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Learn About Availability, Sizes & Pricing Call Your David Alan Rugs Fine Floor Covering Consultant Today 512-499-0456, 10 A.M. - 6 P.M. Central Time |
September 9, 2010 | |
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| Carpathian Mountain Old World Weaving Project Now, for the first time ever, we are making available these museum quality weavings using the hand spun wools of this region, which are harvested from their high mountain sheep that produce a luscious, long, and fine wool. These wools are then woven in their traditional way using upright looms, which give a fineness of weave superior to many others being done in the world today. Your The Line of The Spirit weaving is a work of art that will appreciate in value as it gives continual pleasure to you and your family for generations to come. Where - Richard M. Enzer, founder, designer, colorist of THE LINE OF THE SPIRIT weaving projects has sought out the area of his own ancestral tribal heritage in the Carpathian Mountains, where the horse and wagon still out number the automobile, and fields are still plowed with horse or oxen. Also, where the traditional folk-arts and crafts of embroidery, weaving, tin and iron work, wood carving, pottery, etc., are still done in the home for utilitarian and ceremonial use. where - the earliest development of animal husbandry and breeding of sheep for wool began. Where - the earliest traditions of hand weaving began. Where - the earliest forms of Totemic Art and Clan societies began. Where - the oldest of our ancient symbols and Tribal Motifs began to be expressed visually through weaving, fetish carving, pottery, etc. Where - the source of a great many designs, motifs and creative inspiration were brought to the Navajo, Hopi, Zapotec and other weaving tribes of Meso-America and the Southwest region of the United States by the early Indian Traders. Where - for the first time in more than half a century, access into these remote, Old World forest regions has been made possible. COLORING Primitive cultures believed that healing and soothing forces emanated from the colors used in the objects with which they surrounded themselves. Jewelry, costumes and weavings, then, were more important than simply items of adornment or decor. They held the power to bestow strength, fertility, tranquility, and harmony upon their lucky possessors. In the Line of the Spirit's collection of tribal-inspired weavings, Richard Enzer has sought to recreate the spiritually sustaining aspect of textile colors and hues. He has said that he uses color as a design element. By observing and studying the subtle color variations found in ancient and new textiles from around the world, he came to convey this "abrash" within his Carpathian Mountain Project carpets. Abrash originally came about as nomadic tribes collected vegetable matter for their dyes from each area through which they passed. They would essentially make a "dye lot" at each point of rest. When they set about weaving their rugs they had yarns of several hues of red, for example. A color gradation, an almost imperceptible striping, was then acheived, lending a rich tonality, texture and depth not found in 'color-blocked' weavings. Richard introduced abrash to the Zapotec weavers of Oaxaca, Mexico and continues this process in his newest Line of the Spirit collection. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE WOOL All of the rugs created by the Carpathian Mountain Project weavers are made of hand-spun wools from high mountain sheep which produce lusciously long and fine fibers. Hand-spinning is accomplished with the use of an ancient drop-spindle which is a tapered dowel primed with a piece of yarn and rotated by the spinner with one hand while she attaches carded, softened cylinders of wool with the other. The result is a nubby, tight yarn which retains the innate twistiness of the sheep's wool. Because there is very little processing, the wool also retains much of the sheep's natural lanolin, as well. This substance, slightly waxy to the touch, helps protect the carpet fibers from moisture and soil so that spills can usually be blotted up with a soft cloth before they can penetrate the wool fibers. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE SYMBOLS Floating Elements and The Carpathian Mountain Project The first symbols drawn by the old shamans of ancient cultures were our first form of writing and storytelling. To Richard Enzer, the designer of the Line of the Spirit weavings, these symbols are a key to unlocking the door to the inner conciousness of the first human societies at the dawn of their awareness of their place in the natural world. With the use of symbols, ancient shamans found a way to express the way in which their people understood the world around them. In that light, the symbols provide us with a link to our earliest brethren. These same symbols are found across all cultures. This is proof to Richard that symbols are the first and truest evidence of the spiritual connectedness between all peoples, regardless of geographic location, language, religion, or race. During the process of developing the designs for his weavings, he discovered similarities not just in the use of these symbols across cultures but in the meaning and power they evoked within cultures. For example, the Bear symbols represented introspection and strength and the Snake represented transition, change and mystical powers. These totem animals were seen in carvings and drawings and Richard, in an effort to honor their significance as a bridge between disparate peoples, continues to portray the Bear, the Deer and other animals in many of his tapestries. The most ancient of all known Bear clans existed in the Carpathian Mountains of Northeastern Romania and villages there still practice their ancient Bear ceremony. According to this tradition, a family or families would keep and feed a Bear. Then, on January 2nd, for the New Year, the Bear would be paraded through town by men wearing shells, feathers, bells, and beadwork (not unlike Apache and Sioux beadwork). Additionally, wooden flutes would be played and the men would beat on rounded, flat shaman drums (with a rhythm similar to what can be heard at Native American Pow Wows). The people would also chant niceties to the Bear and ask for rain, plentiful harvests, good health, protection for their animals, and so on. Giant elk still roam the Carpathians along with wolves and fox. These as well as birds, snakes and deer can be seen on beadwork, in weavings, tin work, tool handles, and scales all over the townspeoples' homes. Geometric patterns and flowers are also seen. Fetishes of amber, stone, and bone have been found, too. Drawings on the walls of caves date back 25,000 years or more. This is Richard's heritage as well as all those with a European ancestry. Richard believes that the symbols described here and others seen in primitive art in all its forms are fused in the memories of those with a European heritage. Perhaps this is why many of us who have descended from European bloodlines are so attracted to Native American art. Their symbols and motifs exhibit the same qualities as those of our ancestors who lived thousands and thousands of years ago. |
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