The salt marshes of the Venice lagoon, with the ever-changing landscape that varies with the slow rhythm of the tides, was the inspiration for Carpet Edition’s Barene rug collection.
When the water rises, portions of land are gradually submersed and when the tide recedes, the salt marshes – which are at risk because of erosion and human activity – re-emerge revealing a complex network of channels – known as ghebi – which wind between pools of water and stretches of salt-water vegetation such as seagrass and glasswort and this is Marco Zito’s inspiration.
‘Barene is a suggestion that comes from the landscape that surrounds me, the Lagoon of Venice. A suggestion that is not only poetic, but also an actual topic which speaks to the fragility of an environment that is unique in this world,’ he says.
The hand tufted rugs reinterpret the primordial interaction between land and water, where fluid and irregular shapes recall the changing surface carved by the tides, while the colours recount the changing of the seasons.
‘We began from maps and aerial photos of the salt marshes, keeping in line with the colours and proportions of the levels, the design became a digital pattern of layers with various possible combinations,’ says Zito.
‘To achieve this result, a fundamental element of the project was the research of materials: the use of New Zealand wool, felted New Zealand wool, hardtwist New Zealand wool and linen creates a balance between structure and plushness, while the varying pile heights – 10mm velvet/boucle, 10mm boucle, 14mm velvet, 20mm velvet and 40mm shagpile – reproduce the different levels of the lagoon’s landscape, generating reliefs which amplify the tactile and visual perception. Each rug becomes a deeply evocative and rich atoll with significance to be imagined in a space that allows the surfaces to breathe, to be an experienced tactilely, and to appreciate the emergence of varying levels.’
