Meet Laura Parker: Fine Artist and Rug designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Parker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, what is the most important factor behind your success?
In September of 2018 I formed Abstract Road LLC with the vision of taking my original, contemporary art designs to hand knotted rugs out of Katmandu, Nepal. I joined GoodWeave out of Washington, DC as a Licensee, to ensure no child labor trade would be a part of my brand. Through GoodWeave I found my rug maker out of Nepal and we arranged to meet in Katmandu where I could actually see and experience the hand knotted rug process. And that is exactly what I did. In December 2018 I flew into Katmandu and was able to meet with the rug software developers, my rug maker and his team, and visited all of his factories to watch every step of the rug making process. And let me tell you, it is all done by the use of hands. Many hands have worked on a hand knotted wool rug, before it is complete. Collecting the wool, spinning the wool to clean it, dying the wool in the natural dye factory, beginning the weaving process by hand, washing the rugs in the natural spring water from the mountain, cleaning it by hand and paddle, then drying the rug in the sun by stretching out on the roof. Needless to say, it is an incredibly long and impressive process. The most important factor for me in starting Abstract Road, remains the same; I want individuals to learn how to use their hands to make their own designs. I wish to maintain the integrity of using our hands and tools, as artists. I do not want to see our world lose this true craft for handmade work, or forget how much work goes into making any sort of master, handmade craft. Am I successful yet? Yes, from the standpoint of I am following my dream and my passion to create rugs from my original work. Not yet, in profit. But there is another point, which is how shall we define success? Right now we are in the middle of a pandemic, so the meaning of success will change up quite a bit, I suspect. My definition of success is first and foremost to follow my vision and passion as an artist. I believe the profit will come, as I am learning this new industry from the ground up.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started out as a classical piano student at age 9. I was pretty bad at keyboard, but could sing any song in perfect pitch. I could hear any vocal or instrumental part, but just couldn’t read it or write it out. We recorded live and on tape way back when, and that was where I learned my craft. We had to be fast, as we were playing and paying by the hour. I was a rhythmic kid, always moving and tapping to any kind of beat. I worked about 10 years as a musician but when digital came and I saw a shift coming with computer and technology, I took another direction and returned to study mass communications, with an emphasis on multi-media. I worked for a team of scientists in print media for about 7 years or so, after I had my children. That’s when I learned that Science and Art oddly run on the same train of thought, in many ways. I knew I wanted to be an abstract painter, but had not held a brush or ever tried it. I just knew I could see it in my mind. For the last 20 years, I studied under Chery Baird in Atlanta at the Spruill Center for the Arts. She had her MFA from Georgia State University, so I figured she knew what she was doing. She taught us and pushed us, always. She still does! She will never stop, being the genius artist that she is and always has been. People started buying my work, I started doing small shows and such, and life as an artist became my passion. I was doing psychotherapy by day and still do. I can incorporate the art into the therapy process, which is really fun especially with young people. I like having a job and a check that goes with it. That frees me up to really create what I want to create, and not what someone else wants me to create. To summarize, I have and always want to stay true to my own artwork and designs. When forced to, “Just come up with something by tomorrow”, I do not enjoy the process of making art as much. The process of making the art is the joy of creating. It is a powerful experience!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Atlanta is my “home town”, although I now live down on the Georgia Coast, at the moment. It has changed drastically over the years, My visit to Atlanta always involves a trip to the High Museum and a walk in that area. Lots of great restaurants, beautiful old homes, and bits and pieces of what Atlanta looked like when it was a sleepy, southern city. Symphony Hall cannot be beat if you love symphony and opera. Inman Park and Decatur are 2 of my other favorite spots, lots of arts and eclectic places to eat.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Abstract Road would not have been formed without the following; Matt Boardman, Web Designer Alternative Technology/Galaincha Software company out of Nepal Michael Christie/Editor of RugInsider out of Montreal, Canada Susan Bruce, owner of Susan Bruce Travel out of Denver, CO. Ratna and Saroja Tuladhar (and daughters) , who hosted and helped me All of the team at Ujwal Carpets out of Nepal. The kindness of the Nepali people A big Shout Out thank you to Switch Modern for allowing me to premier the rugs in their Atlanta Showroom in Midtown. What a pro team they have and a Showroom that will astound design lovers!