Istanbul Carpet Week

History

At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, Istanbul is one of the world’s oldest centres for weaving and rug trading. The first edition of Istanbul Carpet Week ran from October 2016 in the Istanbul. The next edition event held in 2017 and 2018 in Istanbul.
Istanbul Carpet Week is organized by the İstanbul Halı İhracatçıları Birliği (IHIB), that’s the ‘Istanbul Carpet Exporter’s Association’ in english, with Hali og Cover magazines as media partners. This event is designed to showcase the products, skills and knowledge of one of the world’s oldest traditional centres of weaving.
The week also includes the awards ceremony for IHIB’s National Carpet Design Contest, which promotes the work of young Turkish designers, showcases the talent of a new generation and provides an inspiring indicator of the future of carpet design.
The event includes Istanbul Rug Show, Istanbul International Carpet Conference, The National Carpet Design Contest and also a reception.

Istanbul Carpet Week, 6-9 October 2016

The programme kicks off with the Istanbul International Carpet Conference, which will feature local and international speakers on a wide variety of topics. The week also includes the awards ceremony for IHIB’s 10th annual National Carpet Design Contest. Ten antique rugs from different regions of Anatolia from private collections of merchants were on display for all in the lobby of ITKIB’s (Istanbul Textile and Apparel Exporters' Association) building where some of the activities were held. the 10th National Carpet Design Contest Winners: Muhammed Türk, Senem Kula, Faruk Açıkgöz

Istanbul Carpet Week, 1-5 October 2017

Over 180 international buyers from 22 countries were recruited by COVER to attend Istanbul Carpet Week, 1-5 October 2017. Around sixty Turkish rug brands exhibited at Istanbul Rug Show held in a new larger venue over two days. The week also includes in the Istanbul International Carpet Conference, the 11th National Carpet Design Contest and the Erbil Tezcan’s rug design workshop. The free, temporary exhibition: ‘Kum Kapı rugs from the Arkas Collection’ showcased thirty-two fine silk masterpieces woven between the 16th and 20th centuries. The speakers include Hüseyin Alantar discussing how to read a carpet, Louise Broadhurst speaking on antique Turkish rugs at auctions and Matthew Bourne talking about rugs as contemporary art. the 11th National Carpet Design Contest Winners: Zeynep Gürbüz, Merve Bütüşaba, Yasemin Songur

Istanbul Carpet Week, 25-29 October 2018

The week includes the 12th National Carpet Design Contest, Istanbul Rug Show and Istanbul International Carpet Conference. The lectures at the carpet conference includes ‘Divrigi Mosque Carpets’ by Belkis Balpinar, ‘Kilims of the Vakiflar Museum Collection’ by Suzan Bayraktaroglu, ‘Future Thinking: Design and Interiors’ by Lucy Upward, ‘Turkish Carpets’ in Italy by Alberto Boralevi, ‘Anatolian Carpets in the Western World: A Story of Mutual Influences over the Ages’ by Ali Riza Tuna and ‘Keeping the Art of Design in a Digital Age ‘ by Erika Kurtz.
The event also there was a special installation in a newly restored section of the Istanbul Carpet Museum (Vakıkar Halı Müzesi), Istanbul. Featuring a selection of Anatolian kilims from the Vakıflar Kilim Museum, shown in a building that for many centuries acted as the treasury of Hagia Sophia (Aya Sofia). the 12th National Carpet Design Contest Winners: Gülbahar Gümşten, Büşra Akçay, Fatma Büyüksofuoglu

Gallery

• National Carpet Design Contest 2016 winners.jpg

  National Carpet Design Contest 2016 Winners

• National Carpet Design Contest 2017 Winners.jpg

  National Carpet Design Contest 2017 Winners

• National Carpet Design Contest 2018 Winners.jpg

  National Carpet Design Contest 2017 Winners