Thrill of the Hunt: Collectors in Conversation

Since its founding, the Hajji Baba Club has brought together collectors, scholars, dealers, and enthusiasts dedicated to the appreciation and study of rugs and textiles. Continuing that tradition, Bruce Baganz, Mary Jo Otsea, and Mike Tschebull will share the stories behind their collecting journeys from the thrill of the hunt to the development of a discerning eye.

Through an engaging conversation, they will discuss how they began collecting, the criteria they use to evaluate objects, the mentors and experiences that influenced them, and the inevitable mistakes that became valuable lessons. Together, they will explore how curiosity and the thrill of discovery evolve into connoisseurship, and what makes a truly meaningful collection.

What Makes an Antique Rug Collectible? Insights From the Hajji Baba Club at Nazmiyal

Bruce Baganz is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Textile Museum in Washington, DC, the leading international center for the exhibition, study, collection and preservation of the textile arts. Under his leadership and direction, the museum underwent fundamental changes—financial, facilities, staff skills, public engagement, and strategic direction—to ensure its long-term sustainability. Bruce is the recipient of the George Hewitt Myers Award (2015) and the Joseph V. McMullan Award (2008). A distinguished collector of Central Asian and Middle Eastern textiles, he is currently preparing a landmark two-volume study of historic suzanis in worldwide private and museum collections.

Mary Jo Otsea has spent her professional life working in the field of antique rugs and textiles. She served for more than three decades as Worldwide Director of Sotheby’s Rugs & Carpets Department where she presided over the record-breaking sale of the Clark Sickle-Leaf Vase Carpet, the highest price ever achieved for a carpet at auction. Mary Jo is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Textile Museum in Washington, DC, and a former President of the Hajji Baba Club. She was the 2018 recipient of the Joseph V. McMullan Award.

Raoul (Mike) Tschebull is an internationally respected collector, author and scholar of antique rugs and textiles. Best known for the landmark publications Kazak: Carpets of the Caucasus and Qarajeh to Quba: Rugs and Flatweaves from East Azarbayjan and the Transcaucasus. Mike developed his connoisseurship under the mentorship of renowned collectors Joe McMullen, Charlie Ellis, and Russ Pickering, and now hopes to do the same for a new generation of collectors. He is a recipient of the Joseph V. McMullan Award. Outside the textile world, Mike spent his professional career with an international bank, primarily in Germany and Spain.