“med-rugs” connected to NFT tufted pastel rugs on request from anywhere in the world

by James · April 29, 2023

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other rugs from conception to delivery

Swiss carpet manufacturer Ruckstuhl, designer Stephan Hürlemann and online media company DAAily Platforms are decentralizing carpet production by adopting NFT technology for their Fellow Rugs project, enabling users to virtually keep an eye on rug production from conception to post-delivery. The design collective has also created Daily Wallet to mark its entry into NFT and the decentralization dynamic.

Through NFT, anyone who wants to order a Fellow Rug first buys a digital representative before starting the production of the rug at the nearest cooperating production site worldwide. Ruckstuhl plans to collaborate with other carpet manufacturers and build a network of production sites for Fellow Rugs.

photos courtesy of Ruckstuhl | photos by Stefan Altenburger

no redundant blankets are produced

The collection of carpet makers means that the carpets are produced as needed based on the customer’s and Ruckstuhl’s specifications. In this way, excess carpets are not produced and materials that are tufted into the carpets are sourced locally and based on materials found in the region where the carpets are made. The design collective says the Fellow Rugs project is the culmination of a joint experiment to strengthen the eco-balance of products and realize how the furniture industry can become more sustainable.

“Ruckstuhl has been producing carpets from natural fibers since 1881. Sustainability is deeply rooted in our DNA. Nevertheless, we must also question our established ways, recognize the need for action and improve. The Fellow project serves as a road map for us. It shows us where to start,’ says Adrian Berchtold, CEO of carpet manufacturer Ruckstuhl, about what drives the design project. By also producing the carpets locally, orders that have to be sent abroad by air are avoided, which helps to reduce carbon emissions.

a QR code is attached to each carpet

Stories behind each carpet through NFT

The Other carpets project with Ruckstuhl and DAAily Platforms appeared below Milan Design Week 2023 as part of the exhibition ‘Fellow – Metamorphosis of a Rug’, conceived by Stephan Hurlemann itself, occupying the Gallery Assab One space near Cimiano. Alongside Hürlemann’s designs, Fellow Rugs showcases future ideas for processes, services and rituals that can be applied to other objects within and beyond the design and creative worlds.

The design collective states that the project aims to establish a more sustainable system by shortening supply routes, extending the lifetime of the products – carpets in this case – and simplifying processes for a more conscious use of the objects. To make these happen, people should be informed about how to take care of the carpets. There is a need to learn the nature and background of rugs rather than buying them from the start purely for their aesthetics.

Hürlemann has designed each rug in the Fellow collection to be unique, with no design alike. Each of the object’s stories is shared through NFT by scanning the QR code attached to each rug. After the user scans the QR, they get an online diary, called the Fellowship Diary, which shows them how the rug is made on the tufting robot, how to clean and repair their rug, and where and what the materials are sourced for the chosen ones. the wallpaper.

through NFT, anyone who wants to order a Fellow Rug starts the production of their rug

Reminiscent of city maps and pixel graphics

For Fellow Rugs, Stephan Hürlemann designs design elements that can create countless unique rugs. He takes patterns of geometry, combines them with blocks of pixels and fills the architecturally nuanced design with pastel colors to generate yarn-tufted carpets. His concept of 14 colors and five rectangles, each rectangle consisting of one or two color areas, are brought together to create atmospheric worlds reminiscent of city maps or pixel graphics.

The first results are 75 rug designs in five different formats and shapes with individual personalities. A rectangular rug embraces soft pink disrupted by linear and non-linear lines in rich palettes. Overlapping colors on triangular blocks try to take up as much space as they can inside a cube-shaped rug. A circular carpet in green and black blocks recalls the fragrant gases from golf courses. Hürlemann seeks to unfold and play with segmented color combinations for his carpet designs.

Ruckstuhl plans to collaborate with other carpet manufacturers and build up a network of production sites for the Fellow carpets