Official Narrative | What We Read in the News
The opening ceremony of the 19th Qom Province Handwoven rug Exhibition was held with the presence of national and provincial officials

The opening ceremony of the 19th Qom Province Handwoven rug Exhibition was held in the presence of the governor, the deputy minister of economic diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the deputy minister of industry, mining and trade, and the head of the National rug Center of Iran, the vice president of the persian Chamber of Commerce, the head and members of the delegation of the Qom Chamber of Commerce, the Malaysian ambassador to Iran, the head of the Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber, the head of the persian Chamber's rug Commission, and a group of heads and representatives of the country's and the province's rug associations, organizations, and unions, and activists in this field, in the International Conference Hall of the Qom Chamber of Commerce

Opening ceremony of the Qom Handwoven rug Exhibition (from the website of the Qom Provincial Chamber of Commerce)

Field Narrative | What's Going On Behind the News
When "I" Replaces "We

But behind this formal and pompous appearance, there was a serious and instructive point for the organizers and all those involved in handwoven rug: who gets a podium and what voices are ignored. Sometimes a simple choice in the opening ceremony can show more than any formal speech whether the narrative field is in the hands of the collective "we" or the pretentious I

At this ceremony, a person was invited to the podium who always considers himself the savior and introducer of Iranian handwoven rug, and his speech focused more on his own arrogance and personal claims than on celebrating the collective efforts of persian rug activists and creators

It is said that at this event, he pretended to be the main introducer and buyer of Qom silk handwoven rug and as if he had also assumed the role of the "savior" of this art. However, this path has been traveled for more than a century by the skilled hands of weavers, master designers, and renowned manufacturers of Qom province and numerous sellers in all parts of the world, and has never needed individual heroism or a single savior

This behavior, especially in a group that has been carrying real experience and credibility for years in silence, shows that speaking at a formal event, especially when one is playing the role of host or guest, has its own etiquette that is expected to be observed. When the language of speech deviates from the dignity of the event and the podium becomes a field for personal display rather than being dedicated to the subject of the event, the status of the event is unintentionally weakened. This is where the choice of podium itself becomes an important message: who has come to respect art and history and who, above all, seeks to be seen

This behavior, especially in a group that has been carrying real experience and credibility for years in silence, shows that speaking at a formal event, especially when one is playing the role of host or guest, has its own etiquette that is expected to be observed. When the language of speech deviates from the dignity of the event and the podium becomes a field for personal display rather than being dedicated to the subject of the event, the status of the event is unintentionally weakened. This is where the choice of podium itself becomes an important message: who has come to respect art and history and who, above all, seeks to be seen

Another activist in the field of handwoven Qom rug wrote on one of the social networks: "The handwoven rug of Qom has been following its path for more than a hundred years without fuss and without favor. Genuine art does not need the caressing hands of empty people. Whoever stands on the podium today and claims it is only showing his own smallness, not the greatness of the handwoven rug of Qom

This reminder is both a warning and a lesson: the choice of platforms depends not only on the validity of a ceremony, but also on the degree of respect we have for the history and efforts of activists in each region. It is true that the platform is inherently an open space and anyone can stand on it and speak for themselves, but experience has repeatedly shown that history is not made by “I’s” but by “we’s.” The handwoven silk rug of Qom, with its roots, names, and collective suffering, has remained intact and does not need individual claims; what has endured has been the result of the unity, solidarity, and efforts of the “we” of the past. So let us not forget that wherever “we” becomes silent and loses its unity, the field is immediately ceded to the “I’s

Opening ceremony of the Qom Handwoven rug Exhibition (from the website of the Qom Provincial Chamber of Commerce)

Official Narrative | What we read in the news
The 19th Handwoven rug Exhibition of Qom Province was held

The 19th Handwoven Silk rug Exhibition of Qom Province was held from 25 to 29 December 2025 at the Permanent International Exhibitions of the province.a

This edition of the exhibition, with 12,000 square meters of space, brought together nearly 100 exhibitors from Qom province and prominent manufacturers from 17 provinces of the country. Visitors had the opportunity to view and purchase the latest designs, authentic persian patterns, and handwoven silk rug with the highest thread count. The organizers announced the main goal of the exhibition to introduce the capacities of Qom handwoven silk rug, establish connections between manufacturers and buyers, and strengthen the position of handwoven rug in domestic and international markets

The 19th Qom Handwoven rug Exhibition, with an enthusiastic reception from the audience, once again established the province’s position as one of the important centers for the production of handwoven silk rug in the country and the world

A view of the Qom Handwoven rug Exhibition (from the Qom Visit website, Mehdi Jafari)

Field Narrative | What's Behind the News
When an exhibition is just a movement of rooms

The news is all the same; the opening with the presence of officials, the large area, exhibitors from different provinces, the enthusiastic reception of the audience, the emphasis on the global status of Qom handwoven rug. Everything is correct, official and publishable. But what goes on under the skin of these repetitive exhibitions is usually not seen in any official news

In the 19th Qom Handwoven Silk rug Exhibition, except for a few booths that came with a visual identity, space design and professional presentation, most of the booths were more like a direct transfer of the market rooms to the exhibition space; no booth construction, no scenario, no new experience for the audience. Many exhibitors practically confused the exhibition with a store; the same layout, the same presentation method, just in a different hall

In an era where accurate information dissemination and transparency are the basis of every work, the infrastructure for presenting exquisite works that had been labored for months and sometimes years was seen in the weakest possible form. Most of the exquisite silk rug were piled on top of each other or hung on the wall without any explanation; no clear information about the design, texture, and characteristics of the work, no narrative, not even a specific price. The luxurious work was left without identity; it was as if the rug itself did not know why it was there. Of course, there were a few exceptions in this situation: the “Silk Road”, “Danishpour rug” and “Parsepourjahan rug” booths were the only examples that appeared at the exhibition with a standard infrastructure, transparent presentation of information about the works, and clear announcement of prices; an approach that, above all, was a sign of respect for the audience and consumer

It wasn’t just the presentation. Among the works, there were rug with Photoshopped designs; rug that, when you looked at them, made you wonder: What was all this energy, time, and human skill spent on when the final result was visually no different from a machine-made rug? Isn’t this the path where hand-woven rug slowly give up their dignity.?

Contrary to the grandiose titles, the halls were empty of real buyers. The same regular guests, the same repeated faces, the same familiar encounters. Rather than creating an atmosphere for big deals and contracts and professional connections, the exhibition had become an annual friendly party; tea, greetings, and repetition. If there was to be only a new encounter, the old bazaar of Qom was much more appealing for this

The timing of the event also had its own story. The exhibition, which was held in February last year, was suddenly moved to December in order to avoid the Tehran Handwoven rug Exhibition in March. Everything was packed up in less than a month. To be fair, on the surface, the organizers managed to keep things moving; but you only had to walk through the same repetitive and boring halls to clearly see the difference between holding an exhibition with a scenario and targeted marketing and this “task-solving” model

And perhaps the most important sign has happened somewhere outside the exhibition itself: that every year several prestigious and top-notch brands prefer not to attend this event anymore and choose other platforms to present their works. This is a quiet but serious warning; a sign that the life of annual repetitive exhibitions, if there is no change in the logic of their holding, is coming to an end

View of the Qom Handwoven rug Exhibition (from the Qom Provincial Chamber of Commerce website)