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Nina Yashar was born in Tehran in 1957, she left country when she was six years old as her father, a carpet dealer, moved the family to Milan.

She founded Nilufar Gallery in the Italian capital in 1979. Originally it was specialised in antique carpets, a passion she inherited from her parents. Soon the gallery launched a series of pioneering shows and by the end of the 90s ventured into modern and contemporary furniture, showcasing the work of midcentury masters alongside unusual carpets, cutting-edge furniture and emerging designers’ pieces.

The gallery’s work and research resulted in a series of unique and sensational exhibitions, often accompanied by monographic catalogues that have acquired, over the years, cult status amongst collectors, design enthusiasts and researchers.

During the years, Nilufar Gallery has taken part in several international fairs, including Pavillon des Arts et du Design (PAD) in Paris and London, Design Miami/Basel and The Salon ART+DESIGN in New York.

Nina Yashar is a curious being. Mine is a very organic growth path: I started working with my father, who was dealing Persian rugs, and soon realized that I had a natural inclination and talent in scouting talents in the field of interior design.

Your first gallery specialised in antique carpets, the passion organically inherited from your Iranian parents. Can you tell us what does carpet as a very functional art and design object represent in the culture of your native country?

I can tell you what carpets have been and become for me: from a functional perspective, they serve as an element to not only create, but define spaces and rooms within rooms. They also delimit areas of living, of sharing and at times conviviality.

 

You established your gallery in 1979. What was the most challenging part as a gallerist though all these years?

The most challenging but the most interesting: good novelty is not easy to find. So much has happened in the creative industry with an overwhelming amount of new design, art, fashion, creations in general. One needs to truly hunt for something new that is not banal, compelling and most importantly culturally relevant. I am incredibly attached to all the designers we have collaborated with, it’s always a journey.

Being on the interior design market for more than 40 years, can you tell us how it has evolved? Has the arrival of the digital world played its role on how people choose objects to live within?

It constantly changes, as our living, working and general habits mould to the present time so do the spaces that host those moments. For the same reason, the digital has impacted our day to day in so many ways that it would be hard to pinpoint just a few of its reflections in our living environments; certainly the diffusion of information has accustomed us to see more, know more and generally expand our taste. Collectible design is being seen more and more as artifacts that are not only functional, but that can also be exhibited in the “cabinet” of our homes.

How would you choose the artists to be represented in your Gallery?

Through my gut. The process is pretty instantaneous; it’s a blended feeling of personal connection, aesthetic attraction and itch to explore further.

Among your followers and clients are such celebrities as Gwyneth Paltrow and Peirpaolo Piccioli. People with excellent taste and high demands. What do they expect from a gallerist while choosing art works?

Dedication, comprehension and uniqueness.

In 2018 on the occasion of Milano Design Week, Nilufar Gallery opened a convivial space on the upper floor of the gallery, it was designed by India Mahdavi. Can you share with us the experience of this incredible collaboration?

I have known India for a long time and have always had a deep appreciation for her work. We wanted to collaborate in an alternative, less expected and simply more fun way: Milan Design Week, design and in general these gatherings are supposed to be fun and spark connections. We blended all these missions together and Chez Nina was born. The success was pretty overwhelming, which informed us that we indeed made the right decision.

Nilufar Gallery has been showing its design objects in many international fairs. If you choose one or two, the most memorable, what would it be?

One of the most recent ones that has left a particular impression has been our collaboration with the Private Airport Giovanni Nicelli, which began with an ad hoc showcase exhibited during the 2022 Biennale Art Fair. I am leaning more and more towards forging a dialogue between art and design, and doing so in the almost surreal and otherworldly location of the airport was unprecedented.

What advice would you give to a young creative who is still searching his/her way?

Stick to your natural inclinations: there is, truly, space for everyone and if the direction is still unclear, she will make herself visible in time. Always see, always hear, always try and taste: the more we know the more we know what we like and not like, giving a clearer and clearer shape to our vision.