purely peaceful.

A few yards from Nobari's carpet business is that of Mir Sadegh Heydarinami, originally from Tabriz. He says the last few months are the worst he has ever experienced.

The mood is the same elsewhere in the long alleys of turreted warehouses in this North Sea port where Iranian names on the door bells provide the only clue of what lies inside.

U.S. TIGHTENS SANCTIONS

The rise of cheap competition from China has taken its toll on the Hamburg-based rug trade, as has the modern taste for simple floor coverings from Ikea in place of handcrafted pieces from Isfahan.

Washington has banned Persian carpets as part of sanctions against Iran in the past, but a goodwill gesture by the Clinton Administration in 2000 allowed imports of Iranian rugs, pistachios, caviar, and dried fruit.

The rug loophole was closed in September 2010 in a move carpet dealers say hurt rural women in poor communities who knot carpets, not the Iranian government.

The carpet trade is an important pillar of Iran's economy. Carpets rank just behind hydrocarbons and their derivatives, and pistachio nuts, as Iran's biggest exports.

Tehran exported around $600 million worth of carpets in the calendar year from March 2011 and aims to export up to $1 billion in the year starting March 2012, largely by increasing sales to China and the United Arab Emirates, Iran's Mehr news agency reported.

Before the embargo hit, the United States imported around $41 million of Persian carpets, according to the U.S. oriental rug importers' association.

For the Hamburg dealers the embargo is a heavy blow. The United States accounted for around 15 percent of exports. They survived embargoes before 2000 largely because then, unlike now, trade elsewhere remained strong.

Hamburg developed as a carpet centre after World War Two, when its free port regulations allowed businesses to store goods without paying import duty. Germany's post-war boom saw Persian carpets became an exotic must-have for the affluent, attracting scores of carpet dealers from Iran.

They and their families form the backbone of what they say is Europe's second largest Iranian diaspora after London.

Members of the community in Hamburg overwhelmingly oppose the politics of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

PISTACHIOS AND SHEEP INTESTINES

Last month Belgium-based SWIFT, the world's biggest electronic payment system, decided to expel all Iranian banks blacklisted by the European Union.

This has crippled legal trade in goods such as rose water, pistachios and Iranian sheep intestines, which make a particularly good casing for Germans' beloved 'Bratwurst' sausages, as companies can no longer receive or make payments.

Mohammad Reza Nobari, Monireh's brother, says this also makes it almost impossible to send special dyes to Iran to be used in carpet production, because producers can't pay.

The Hamburg-based German-Iran Chamber of Commerce said the sanctions imposed by the United Nations, the United States and European Union against Tehran were illogical and ill-conceived.

"There seems to be very little co-ordination or strategy behind the sanctions. We are also seeing that EU sanctions are interpreted slightly differently in each member state," said Michael Tockuss, business manager of the chamber.

The SWIFT ban has left German companies unable to claim payment for almost 1.5 billion euros worth of legal business from Iran, he said.

The EU is banning Iranian oil imports from July 1, which will affect Greece, Italy and Spain, all big importers of Iranian crude last year.

Germany does not buy significant amounts of Iranian oil, but carpets, rose oil, pistachios and intestines all contributed to Iranian imports of 769 million euros in 2011, down 16 percent from the year before due to difficulties linked to sanctions.

Hamburg's Iranian community is closely following a renewed round of talks between Iran and the world's major powers, including Germany, anxious for any sign ties might improve.

"Things are getting worse and worse every day," said Mohammad Reza Nobari. "The sanctions are hitting the wrong people."

Story Source:http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/24/germany-iran-carpets-idUSL6E8FG7UL20120424

“While until the [Iranian calendar] year 1388 (ending March 20, 2010), the annual exports of hand-woven Persian carpets to China was USD 400 thousand in value, in the year 1389 (ending March 20, 2011) the value rose to USD 5 million,” Chairman of Iran's National Carpet Center Faisal Mardassi said, IRIB reported.

However, he pointed out that the new figure is still small considering the large Chinese market.

Chairman of Iran's National Carpet Center further said that Iran's carpet exports to China have the potential to be increased to USD 50 million.

According to official sources, Iran's overall export of carpets reached almost USD 450 million in 2010 with a weight volume of nearly 7,000 tons.

Iran exports carpets to more than 100 countries, as the country's hand-woven rugs are one of its main non-oil export products.

Experts attribute the increasingly lucrative market for Persian carpets worldwide to the quality of the rugs as well as their color and design.

Bert van Dijk, Shanghai correspondent for Dutch paper Het Financieele Dagblad, tells us about what he saw at the Iran pavilion: "Iran wants to impress visitors with the supposedly high technologies that the country has developed. There is a model of a cloned goat to see, the first self-built satellite, a microscope, drugs against AIDS, a laser harp, and other complex machines. On the first floor, you'll see how the Iranians are really going for it. They have built a carpet shop, where visitors can buy authentic Iranian rugs -- no, not for a few bucks but for a small fortune -- as even a small carpet can cost you 50,000 euros. I even saw a 3 x 4 metre rug going at a cost of 1.2 million yuan, or 120,000 euros. I'm not in the carpet business, but this seems to me to be a little on the high side. Apparently, Iran hopes to recover the cost of its pavilion like Belgium which is trying to sell diamonds at its pavilion."

Courtesy of : http://shanghaiist.com/2010/05/11/spotted_12_million_rmb_persian_rug.php

11 October 2010

Courtesy of : San Francisco Sentinel
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=91433

 

San Francisco will host two internationally important art shows this week displaying some of the finest antique oriental rugs and tribal art.

Both shows give seasoned buyers, home decorators, collectors and beginners a first-hand opportunity to view and purchase directly from some of the world’s leading art dealers who will be displaying some of their best pieces because of San Francisco’s important reputation as the nation’s center of collecting textile and ethnographic arts.

The 2nd annual Antique Rug and Textile Show begins tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct. 12 (through Oct. 17) at the Motel Capri, 2015 Greenwich St. The event showcases more than 40 internationally renowned rug and textile dealers who will set up their wares in a bazaar-like setting allowing visitors to wander from room to room to see the textiles.

Opening night begins at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12, and the show continues Wednesday – Sunday, Oct. 13 -Oct, 17, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Admission is free. For more information, visit artaa.org. Special exhibitions and free lectures on Tibetan, Chinese and oriental carpets will be held daily.

The 6th annual Tribal Art Show hosted by San Francisco Tribal, an association of the top Bay Area-based tribal art dealers, will be held Oct. 15 to 17 in Building “D” at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center.

The San Francisco Tribal show features an extraordinary selection of African masks and figures, Oceanic ceremonial and ritual objects, Pre-Columbian sculptures and ceramic vessels, tribal Asian textiles and carvings, Native American art and artifacts, as well as shields, hats, jewelry, masks, and figurative sculpture from diverse cultures all over the world. Dealers are available to answer questions from beginners to sophisticated collectors and knowledgeable scholars.

A preview reception will be held 6-9 p.m. Friday Oct. 15 and feature champagne and sushi and an advance opportunity to purchase tribal art. Preview tickets are available at the door for $30 per person. Tickets during the rest of the weekend are $10. Saturday hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Visit sftribal.com for more information.

Both shows give collectors, dealers, novices and fans of antique oriental carpets, ethnographic and tribal arts the opportunity to spend time discussing, learning and purchasing rare artworks from leading experts.

The Antique Rug and Textile Show’s 40 plus dealers have flown to San Francisco from as far away as Turkey, China, German, Austria, Italy and from all over the U.S.

Noted textile art dealers who will be displaying and selling in the Antique Rug and Textile Show at the Capri Motel include: Alberto Levi–Milan, Italy; Ali Aydin–Germantown, MD; Amin Motamedi–Hamburg, Germany; Andy Lloyd–Bath, England; Ben Banayan–San Francisco; Bertram Frauenknecht–Istanbul, Turkey; Chuck Paterson–Sante Fe, NM; Craig & Nina Hatch–Nomadic, USA; Davut Mizrahi–Vienna, Austria; De Witt Mallary–New York; Ed Koch: Herat Gallery–Miami, FL; George Fine–Sante Fe, NM; Hamid Rafatpanah­–Bryn Mawr, Penn.; Hagop Manoyan–NY; Hans Homm–Oberusel, Germany; James Cohen–Milan, Italy; Jeff Dworsky–Stonington, Maine; John Ruddy–Sante Fe, NM; Mark Berkovich–Galilee, Israel; Mete Mutlu–Chicago; Michael Craycraft–Stuttgart, Germany; Michael Phillips–Arvada, Colo.; Mohammad Tehrani–Hamburg, Germany; Nick & Dianne Bendas–St. Louis, MO.; Nick Wright–Williamstown, Mass.; Nunzio Crisa: Urobura–Milan, Italy; Owen Parry–London, England; Patrick Pouler–Santa Barbara, Calif.; Reyn Staffel–Springfield, Oregon; Rob van Wieringen–Nijmegen, Netherlands; Rodney McDonald–Rochester, N.Y.; Rudolf Geissman–Cardiff by the Sea, Calif.; RugBooks: W. Marquand–Culver City, Calif.; Rupert Smith–Hong Kong; Sarah Haberkern–Stuttgart, Germany; Seref Ozen: Cocoon–Istanbul, Turkey; Singkiang: Linda Pastorino–Chester, NJ; Stolp D. Fraser–East Hampton, NY.; Thom Mond–New Hampshire; Udo Langauer–Vienna, Austria; Ulrike Montigel–Stuttgart, Germany; Wayne Barron–Cambridge, Mass.

Renowned Bay Area tribal art dealers exhibiting and selling at the Tribal Show at Fort Mason Building “D”, include:

Robert Brundage–Himalayan Art; Erik Farrow–Tribal Art, Weapons & Shields; Wenhua Liu–Asian Art; Thomas Murray–Asiatica–Ethnographica; David F. Rosenthal–Oceanic Art; Vicki Shiba–Asian & Tribal Art; Frank Wiggers–Indonesian Art; James Willis– African, Oceanic & Tribal Art; Michael Auliso–Ethnographic Art; Joshua Dimondstein– Tribal Arts; Robert Dowling–Pre-Columbian & Tribal Art; Zena Kruzick–Oceania, Indonesia, Asia & Africa; Joe Loux–Asian & Tribal Art; Dave DeRoche - Art of Africa, Oceania & The Americas; Andres Moraga–Textiles & Ethnographic Art.

Courtesy of : San Francisco Sentinel
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=91433

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