Silver Furniture Design · 2020
Umai Rug
- A' Design Award 2020 Silver Winner in Furniture Design
- Awarded April 15, 2020
- CLIENT: Marina Begman
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 38,497
- Verification code B944221458 · Verify this award
About Umai Rug
Made in ancient nomadic technique, protected by UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safekeeping, this rug is bringing the best out of wool due to gradient wool shades and fine hand stitching that creates volumetric texture. 100 percent hand made, this rug is made using natural shades of wool plus yellowish tone dyed with onion shell. A golden thread that goes through the rug makes a statement and reminds of the hair freely flowing in the wind - hair of nomadic goddess Umay - protector of women and children.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- One hundred percent natural sheep wool hand-felted and hand-stitched, dyed with herbs. Wool texture comes out beautifully through natural color combination and detailed stitching. Using an ancient and rare nomadic technique of rug making, included in UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safekeeping, the best of natural material is brought out, making it state of the art rug or wall decoration for modern home
- Dimensions & Packaging
- 3000 mm x 2000 mm x 15 mm
- Tags
- felt, wool, handmade rug, shyrdak
- Production Technology
- Creating Hair of Umay is a complex endeavour, following ancient techniques of shyrdak making and research of central asian legends included interviewing the elder women artisans in Naryn. Wool, the primary material, is sheared from sheep in the spring. It is then washed, dried, coloured, and pressed into sheets. The sheets are cut into beautiful patterns and hand stitched together. These patterns are quilted onto a large piece of plain wool base, creating a soft, thick, high-quality carpet.
- Design Challenge
- The rug is fully hand-stitched, cannot be imitated by a sewing machine. It takes one experienced woman-artisan 3 days to stitch one m2. It takes 6 sheep to make one rug of 3m by 2m size. The whole process is hand-made and very labor intensive.
- Project Duration
- A custom rug takes two months to make including delivery. Workshop is located in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
- Operation Flow
- It is a piece of art that could decorate your floor or wall.
Also helps with acoustics to limit noise pollution. It retains warmth when it is cold, and keeps a space cool when it is hot. It's antibacterial, and doesn't absorb odours. - Research
- First, the technique itself was researched. Secondly, the ancient legends of central asian nomads were learned.The technique research included academic research about shyrdak making, traveling to Kyrgyzstan to remote mountainous region Naryn, where this technique is still kept by elder women, interviewing them, as well as participating in shyrdak making to experience and understanding the technique firsthand.
The research of nomadic legends included reading central asian literature and interviewing a university professor on Kyrgyz literature and history. - Inspiration
- Inspired by a legend of Turkic and Mongolian people, about ancient goddess Umai - a benevolent spirit, the patroness of children and women. The mother goddess was depicted with golden hair, with a comb-shaped hairstyle. The rug drawing is depicting her loose hair in the wind
- Image Credits
- Image #1: Photographer Dias Nurmagambetov, Variations, 2020
Image #2: Photographer Dias Nurmagambetov, Variations, 2020
Image #3: Photographer Dias Nurmagambetov, Variations, 2020
Image #4: Photographer Dias Nurmagambetov, Variations, 2020
Image #5: Photographer Dias Nurmagambetov, Variations, 2020
Colors of Umai Rug
Get Umai Rug
Custom Heritage Rugs and Interior Design
We create bespoke hand-felted wool rugs and textiles using UNESCO-protected traditional techniques from Central Asia. Our award-winning designs blend ancient craftsmanship with contemporary aesthetics, bringing cultural narratives into modern spaces through sustainable, artisan-made pieces.
G0E3 ShopDesign Interview about Umai Rug
Creating Umai's Hair Rug is a complex endeavor, following ancient techniques of shyrdak making. Wool, the primary material, is sheared from sheep in the spring. It is then washed, dried, colored, and pressed into sheets. The sheets are cut into beautiful patterns and stitched together, representing spiritual values and harmony between people and the natural world. These patterns are quilted onto a large piece of plain wool base, creating a soft, thick, high-quality carpet that can last for decades.The shyrdak, a distinctively designed wool rug, is an integral part of the traditional nomadic lifestyle of Central Asia. The technique used to make shyrdaks has been perfected over centuries and passed down from generation to generation. Central Asian nomads use shyrdaks to insulate and decorate their yurts, keeping these moveable homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer. A shyrdak is a highly valuable possession for nomadic people; it’s included in dowries for young brides, and presented as a gift for important life events and celebrations.
Design was inspired by a legend of Turkic and Mongolian people, about ancient goddess Umai - a benevolent spirit, the patroness of children and women. The mother goddess was depicted with golden hair, with a comb-shaped hairstyle. The rug drawing is depicting her loose hair in the wind
Design was inspired by a legend of Turkic and Mongolian people, about ancient goddess Umai - a benevolent spirit, the patroness of children and women. The mother goddess was depicted with golden hair, with a comb-shaped hairstyle. The rug drawing is depicting her loose hair in the wind
All design research and sketches took around 3 months
I have always been fascinated by significant role of women in nomadic mythology, where women were treated with great respect and reverence.
Unfortunately, in our time, the women are not treated the same in Central Asia. Through this design concept I wanted to remind how important women were for nomadic people
Unfortunately, in our time, the women are not treated the same in Central Asia. Through this design concept I wanted to remind how important women were for nomadic people
Currently in production by partner production company
I met Aliya, the founder of Nakta in 2017. She shared how she started a company to preserve nomadic heritage and empower women artisans in rural Kyrgyzstan. The nomadic handmade rugs are at the edge of disappearance, as younger people are moving to the cities and are not learning from their mothers how to make a traditional hand felted rug. Aliya had an idea of reviving this ancient rug making technique through connecting it to the market. Her story inspired me so much and I wanted to make a design for them. When I showed the first sketches, we realized that we think the same way and decided to make the first collection. Thus, our collaboration resulted in «Hair of Umay»rug
Our target customer cares about the story of the product, conscious about the environment and social impact. Our customer is also appreciative of natural sustainable products, interior design, and appreciates hand made fabrics.
The name was inspired by ancient nomadic goddess Umai - a benevolent spirit, the patroness of children and women.
All sketches were made manually, then I used software to obtain exact dimensions for production
The role of technology is not crucial for this project, all sketches were made manually, the rug was handmade using an ancient nomadic technique using only water, soap, wool, and herbs. Felted wool sheets were dyed by herbs, and hand stitched together by women artisans.
The research was two-folds:
First, I researched the technique itself. Secondly, I researched the ancient legends of central asian nomads to come up with a new design in shyrdak technique.
The technique research included academic research about shyrdak making, traveling to Kyrgyzstan to remote mountainous region Naryn, where this technique is still kept by elder women, interviewing them, as well as participating in shyrdak making to experience and understand the technique firsthand.
The research of central asian legends included interviewing the elder women artisans in Naryn, academic research, as well as interviewing a university professor on Kyrgyz literature.
First, I researched the technique itself. Secondly, I researched the ancient legends of central asian nomads to come up with a new design in shyrdak technique.
The technique research included academic research about shyrdak making, traveling to Kyrgyzstan to remote mountainous region Naryn, where this technique is still kept by elder women, interviewing them, as well as participating in shyrdak making to experience and understand the technique firsthand.
The research of central asian legends included interviewing the elder women artisans in Naryn, academic research, as well as interviewing a university professor on Kyrgyz literature.
The main challenge was to get the right shades to combine when dyeing wool with herbs.
I wanted people in the world to learn more about ancient techniques of rug making in Central Asia and nomadic cultural heritage
While working on this project, I learned more about the ancient handmade rug making technique, and improved my communication skills with production company