Carpets & Rugs

Sometimes the floor gets an upgrade. Carpets and rugs add color, pattern, and texture to otherwise simple domestic or studio settings—and when photographed from above, they can function almost like a flat plinth, framing the model against a single surface.

1. Mike Dee on a shag carpet.

2. Gavin Reed by Jim French lying facedown on a tan carpet that compliments his coloring beautifully.

3. Brian Kendal by Vista Studios, a major competitor of Colt Studios in the late 70s to early 80s.

They can also date an image instantly: shag, mustard, and other unmistakably mid-century choices sit alongside more theatrical Persian rugs and animal skins. 

4. Rod Stevens lying face up on a dark carpet.

5. Wink Davis on a beige carpet.

6. David Knight on a leopard print rug.

7. Frank Hollfelder by John Barrington (thanks, Naven1918!) seated on a white rug.

And unlike most furniture, carpets invite the model all the way down to floor level—to sit, stretch out, or recline. There’s something intimate about that. Like a bed, a soft rug suggests comfort and proximity: a place to lounge, wrestle, cuddle, watch TV—or imagine what might happen after the camera is put away.

8. Jack Thomas by Russ Warner (thanks, Naven1918!) kneeling profile on a throw rug.

9. Frank Hlivjka by Richard E. "Dick" Fontaine aka R.A. Enterprises (thanks, Naven1918!) lying on a bear skin rug. R.A. Enterprises frequently had photos in publications of the 1950s and 1960s like Muscleboy and Grecian Guild Studio Quarterly.

10. Ray Fuller on a sheep skin rug.

Please leave thoughts, questions, corrections or additions in the comments. Thank you, bns