THE MOSAICS OF HISTORICAL AGORA BECAME CARPET DESIGNS!
The mosaics of historical city of Agora, located at the heart of Izmir, will live in the motifs of hand-woven carpets. The mosaics of Agora, which was left to its own devices, were excavated by the support of Izmir Chamber of Commerce, and carpets were hand-woven in mosaic patterns. The mosaic designed carpets, which were woven upon the recommendation of Ekrem Demirtaş, President of the Board of Trustees and Chairman of the Executive Board of Izmir Chamber of Commerce, will be used as gifts in promoting Izmir. The carpets bearing the colours and weaving techniques of Western Anatolia will be decorating the offices of statesmen all around the world. The first group of carpets are finished and took their place at the Office of President Demirtaş at IUE.
After President Demirtaş discussed the issue with Prof. Dr. Elvan Özkavruk Adanır, Head of Department of IUE Fashion and Textile Design, the mosaics of Agora were turned into carpet motifs with different patterns by staying true to its origins. The carpets came to life in the hands of weavers in Serçeler, a mountain village in Demirci, Manisa.
History met with design
President Demirtaş pointed out that carpet weaving and using always had a significant place in Turkish culture, and stressed that the carpets they got woven had a special value. President Demirtaş stated that they got inspired by the mosaics that were excavated in Agora last year.
“Agora, heart of Izmir”
President Demirtaş, who indicated that Historical Agora was one of the main symbols of the city, said that the fact that the ruins were in the centre of the city was a big advantage. Demirtaş mentioned that Agora Antique City was as efficient and beautiful as Antique City of Ephesus, and he stated the following:
“We reviewed the patterns of the mosaics excavated in Agora. They are so exquisite. We got inspired by these patterns so much that we wanted to see them on a carpet. They date back to 1200 years. We had the idea of carrying them to into the present. IUE Lecturer Prof. Dr. Elvan Özkavruk created carpet patterns out of these mosaics, and carpets with stories were woven. These will make perfect and very meaningful gifts for our guests. I laid one in my office first. We will be working on the different variations by staying true to the original patterns.”
“Izmir Economics brings the old back to life”
IUE Rector Prof. Dr. Tunçdan Baltacıoğlu, on the other hand, indicated that they approached history differently as Izmir University of Economics, and he said, “One of the main problems with our country is to demolish the old and construct a new one on top of that, whereas the West just adds the new ones next to the old ones in conformity. We also endeavour to bring the old back to life instead of destroying it.”
Mosaics coming to life in the loops of women
Prof. Dr. Elvan Özkavruk Adanır, who talked about the story behind the carpets, said, “After transferring the existing motifs in the mosaics to the graph paper, research assistant Duygu Kocabaş transferred them to the computer. We created 3 different models based on the mosaics. We finalized our carpet motifs by taking the colours that are being used in Western Anatolia carpets for centuries, into consideration.”
Prof. Dr. Adanır stated that they used red, dark blue, beige, and yellow in the carpets which were the dominant colours in Turkish carpets. She also said that Izmir had been a significant centre of carpet export for 600 years. Prof. Dr. Adanır said, “The hand woven carpets in this project are priceless, and they gain more value with the mosaics of Agora.”
