Tapestry - 149 cm - 84 cm - Amsterdam School

Amsterdam School Wall Tapestry in the Style of Jaap Gidding, Dutch Art Deco, circa 1920s-1930s

A striking Amsterdam School wall tapestry with a highly graphic, almost architectural pattern in warm browns, rust, ochre, muted green, black and touches of pale blue. The design has that unmistakable Dutch Amsterdam School energy: angular, rhythmic, expressive, and slightly bizarre.
The composition is particularly strong. It is soft in structure and very light in weight, not a thick carpet but rather a textile intended primarily for decorative use.

Its geometry and layered symmetry strongly recall the visual language associated with Jaap Gidding, one of the best-known decorative artists of the Amsterdam School. Gidding is especially celebrated for his decorative work for cinemas and ocean liners, including the large textile in the central hall of Amsterdam’s Tuschinski Theater and the interior decoration of the Trianon cinema in Leiden.

Pieces like this were often used beneath an Amsterdam School wooden coat rack, which explains why this example has fringes on one side only. At the same time, textiles of this kind were also used decoratively over a mantelpiece or as a wall hanging, where their bold pattern could animate an interior much like a mural or stained-glass panel would.

We would not recommend it as a floor rug for regular use, though it could work as an accent piece in a low-traffic setting and not to be walked on. It also lends itself beautifully to other decorative applications. Some interior designers use textiles like this to make bespoke cushion covers, which would certainly be possible here, though the piece is attractive and increasingly uncommon in its complete form.

The tapestry is in good condition, with no holes or damage, and has been cleaned last winter bij using the ''snow method''

A rare and characterful example of Dutch Art Deco textile design, full of the expressive fantasy that makes the Amsterdam School so enduringly appealing.