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You are here "Artifacts are displayed on two floors, in large, high-ceilinged, discreetly lit white rooms with teak floors. The main-floor space prefaced by a corridor illuminated by an arresting series of video animations, has its treasures arranged chronologically on an L-shaped footprint, and is decidedly Catholic in its presentation. ...
The world, of course, has many museums and galleries with space devoted to Islamic art. Toronto’s own Royal Ontario Museum, for example, has a curator of Islamic decorative art and its Wirth Gallery of the Middle East contains Islamic artifacts. But the Aga Khan Museum is being touted as the only institution in North America dedicated solely to the panoply of Islamic art – painted illustrations, ceramics, weavings, calligraphy, scientific instruments, paintings, clothing, myriad editions of the Koran. ...
Bentley noted that to many Westerners, Islam is a stern theocratic monolith when, in reality, it’s been a multiplicity of dynasties and civilizations encompassing more than 1,000 years, its reach extending far beyond the Arabian Peninsula to Spain, Africa, Indonesia, the Indian subcontinent and the gates of China. “Our biggest message here really is diversity,” Bentley said, “and how Islam has always responded to local traditions.” Moreover, it’s “not true there is a prohibition against figurative images in Islamic art,” she said. Yes, there is no figuration in the Koran nor images in mosques but, as the Aga Khan Museum shows, figural motifs – human, animal, fanstastical (including dragons and harpies) – were a staple of Islamic artistic expression." -- [source: Toronto's Aga Khan Museum, opening this week, is a world-class showcase for Islamic art, JAMES ADAMS, The Globe and Mail]
-- "And the Aga Khan has funded not only the museum but also donated its permanent collection of more than a thousand treasures including .."
"American museums — such as the Met and the Morgan in New York, the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian in Washington — have significant collections of Islamic arts and manuscripts. So do museums in London, St. Petersburg, Paris and Berlin. But there’s none that exclusively showcases the artistic, intellectual and scientific contributions of Muslim civilizations. For that, you have to go to Muslim lands — museums in Istanbul, Cairo, Kuala Lumpur, Doha, Kuwait and elsewhere. Each offers something unique — Qatar, a landmark building by I.M. Pei and a remarkable collection acquired in a short time; Kuwait, Mughal jewelry and rare Qur’ans; Turkey,the treasures of the Ottoman Empire; Malaysia, a focus on the Far East.The Aga Khan’s collection is small, about 1,000 precious items, examples of great artistry on bowls, boxes, bottles, beads, dishes, vases, jars, cabinets, hangings, coins, candle stands, jewelry, musical instruments, etc., in different mediums — ceramics, glass, shells, metal, stone, wood, leather, carpets, textiles and paper."
- Sigmund Roseth, Mississauga
Your editorial applauding the opening of the Aga Khan Museum notes that the lush gardens on the 17-acre site are “there for all to enjoy — in a part of the city hardly renowned for grace and beauty.”Perhaps your readers would like to be reminded there are six lush city parks within about a one kilometer walk of the Aga Khan. They include E.T. Seton Park, Serena Gundy Park, Wilket Creek Park, Charles Sauriol Conservation Area, Moccasin Trail Park and, of course, the magnificent Edwards Gardens.
Yet, Stephen Harper would like us to know that he does not hate Muslims and is committed to peace and diversity – after all, both he and notorious Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney were present to launch the new museum and heap praise upon the Aga Khan and the initiative. Why the seeming disconnect? Why We Don't Need an Islamic Art Museum, (Especially not courtesy the Aga Khan and Stephen Harper) by SUMAYYA KASSAMALI
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