Designer Introduces Floorcloths to the West

The Western Design Conference is held each year in September in Cody, Wyoming bringing together craftspeople, scholars, collectors, interior designers, architects, and fashion designers with a true love of the West as a venue for showing the finest western design in the world. Angie Nelson has been an exhibitor by invitation for three years showing her hand painted western style floorcloths there. Nelson enjoys the curiosity of those unfamiliar with floorcloths and welcomes the many questions she receives. Floorcloths were not used in the west very much in the past, but in the 21st century, I hope to leave a legacy of my best work there."

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Designer Introduces Floorcloths to the West

Thomasville, NC (PRWEB) October 29, 2003 - Angie Nelson, artist and designer, was welcomed once again to the Western Design Conference in Cody, Wyoming in September where she exhibited an example of her centuries old craft of floorcloth making in an area of the country where, historically, they were not popular. This was Nelsons third trip to the juried gallery style exhibition where the nations top western artisans, furniture and couture designers unveil their newest creations. Nelson reports a good response over the last month since returning from Wyoming to her North Carolina studio.

Floorcloths are hand painted canvas rugs made today, in much the same fashion as in centuries past, by laying down coats of paints and sealant one on top of the other on heavy weight canvas in a design of the artists choice. The first floorcloths were imported to America by ship from Europe around the beginning of the 18th century and were used in place of expensive Oriental rugs and in some instances over dirt floors. Americans made their floorcloths from sailcloth and in the beginning they were called sailcloths or oilcloths. They remained popular in the East for about one hundred years until the advent of linoleum in the late 1860s. Among the many Colonial Americans owning floorcloths were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.

In 1872 Montgomery Ward offered floorcloths for sale by mail order in their catalog and they were then available farther west to those who could afford them.

Today floorcloths are again a popular alternative to other types of area rugs. They are intended for use on hard floors where they add interest and beauty without the maintenance or allergen problems associated with the others. They can be simply swept and mopped with the floor. A well-made floorcloth is a labor-intensive craft and will resemble heavy leather in texture and weight. The styles and shapes are only limited to ones imagination.

Angie Nelson began her career as a floorcloth maker in 1989 from her kitchen table after working several years as an interior designer. Her floorcloths sold nationally within a year with the help of an editorial mention in Country Living Magazine. Two years later she was asked to develop a line of floorcloths and tabletop canvases for an accessory program with a local furniture manufacturer in High Point. It was while she was associated with this program that she noticed the influence that the American West was beginning to have on the furniture industry and then heard that the company she was working with would soon present their own western collection. Because of her longtime love of the west, Nelson thought, What could be better than designing and painting western floorcloths?" She presented this idea, but it was quickly shot down by the same designer that had sought her out for the earlier project saying, You could never sell western floorcloths because they never used them out there."

Nelson hung on to her dream and her designs and did eventually sell her floorcloths out west through connections she had made with other interior designers. These sales inspired her to specialize in her two loves, art and the American West and her craft began to really evolve into a unique genre.

In January 2000 Nelson read an article in American Cowboy Magazine about the Western Design Conference in Cody, and knew she had to go there. She was accepted with her first application, competing with hundreds of other applicants, and was there that September for her first show. I was so intimidated I wanted to sneak out and go home, but we were immediately adopted by veterans of The Conference and quickly became part of their family. Each year is like a reunion and I am always inspired by my peers to take my work to another level." she says of The Conference.

The floorcloths Nelson produces from her North Carolina studio have grown from the simple rug patterns with cowboy silhouettes to finely detailed art pieces sometimes featuring her clients pets or homes. Not only can her clients have portraits of their animals on the rug they can have the background custom designed to coordinate with the room setting. Her floorcloths can be embellished with leather fringe and conchos making them very different from the run of the mill. She says about her work, Thats the beauty of a floorcloth. You have no limitations in size, shape or subject matter. No one has to settle for the next best thing. A floorcloth can be a one of a kind piece created with the client in mind."

This past September Nelson exhibited a piece in the style that has become her favorite over the last few years, tromp l`oeil, meaning to fool the eye. She knew she wanted to do a horse this year but agonized for months about how she would present it. Finally, during her research a beautiful antique carousel horse inspired her and the idea came to her immediately for this years entry. The rug represents an appaloosa horse in war paint and adorned with eagle feathers and beads, elk teeth, and shells. The floorcloth gives the illusion of a beaded Indian saddle blanket atop an appaloosa hide with the horses head in the center as the focal point. This rug on rug look has become a trademark style for her pieces. Each bead is painstakingly hand painted onto the canvas and the fringe on the blanket looks to be moving with each stride the horse would take. Everyone wanted to feel it (the rug) to see if the beads were real. That is the best compliment." Nelson said. In the center of the blanket is the profile of the horses head with nostrils flared and a look of excitement in his eye. The look on the horses face makes a very dramatic statement and I was told time and again that I really captured the western spirit in this piece." The floorcloth is sealed with six coats of varnish and waxed for protection making it very durable for everyday use on the floor, although most patrons of The Conference said they would never walk on it. Next year I am going to have to show a piece on the floor rather than hanging it so that I can sell them as rugs and not just as wallcloths." Nelson also says she is very grateful to be doing a job she loves and feels so at home in the west she hopes to move there with her family someday and be a true western artist.

The Western Design Conference is held each year in September in Cody, Wyoming bringing together craftspeople, scholars, collectors,
interior designers, architects, and fashion designers with a true love of the West as a venue for showing the finest western design in the world. Angie Nelson has been an exhibitor by invitation for three years showing her hand painted western style floorcloths there. Nelson enjoys the curiosity of those unfamiliar with floorcloths and welcomes the many questions she receives. Floorcloths were not used in the west very much in the past, but in the 21st century, I hope to leave a legacy of my best work there."

For additional information on Angie Nelsons floorcloths or the Western Design Conference contact:
Angie Nelson
Free Rein Studio
336-472-6396
http://www.freereinart.com

Free Rein Studio accepts commissions and also offers standard original designs. Inquiries are welcome from galleries, high end catalog companies and shop owners, architects and interior designers as well as individuals with a serious interest in original, functional art for their home or office.