Southwestern Rugs and Southwest Style Area Rugs


The seemingly simple phrase southwestern rugs can be misleading. Southwestern style rugs actually encompass a rather broad spectrum of different colors and design patterns that have developed out of a convergence of historical influences. The most recognizable features of southwest rugs are their characteristic geometric designs, simple, blocky human and animal figures and bright pastel colors intermixed with earth tones. These simple geometric designs so common to southwestern style area rugs, such as various arrangements of triangles and the use of large central medallions – often in the shape of a diamond – as well as the use of human and animal figures in simple colors are similar to those found in traditional rugs the world over from the tribal rugs of Central America, Mexico and the southwestern United States, to the gabbeh rugs of Iran and the Dagestan rugs of the Caucuses.

Less noticeable, but no less important to the history of southwestern area rugs is the material from which they are made. While most southwestern style rugs today are made of wool, the original rugs woven by the native tribesmen of the southwest were made of cotton. Woven on a vertical wooden loom, from handspun cotton thread, Native American rugs and blankets often featured large and relatively simple geometric design in simple, earth toned colors still common to southwestern area rugs today. Unlike modern southwestern rugs, however, these tribal rugs were also used as blankets. It was only after the Spanish introduced sheep to the region that now makes up the southwestern United States and Mexico that wool became available. Once introduced to the southwest, wool became the Native Americans’ preferred material for weaving their rugs. Unlike cotton, wool maintains its ability to retain heat when it is wet, making it a far superior material for weaving both the blankets and rugs the southwestern Natives needed to keep warm.

While just about all of the native southwestern peoples adopted wool as the common material from which to make their rugs, the various native peoples of the southwest retained the design patterns unique to their local cultural heritage. Many of the Mexican rugs from central to southern Mexico feature traditional Mayan patterns and designs while those from the area which now comprises the southwestern United states primarily feature Navajo, Pueblo and other tribal design influences. While many contemporary southwestern rugs borrow from multiple traditions, especially those that are commercially produced, it is still possible to distinguish regional variations and individual tribal influences in their design patterns and color schemes. Just like any true work of art, the beauty of southwestern rugs can be recognized by anyone at a glance, but a true appreciation of their composition requires a trained eye at the service knowledgeable mind. The more you study southwestern rugs, the more clearly you will see them and the more deeply you will come to appreciate them as a modern link to ancient tribal art.

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