Mou and Maki, Now Carpets’s new products

Rugs designed by Francesc Rifé.

Spanish rug company Now Carpets, based in Zaragoza, northern Spain, has launched two new pieces – Mou and Maki – created by designer Francesc Rifé.

The rug Mou is made of 50 per cent Tibetan wool and 50 per cent natural silk, and is inspired by the motifs found everywhere in Nepal’s cities and landscapes, such as the decorative friezes so prevalent in its design tradition. The rug Maki is made of 70 per cent Tibetan wool and 30 per cent bamboo silk (silk made from bamboo), and its design conjures up an aerial view of the large estates that divide the arable land of Nepal

Using its own looms, Now Carpets works, as a joint venture, with workshops in India, Nepal and China, and the entire manufacturing process is subjected to rigorous quality control. Designers from different countries – such as Francesc Rifé, Christian Ghion, Claudio Colucci, Vicente Vidal, Michael Banks and Yumi Endo – have collaborated with the company to create rugs. According to Now Carpets, its most notable recent project is its interior design of the five-star Caro Hotel in Valencia, which occupies a converted palace – the 19th-century Palacio Marqués de Caro, a building of great historic value which was recently renovated under the direction of Rifé’s studio.

Rifé is one of Spain’s best known designers, who set up his studio in Barcelona in 1994. Today it employs over 15 professional staff hailing from different areas of design. Its domestic and commercial projects, both in Spain and abroad, encompass industrial and interior design, while its philosophy is based on spatial order and geometric design. The studio has garnered design prizes such as Contract World Awards, ICFF Editors Awards and FAD and ASCER prizes, and has undertaken many projects for such companies as Gandía Blasco, Viccarbe, Martínez Otero, Vibia, Bordonabe, Inbani andJoquer, among others.