Press

The San Francisco-based rug specialist Peter Pap exclusively presents on 1stdibs an extraordinary collection of Oriental carpets and textiles he's amassed over 40 years.

Art Basel flung open its doors to VIPs on Tuesday, and despite coming at the end of a six-week marathon that included the New York sales, Frieze New York, Art Basel Hong Kong and the Venice Biennale, the appetite for buying art seemed to be undiminished. As the first of two private view days ended, the cash registers rung up some hefty sales.

As a successful dealer in Oriental rugs for more than three decades, Peter Pap has a well-honed sense of the market. These days he's picking up vibes that make him both excited and increasingly anxious. He sees a once-in-a-generation opportunity looming in the business.

The 100 antique rugs and textiles collected for "Art in bLOOM," an exhibition and sale at the Kentshire Galleries in Manhattan and on 1stdibs.com, are "village rugs as opposed to the city rug," said Peter Pap, the San Francisco-based dealer who curated the sale.

A leading dealer in Oriental rugs, Peter Pap is also a classically trained musician who riffed into jazz and founded an Oregon commune along the way. Grab a ticket and let this San Francisco-based specialist take you on a magic carpet ride.

At Peter Pap's booth at the Greenwich Antiques Show in Connecticut, a woman is examining an enormous Mahal carpet with an unusual green ground that has been attracting passersby all morning. Looking down, the woman asks, "How much is it?" Pap replies, with a courtly nod, "fifty-four thousand dollars."