Afghan war rugs on display at Mendel Art Gallery

People have been making rugs in Afghanistan for centuries using the delicate handwoven craft to depict patterns, symbols from nature and landscapes.

But the rugs on display at the Mendel Art Gallery depict the last three decades of war and weapons. Some show helicopters and aircrafts. Others are maps of Afghanistan dotted with tanks, grenades and guns. 

The Textile Museum of Canada organized the touring exhibit, called Battleground: War Rugs From Afghanistan. The show runs from January 17 to March 22.   

"Most of the weavers are unknown,"  said Shauna McCabe, executive director of the Textile Museum of Canada. "The rugs are coming to us through dealers."

She said some of the rug makers sold directly to soldiers who would bring them to North America. The curator of the show, Max Allen, has been gradually collecting them for years. 

They have a special resonance for Sultan Ali Sadat of Saskatoon. He grew up in Afghanistan and told Saskatoon Morning host Leisha Grebinski about his memories of weaving rugs as a child.

Sadat said the Taliban cracked down on many technologies when they rose to power in the 1990s.

"They banned any pictures," he said. "They banned any type of videos or even radios or tapes. So this is the only way people could put something in a picture to portray to the world that this is what's happening inside the country."

McCabe said the exhibit is a testament to creativity.

"I think the rugs really speak to the persistence of art even in the most challenging situation."