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Rectangular piece of carpet with a design of flowers, circles, and fish-shaped forms in blue, green, and beige on a black ground.

Carpet, designed circa 1929, reproduced 2022, Joseph Urban (American, b. Austria, 1872-1933), designer, Langhorne Carpet Co. (American, est. 1930), manufacturer of reproduction, wool, Gift of Mrs. Thomas J. Reis, 1973.778

Verbal Description

 

Hello, my name is Amy Dehan. I am the Curator of Decorative Arts and Design; and the curator of Unlocking an Art Deco Bedroom by Joseph Urban. I will be reading the verbal description for the Carpet.

The Carpet was designed in circa 1929 and reproduced in 2022. It was designed by Joseph Urban, an American who was born in Austria in 1872. He died in 1933. It was reproduced by the Langhorne Carpet Company an American manufacturer established in 1930. It is made of wool. It was a gift from Mrs. Thomas J. Reis. The accession number is 1973.778

The Carpet is decorated with a design of abstracted flowers, circles, and fish-shaped forms in blue, green, and beige on a deep navy blue ground. 

Label Copy

 

Hello, my name is Amy Dehan. I am the Curator of Decorative Arts and Design; and the curator of Unlocking an Art Deco Bedroom by Joseph Urban. I will be reading the label for the Carpet.

The Carpet was designed in circa 1929 and reproduced in 2022. It was designed by Joseph Urban, an American who was born in Austria in 1872. He died in 1933. It was reproduced by the Langhorne Carpet Company an American manufacturer established in 1930. It is made of wool. It was a gift from Mrs. Thomas J. Reis. The accession number is 1973.778

A vibrant and energetic pattern of abstracted flowers in ivory, greens and blues punctuates the midnight blue ground of the Wormser bedroom carpet. Urban often designed carpets and rugs with intricate patterns for his spaces. A former assistant recalled, "This was a favorite device of his. Without being insistent, without the viewer being conscious of the fact, Urban would unify various spaces or emphasize one space.... In practically all of his interiors, the design of the carpet was one of the most important features." The original watercolor design sketch for this carpet was located among the artist’s papers. Urban used a wool carpet of this same design in his Yonkers studio and in the dining room he created for Chicago’s Congress Hotel (1932).   

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