Contrasting tones and attention-stealing forms mark the most recent collaboration between rug design studio Floor Story and India-born, London-based textile designer Kangan Arora. Two new collections, ‘Cosmic Check’ and Falling Shadows’, have been released by the studio, the graphic, colourful rugs all hand-knotted, woven or tufted.
The release coincides with Floor Story’s first standalone showroom and studio opening in Hackney. The new spaces were revealed during London Design Festival 2022 and are intended to play host to a range of events, workshops and collaborations – planting the seed for a wave of floor-based design staples.
‘Eclipse’ rug.
The brand prides itself on the collaborative nature of its rug designs, and has a wide offering, largely due to the array of creatives it has worked with since the company’s conception in 2009.
Founder Simon Goff and Kangan Arora have been working together for 15 years. This time round, Arora describes her intention for the rugs to be more confident than previous collections, for them to be ‘rugs that are the starting point of the room rather than the other way round’.
‘Harlequin Runner’.
Whether it’s the eye-twitching contrasts of colour in the ‘Yantra’ rug, or the mind-bending optical illusions of the ‘Chakra’ rug, the pieces engage the mind and, with diverse colour schemes and tones from bright yellows to creams, complement a variety of spaces with ease.
The rugs are conceptually based on ancient Indian cosmic art, with influences from Japanese artist Sanzo Wada’s 1930s dictionary of colour combinations. The result is striking floor coverings in immensely pleasing colour pairings and perspective-challenging designs.
‘Chakra’ rug.
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