Dezeen Magazine

Rilievo Tigmi Trading

Tigmi Trading designs rug collection that takes cues from brutalist architecture

Dezeen promotion: Byron Bay rug company Tigmi Trading has released its first in-house-designed rug collection informed by brutalist architecture.

The five-piece luxury rug collection is called Rilievo, which translates to "relief" in Italian.

The rugs are informed by the hard edges of brutalist architecture and feature geometric patterns that intend to mirror the interplay between a building's light and shadows.

Rug collection by Tigmi Trading
The rug collection is informed by brutalist architecture

Founder and creative director of Tigmi Trading Danielle McEwan was influenced by architect Carlo Scarpa when designing the collection, which takes cues from Scarpa's modernist work.

"I have a deep connection with architectural detail and in particular, the way brutalist forms can balance the harshness and strength of materiality with the intricate detail of the design," said McEwan.

"The use of repetitive patterns to create sculptural elements and detail, playing with proportion and light and Scarpa's approach to combining different materials– in our case, the linen – with a precious one such as soft New Zealand wool."

Rilievo has geometric lines
The rugs come in a series of colours

The simplicity of each rug's single colour is offset by the textured relief 'rilievo' of patterns, forming pieces that intend to be timeless.

Tigmi Trading worked with a family-based weaving company in Nepal to create the collection, which is made-to-order in the interest of minimising waste.

Describing itself as a "conscious" brand, the rug-makers has recently become a GoodWeave partner. GoodWeave is a non-profit organisation that works to end child labour in the rug industry.

Geometric rug
Geometric lines seen in modernist architecture are echoed in the rug designs

Rilievo intends to echo the brand's commitment to quality and sustainable artisanship.

"Our aim is to keep pushing ourselves and customers to think and buy consciously – beautifully aesthetic, socially and ethically made design – we don’t believe you need to sacrifice one for the other," added McEwan.

"We will continue to design and develop an exciting range of rugs and products that share this ethos."

To view more of Tigmi Trading’s products, visit its website.


Partnership content

This article was written by Dezeen for Tigmi Trading as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.