MTM Design Book One
Our first publication is out, and will be available soon!
One of our major preoccupations at MTM, apart from the collection, conservation, restoration and exhibition of Iranian textiles, is to promote their return into contemporary designs. Part of this endeavor entails the publication and distribution of old Iranian designs and motifs, making them available to everyone.
Noor o Soor - Book One contains fourteen pieces exhibited by the Manouchehri Textile Museum in the city of Kashan from 2018 until 2024. The textiles represent a remarkable integrity in terms of their motif, production technique and period. They are all wall hangings, adorned with sequin and chain stitch embroidery for the purpose of decorating spaces of celebration - particularly weddings. Their production can be traced to the city of Isfahan in the 18th and 19th century A.D.
The motif inherent to all pieces is the ancient “Tree of Life” in a multitude of interpretations. We find this motif repeated not just among these particular samples, but among the vast majority of sequin-embroidered wall hangings produced during the same period. The loyalty to this imagery is fascinating, given that the applied embroidery techniques - compared to, for example, the complexity and limitations of weaving, or the inevitable repetitiveness of block printing - give the artist a considerable amount of creative freedom. And yet, inevitably, all works have adopted a single format: nurtured by collective memory, it seems, contributing to its own richness and survival.
We have therefore created and shared, next to the photographs of the works, their linear patterns as an enriched source of imagery. Our intention is to provide access and to recirculate these patterns among the creative life cycle. We aspire for these patterns to ease the quest of interested researchers, and to delight enthusiasts into giving them new life.
MTM Design Book One will be available for purchase soon - to register your interest and to receive updates, please follow us on Instagram (see below) or send us an Email.
