Canadian Pictorial Hooked Rug from New Newfoundland - Cheticamp

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Canadian Pictorial Hooked Rug from New Newfoundland - Cheticamp

About the Item

#21271 Canadian Pictorial Hooked Carpet Canadian Newfoundland, Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Home Industries, Cheticamp Designed by Mary Lilian Burke Signed MLB Executed under the direction of Anne a Joseph Chiasson 12’10” x 16’4” - 391 x 497 cm Dated 1940 Wool pile, burlap ground. Hooked Technique Carpet hooking, whether of woolen yarns or of fabrics cut into narrow strips, originated in Britain and was transferred to New England and the Canadian Maritime Provinces in the 19th century. The oldest surviving Maritime Provinces hooked rug dates from the 1880’s-90’s. Rug hooking was, and still is, a widely practiced folk craft Most rugs are small, the size of an opened-out burlap ("brin") feed or grain bag. The backing fabric was stretched on a wooden frame, and the yarn was pulled through to the back by a hooked tool, often no more than a notched nail, resulting in a loop on the front. The process is the same in making large carpets, but frame is moved to new, unhooked areas as sections are filled in. Burlap in wide width became available in the early 20th century and this allowed for room-size hooked carpets, perfect for rustic New England and Eastern Canadian interiors. This piece has a broad burlap backing instead of numerous sackings sewn together. A modern backing has been applied; hence the original burlap cannot be studied. Another 20th century innovation is the pre-drawn pattern on the burlap. Most of the now artistically desirable small pieces were done after freehand drawings by the weavers themselves. This results in simple drawings, with a chunky character. The patterns are simple and familiar: houses, flower vases, ships, plants, and other domestic objects and scenes. This carpet is quite different and much more sophisticated artistically. A six by six rectangular array of slightly lobate, flattened, linked cartouches is evenly set on the green ground, and fills the available space exactly. There is a narrow green border matching the field tone. In each sandy-straw cartouche is a bird, animal or plant, in alternation. The birds are all Canadian species, including Canada goose, loon, mallard duck, partridge, and sparrow. There is also is a black and white skunk in the lowest row, a squirrel on a twig, and a rabbit in the topmost row. The plants include cattails, oak leaves, maple leaves, irises and sumac. Some of the plant motives repeat, the birds do not. The drawing is accomplished, precise and flowing, a far cry from the angular, simplified execution of the small rugs. The individual elements were taken from drawings by Lilian Burke of New York, from a wider repertoire of watercolor drawings, of which many survive. Burke drew out the pattern on the burlap, which, in the largest carpets which took up to six months. The craftswomen followed the patterns pre-drawn by Lilian Burke. This resulted in the perfect balance in general and the precision of the individual motives .The carpet shows a green interstitial ground, with a six by six array of scallop-lobed -shaped cartouches in ecru-straw , all joined by short, thick ecru-straw extenders. As a result, the reserves gently flow into one another. In the other two published, now lost examples, the cartouches are joined by double lines. The carpet was probably provided by the decorating firm of Thredlow in New York, who provided other Burke needlework carpets. This example is at present the only surviving piece in the illustrated cartouche allover pattern, as the larger Coe example has been destroyed and a smaller (9’ by 12’) piece with a four by five array of similar cartouches is now lost. The dyeing for this carpet was carried out by and under the direction of Anne Chiasson, who also directed the hooking team. The yarn was spun and dyed in-house with quality German dyes. In some examples there were up to 125 distinct shades. In this piece there are at least sixty to better delineate details of fur, feathers and plant elements. Lilian Burke was active as a designer in the 1927-1940 period, and hooked rugs at Cheticamp were produced in the 1930-1940 period. The Cheticamp shop also created hooked technique pieces in Savonerrie and floral styles, also designed by Lilian Burke, some measuring over 30’ in length and requiring eight workers on a dual roller frame. Progress was quite quick, and our example probably took under six months to create. The inherent vice of burlap instead of cotton or linen made the rugs particularly unstable. There are no Cheticamp hooked carpets in Canadian collections. Generally restrained, earth tone palette, Good condition with the original burlap backing fabric, now latexed to a plain white cotton fabric.

Dimensions:
Width: 154 in (391.16 cm)Length: 196 in (497.84 cm)
Style:
Adirondack (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Wool,Hand-Knotted
Place of Origin:
Canada
Period:
1930-1939
Date of Manufacture:
1940
Condition:
Repaired. Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
Seller: 212711stDibs: LU4926120832492