Islamic art

The eighth stop of the Turkish Cultural Road Festival, organized in 16 cities this year by the Culture and Tourism Ministry to contribute to Türkiye's brand value, will be the eastern province of Erzurum.

Iranian artist Mohammad Hossein Aghamiri sometimes labors for six months on a single design, very carefully — he knows a single crooked line could ruin his entire artwork.

In the age of AI-assisted graphic design on computer screens, the centuries-old tradition of Persian illumination offers an antidote to rushing the creative process.

Hand-woven carpets from across Türkiye are spread out on empty wheat fields during summers for sunlight as part of a meticulous process to sterilize them before being shipped to destinations across the globe.

Istanbul is hosting the 15th International Conference on Oriental Carpets (ICOC) starting today and will continue through June 9.

The proceeds of the "Women Behind the Weaving Loom" exhibition, which will take place in the ballroom during the conference to be held at The Marmara Taksim, will be donated to the weaving workshop to be established in Hatay.

In the southern province of Antalya, nearly 20,000 handwoven carpets and rugs from all over Türkiye are being laid out in fields after restoration, as some field owners guard the carpets, ranging in price from 3,000 to 400,000 Turkish Liras, against theft and rain throughout the night.

Egyptian luxury brands are harnessing traditional craftsmanship from jewelry design to carpet weaving to bring the country's ancient cultural riches to the world.

Experts in the sector say the global appeal of Arab and Islamic designs from other countries shows Egypt could do more to promote its rich, millennia-old artistic heritage.

Christie's has announced the Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds including Oriental Rugs and Carpets, a live auction at Christie's on April 27. The sale features striking examples of manuscripts, paintings, ceramics, metalwork, and carpets.

Striking geometric shapes that recall 20th century abstract art are not what you would expect to see adorning a handmade Iranian rug. But changing tastes and increased competition from Asia have forced some in the trade to redesign and resize a tradition dating back more than 2,000 years.

Iran announced on June 27 that weavers in the southern province of Fars had produced the world's largest kilim rug, measuring an enormous 105 square meters (more than 1,100 square feet).

The Börekçi family and other families in the Döşemealtı district of the Mediterranean coastal province of Antalya returned to the fields two months earlier this year to lay their hand-woven carpets under the sun to give them their pastel colors.