Notes From The City: An Abundant Life

There is an area of New York City that I have loved visiting ever since I discovered it one day on a walk with a friend in my early years of city life. We had gone to Central Park for a picnic lunch and decided to walk downtown, and on the way we passed a sign in a window on Madison Avenue just below 34th Street for a carpet store that was having a moving sale. I was used to seeing those signs in those days, and usually when you went inside, the sale was not really a sale and the merchandise was standard merchandise that could be found in any number of other places that boasted the same signs and same sales. This type of marketing was common back then, and some of these stores were having moving sales regularly in the same location for years. But on that day my friend and I were in the mood to continue our adventure, and so we walked into the carpet store and discovered that it really was an interesting and beautiful place and they really were having a big sale because they were really moving. Years later I discovered them again in their new location and had the lovely opportunity to tell the owner how much my friend and I had enjoyed that day and still continued to enjoy the memory. We had both walked out carrying lovely Kilims that have continued to bring us joy all these years. Since that day, whenever I am in that area and have some time I like to wander into other carpet stores. The owners are often very busy, but they are so knowledgeable that it is worth waiting for their time, and when they understand that you're someone who is truly interested in the art of their business, they share information and history that can only be found in the rarest of archives.

Last fall I was invited to the 46th Anniversary of Persian Gallery New York, and when I saw that the address was on a higher floor of a building and not on a ground floor as many of the other carpet stores are, I wanted to attend because I had a feeling it would be a rare and exclusive experience to meet the owners and see their showroom. I had tickets to the opera that afternoon, an unexpected gift, and I had invited a friend to join me, and when we met, I told him that afterward I was going to rush the blocks downtown to get to this other event because I didn't want to miss it. We arrived very late, but the hosts were very gracious, and the visit was definitely all I could have hoped for and even more. Just after we arrived, they unfurled a Julius Caesar Tapestry that is believed to be one of the lost treasures from the Royal Palace of King Henry VIII and one of the rarest of all in the world, a viewing that would be extraordinary in any location and that was a very special and breathtaking one because of the intimate showroom environment. They had not been planning to show it that night, but that is the way that they are - their love of the pieces they collect is brought into the world around them, and they wanted to share their beauty. I explained that I had wanted to attend the event to meet them and that I hoped I could return and write a blog post, and they gave me their card and made an appointment with me for a day a short time later. It is rare to have the honor to visit with such knowledgeable people who are so well respected within their industry. Persian Gallery New York has a history of having one of the finest collections of antique and rare carpets and tapestries in the world, and the two brothers who founded it have together carefully curated and collected some of the most amazing pieces of functional art and design imaginable.

When I returned for our visit, Co-Founder and President Ike Hakim and Vice President Rodney Hakim sat down with me for a conversation. It was so interesting to listen to their history and the information they shared with me about the beautiful pieces of art all around us that I could have stayed with them for many more hours just listening and looking and admiring. There is so much to see and so much variety in style and weave and color, and so much to learn from such learned and dedicated collectors. My experience with them was so interesting it was better than a museum visit - there was so much more to see and things could be touched and experienced physically. At one point when I walked out into the showroom to take photographs, one of the carpets was laid out on the floor, and as I walked over it, Ike Hakim said, "Walking on history." My feeling was one of walking on luxury, walking on beauty, and yes, walking on history, and it is a feeling I could get very used to and that I would never tire of. This is art that is accessible, functional, historical, luxurious and educational. A walk into Persian Gallery New York is a walk into the world of fine craftsmanship, art and life.

Persian Gallery New York

36 East 31st Street

New York, New York

http://www.pgny.com/

Vice President Rodney Hakim
Sharing The Story Of A Rare Julius Caesar Tapestry
Believed To Be One Of The Lost Treasures
From The Palace Of King Henry VIII