RE: Colenbrander Runner Analysis.
Richard Mills (info@colenbrandercarpets.com)
> From: info@colenbrandercarpets.com
> To: Steve Mearns - imagical@hotmail.com
> Dear Steve,
> My apologies for taking so long to write, but I have been traveling, and
> it has taken some time to analyze the runner's design.
>
> Unfortunately, I cannot help you with the questions you have asked. One
> of the great frustrations in Colenbrander studies is that there are very
> few original records that have been preserved. The records of the
> factories where his carpet designs were executed were largely destroyed
> in World War Two, and Colenbrander himself destroyed most of his own
> written records before his death. So all one can do is speculate based
> on the various pieces of information that have been gathered over time.
>
> As a result, I cannot tell you when your runner was made or where it was
> installed. Back in the 1990s, I examined a very large carpet that was
> being cleaned and repaired. It had been made for the Hotel New York in
> Rotterdam, and was going to be returned to that building for use in the
> hotel. The claim was that the carpet was designed by Colenbrander. I do
> not agree with that assessment, but the carpet was likely made in the
> same general time frame as Colenbrander's carpets. So I have no
> difficulty believing that your runners came from a building in
> Rotterdam. The excellent condition of the longer runner is quite
> interesting, as most of the Colenbrander carpets that have survived are
> not in such good condition. Generally the pile is very short or even
> worn down to the carpet's foundation. Most of these carpets were also
> made for private residences, rather than commercial purposes. I can only
> assume that a runner used in a commercial environment would be subjected
> to more use than in a residential location, so it seems likely that your
> runner came from a private residence. But that does not account for the
> excellent condition of the longer runner. Perhaps it was installed in a
> section of a home that did not see much use?
>
> I don't think that the use of stair rods on the runner tells us much of
> anything about the runner. Stair rods were commonly used in Dutch
> residents, presumably for the reason that you mentioned in your email.
>
> Careful examination of the runner's design makes me believe that it is a
> Colenbrander design, based on the multicolored "Artisjok" design. (See
> the attached image smallArtisjokTilburg.jpg.) However, the runner's
> design presents further questions. While the motifs seemed to be based
> on documented "Artisjok" designs, the actual design used in the runner
> does not match any of the documented designs. It is known that
> Colenbrander designed runners, and several of his later designs contain
> annotations that indicate how sections of a design could be used for
> runners. In such cases, the runners would not have deviated from the
> original design. The design on your runner does deviate from the
> documented designs. However, none of the extant "Artisjok" designs are
> originals by Colenbrander; instead, they were made by employees of KVT
> and were based on "Artisjok" carpets. While the design shown on
> smallArtisjokTilburg.jpg certainly closely resembles the design on your
> runner, it is not identical. In fact, none of the runner's motifs are
> exactly the same as the corresponding motifs in the design.
>
> These differences in motifs are not unprecedented. The Audax Museum
> possesses another multicolored "Artisjok" design in which some of the
> motifs match neither the motifs used in carpets made from this design
> nor another multicolored "Artisjok" design. The reasons for such
> discrepancies are unknown, and the fact that Colenbrander's original
> design no longer exists makes it impossible to know which version of the
> motifs, if any, are as designed by him.
>
> Your runner is unique to me, in that I have not ever seen a runner made
> from a Colenbrander design. This makes it impossible to compare it to
> anything else. One intriguing aspect to the runner's design is that it
> uses reflection across one axis only, whereas all of Colenbrander's
> carpet designs use 3-fold reflection. The repeat in the runner is along
> one axis only as well. This type of repeat makes perfect sense for a
> runner, and the design shown in smallArtisjokTilburg.jpg employs this
> type of reflection as well, so presumably this type of design was
> intended by Colenbrander. (KVT was bound by contract not to alter
> Colenbrander's designs.) Interestingly, however, the finished end of the
> one runner section does not used the end portion of the design shown in
> smallArtisjokTilburg.jpg.
>
> This is all I can tell you about your runner at the present time. I am
> preparing a digitized recreation of the design used on the runner, and I
> would like to ask if you would be willing to compare it to your runner.
> It is difficult to make such recreations using photographs, and I would
> like to know that it is as accurate as possible. I must warn you,
> however, that it is tedious work.
>
> Best regards,
> Richard Mills
