Valerio Sommella Designs Persian Inspired Rug Collection for Moooi Carpets
Heriz Rug: 200 x 300 cm
Born in Tuscany in 1980, Valerio Sommella is an Industrial designer best known for his work with Alessi, Calligaris, Fabian and Panasonic. He began his career with renowned Italian designer Stefano Giovanni and later went on to work with Moooi founder Marcel Wanders and his team in Holland. In 2009 he founded Valerio Sommella Design Studio in Milan, the studio focus on everyday objects, furniture, lighting and accessories with an incredible eye for detail.
Heriz Detail
Earlier this year Sommella debuted a collection of Persian inspired rugs and broadloom’s for Dutch carpet brand Moooi Carpets. The collection features a total of six designs, three rugs and three broadloom carpets.
Lilihan Rug: 200 x 300 cm
The initial idea behind the series was related to the high definition printing technology utilised by Moooi Carpets. Sommella states that he was keen to work with the brand having previously seen the photo-realistic rug designs during last years Salone del Mobile in Milan.
Lilihan Detail
Research for the collection began with the idea of creating digital images of furry subjects that could create the illusion of walking on soft and fluffy surface, but are in fact perfectly smooth. "I wanted to work on a subject that could make the best out of this amazing possibility to create a collection that couldn't be possible otherwise,” explains Valerio
Shiraz Rug: 200 x 300 cm
For the project Sommella immersed himself into traditional carpet design, exploring typical patterns of Iranian cities and how they vary from place to place. The rugs, 'Shiraz', 'Lilihan' and 'Hertz' are named after prominent Iranian villages, whilst the broadloom carpets, 'Mirror Ivory' 'Mirror Hall' and 'Diamond Hall' are dedicated to the beautiful Halls of the Golestan Palace, the oldest of the historic monuments in Tehran.
Milan 2016 Presentation
Created entirely in a 3d environment, the images are made of 500.000 single hairs per square meter with a printing resolution of 76dpi. The final result is a nostalgic collection that brings together traditional design, in some cases dating back to 16th century, with the complex process of 21st century image generation.
Ivory Hall Broadloom
