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Holy Weavers, Batman!

Edited by Karen D. Singh, Text by Karen D. Singh and Mark McMenamin -- Interior Design, 2/1/2009 12:00:00 AM

At Barack Obama's precedent-shattering inauguration, the barricades of history came tumbling down—a confirmed Spiderman addict finally became commander in chief of the U.S. And it bodes equally well for the future of international cooperation that the rug's designer, Behrouz Kolahi, is a native Iranian based in Italy.

Borrowed from the Italian word for comic, the Fumetto series gives a nod in the general direction of pop art's Roy Lichtenstein. Kolahi conceived six onomatopoeically named patterns, such Craash and Booom! But rather than an explosion of primary colors, the duo-tone palette has an eternal quality, like rediscovering a favorite serial stored since grade-school days.

The RugMark-certified designs are handwoven in Nepal, using knotted fleece on a cotton warp, and trimmed in Tibetan-spun, hand-knotted wool and aloe. Sold in a limited edition of 50, they can be custom-made in practically any size or shape. Memo to President Obama: That includes ovals. 39-011-882467; stilebk.com. circle 428

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