{"id":2843,"date":"2022-09-05T11:40:23","date_gmt":"2022-09-05T11:40:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/sothebys-dubai-exhibits-rare-pink-diamond-ahead-of-world-tour\/"},"modified":"2022-09-05T11:40:23","modified_gmt":"2022-09-05T11:40:23","slug":"sothebys-dubai-exhibits-rare-pink-diamond-ahead-of-world-tour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=2843","title":{"rendered":"Sotheby\u2019s Dubai exhibits rare pink diamond ahead of world tour"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nDUBAI: Designed by famed Chinese American architect I.M. Pei, Qatar\u2019s Museum of Islamic Art is reopening on Oct. 5 after an extensive revamp\u00a0\u2014 just in time for the FIFA World Cup, scheduled to kick off in November.<\/p>\n
\nThe museum, which opened in 2008, has been closed since April 2021. Its reopening features a reinstallation of its permanent collection galleries, reconfigured according \u201cto broad historical and cultural themes, periods and geography,\u201d and will explore \u201cthe great traditions of Islamic craftsmanship,\u201d said officials. Another attraction lies in the over 1,000 objects, including many newly acquired and never-before-seen works of art.<\/p>\n\n\n(Supplied)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n\u201cThe relaunch involves a full rehang of its permanent galleries, a significant step that reimagines the collection in its entirety,\u201d Julia Gonnella, who became director of the museum in 2017, told Arab News.<\/p>\n
\nThere will also be a new section on Islam in Southeast Asia and an exploration of the relationship between different cultures through exhibitions highlighting the trade of commodities and the exchange of ideas across the Islamic world and the globe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nShortly after its reopening, the museum will inaugurate \u201cBaghdad: Eye\u2019s Delight\u201d (Oct. 26-Feb. 23), the temporary exhibition that introduces and celebrates one of the world\u2019s most influential cities, looking at its heritage as the capital of the great Abbasid caliphs (750-1258) and its legacy in the 20th\u00a0century, when the city again became a thriving center for the arts, culture, and commerce.<\/p>\n
\nGonnella stressed that this exhibition is \u201cnot merely a celebration of the glorious Abbasid Baghdad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhile the glory of the Abbasids waned, the city remained of great importance and the spirit of its heritage is prevalent in present Baghdad,\u201d she told Arab News. \u201cDespite the wars, destruction and hardships the city had to endure since its foundation,\u00a0echoes of the Abbasid legacy are still heard. For this reason, the exhibition will introduce Abbasid Baghdad in parallel to Baghdad of the 20th\u00a0century, focusing especially on the period between the 1940s and 1970s when the city once again became an economically and culturally thriving place with intense urban planning, architectural developments, art movements and important developments in the education sector.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nHighlights in the exhibition include artifacts from the Abbasid period (remnants of Abbasid palaces such as doors, textiles and gold armlets) as well as objects of trade (textiles and glass ceramics) and precious manuscripts, such as important copies of the Qur\u2019an and scientific treatises. Also featuring, Gonnella said, will be modern artworks, including from Dia Azzawi and Sadiq Al-Fareej, and paintings from the Modern Baghdad Group, including from Jewad Salim and photographs of Latif Al-Ani.<\/p>\n
\nAmong the main new attractions is the newly restored 19th-century Damascus Room, which highlights facets of Ottoman life. It took three years to re-assemble and conserve.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cOne of the highlights of the museum\u2019s revamp is the elaborate wooden interior of the Damascus Room,\u201d said Gonnella. \u201cWe included this beautifully newly restored 19th-century interior not only as a fascinating piece for everyone to look at but also as it reflects so well the great importance people in the Arab world place on hospitality, receiving guests, drinking coffee and tea together \u2014an important part of Islamic culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThe reopening of the museum is part of Qatar Creates, a year-round national movement that aims to celebrate the diversity of cultural activities in the country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n