Saturday, July 26, 2008

Ritz-Carlton Magazine Feature



inspireinspire
hayk oltaci


hayk oltaci
PHOTOGRAPHY BY STeVeN VOTe
4 in studio
Name: Hayk Oltaci

Where in the world: New York, where his business,
Hayko Fine Rugs and Tapestries, has operated at 857
Lexington Ave. (at 65th Street) for 12 years.

Known for: Celebrating his heritage through sublime
rug designs. Oltaci’s showroom is the place where
patrons worldwide come for the finest in authentic rugs.
He works closely with museums, private collectors and
auction houses such as Christie’s, often over Turkish
coffee. Born in Istanbul to Armenian parents, he came to
New York City in 1988 with his wife (both of his daughters
were born in the U.S.). He learned his craft while
living in Strasbourg, France, for 10 years.

Quote: “Above all things, an honorable and forthright
relationship is by far the most important thing to me.”

What inspires him: An experience from his youth
sparked a lifelong pursuit of excellence, as Oltaci explains:
“My grandfather gave me a beautiful Turkish prayer rug
from the Konya Ladik region when I was 17. There was
a hole in the center of the rug and the selvage end was
missing. We knew a repair man and we brought it to him.
Three months later, we got it back. My heart was broken;
it was horrible what they did to it. They put a patch on the
hole and cut off the ends! It looked like a cheap machine-
made rug. This rug had been a beautiful work of art, like
a great painting. Now it was ruined by bad repair. I knew
at that moment I wanted to help save these great works of
art from my country.”

Next projects: Oltaci will be conducting classes in
the ancient art of rug weaving every month, a way to
share his passion with patrons. “Most of our clients are
by now old friends — they come back over and over
through the years,” he says. “We greatly value these
long-term relationships. We hope to meet more new
friends and look forward to working with them in the
coming years.” (To find out more, go to http://hayko.com/
or call Oltaci’s showroom
at 212-717-5400.)

Guilty pleasures: “Music, music, music. It keeps me
close to my culture and brings people together.”

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