Dirk Verstraten (Rotterdam, 29 December 1892 - Hilversum, 9 March1946) evolved from a craftsman designer, working among others for the Koninklijke Vereenigde Tapijtfabrieken, into a renowned modern carpet designer with a distinctive visual language. His style combines expressionist vigor with influences from the Amsterdam School, Art Deco ornamentation, and strict geometry, often executed in saturated colors with clear contour lines, giving his carpets an almost painterly quality. His designs frequently feature stylized floral and fantastical figures, alongside irregular geometric shapes, stars, and pointed or curling motifs arranged in rhythmic, modern patterns typical of interior art from the 1920s and 1930s.
Highlights of his career include commissions for carpet manufacturers such as KVT and Kinheim, where he developed his experimental formal language, as well as work for Queen Wilhelmina (1923), and designs connected to the Amsterdam Olympic Games (1928). His museum-recognized carpet designs are preserved in institutions such as the Rijksmuseum and are associated with ’t Woonhuys in Amsterdam.