Afghan Carriage Robe c. 1937

J. Howard Iams made this Afghan Carriage Robe, but we don't know exactly when. Look at the way Iams has depicted the horse, like a rocking horse, or maybe one from a carousel—stiff and slightly awkward, yet full of charm. I can imagine the artist carefully placing each stitch, building up the image bit by bit. The floral and geometric borders, rendered in such vibrant hues, create a sense of symmetry. Iams probably labored over this image, and yet in its totality, it is light and buoyant. The red panels are especially interesting. There’s a tension between the flat areas of color and the intricate detail, like a visual push and pull. It makes me think about how folk artists and modernists share a similar approach to abstraction and representation. We often work intuitively and build on each other's ideas, so it’s a constant conversation. Iams's robe reminds us that even in the most traditional forms, there’s room for invention, interpretation, and expression.