Islamic art from museums around the world

The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. (Shutterstock)
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Updated 18 May 2020
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Islamic art from museums around the world

  • To mark International Museum Day, Arab News highlights some of the most-significant artifacts from across the globe

DUBAI: ‘Islamic art’ is a broad term, encompassing delicate sacred folios, stately architectural structures, calligraphy, and paintings — and practiced beyond the geographical borders of Islamic lands — reaching the Far East and Europe — sometimes by non-Muslim artisans. Islamic art, both religious and secular, has proven popular through the ages with many, including royal patrons, archaeologists, artists, art collectors, and curious amateurs.

To mark International Museum Day on May 18, Arab News takes a closer look at some unique objects of Islamic art from leading museum collections around the world, from North America to the Middle East and beyond. 

Bifolium from ‘The Nurse’s Quran’

From New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art

“The Nurse’s Quran” (Mushaf Al-Hadina in Arabic) is considered one of the most remarkable demonstrations of illustrated Quranic manuscripts. Written in ink and gold on parchment, this bifolio from the early 11th century was made in Tunisia (probably in Qairawan), and consists of five lines from the sixth chapter of the Quran — “Al An’am” (The Cattle). Along with red, blue and green diacritical marks, the ‘new-style’ Kufic calligraphy seen here is striking in its curvy yet contained execution.

The manuscript was reportedly commissioned by a North African female patron named Fatima, who donated it to the Great Mosque of Qairawan. She served as a nursemaid to an unknown Zirid leader from a line of Berbers ruling areas in central North Africa. Maryam Ekhtiar, the museum’s associate curator of Islamic art, writes that this important manuscript “serves as a testament to the generosity, faith, and influence of women patrons at the Zirid court.” 

Persian court carpet

From the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston

Speaking of female patrons, the eccentric American art collector Isabella Stewart Gardner was ahead of her time when she unveiled her home and museum to the Bostonian public in 1903. She collected exemplary works by European masters including Rembrandt, Botticelli, and Vermeer. 

But she was also keen on art from the Middle East (Gardner was well-traveled and visited Egypt and Palestine). And in her palazzo-like museum is a fine example of one of the staples of Islamic art — a carpet. This one is from a Persian court, and likely created in the 17th century. 

Gardner purchased the rug in London in 1894, and, according to the museum’s curator, Nat Silver, it acts as “a defining feature of her museum's Titian Room.” Silver told Arab News that the carpet depicts “a two-layer arabesque of palmettes, vines, and curved leaves on a dark maroon ground surrounded by a border of palmettes and flowers on dark blue.” 

Bowl with Kufic calligraphy

From the Brooklyn Museum, New York

This simple yet sublime 10th-century ceramic bowl is believed to have been produced in Nishapur, in northeastern Iran, by an unknown ceramicist. An Arabic proverb decorates the edge of the bowl — written in elegant Kufic calligraphy, one of the oldest Arabic scripts known for its short vertical and elongated horizontal strokes. It reads: "Peace is that which is silent and the inner [thoughts] of the man with faults will only be revealed through his speech." 

An Islamic arts specialist at the museum explained to Arab News who might have owned this type of earthenware: “It is thought that such wares were intended for the Arab elites and merchants living in that region and those who were educated and refined (enough) to appreciate the content — as well as the calligraphic nature — of the decoration.”

Carved oliphant

From the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto

This Fumihiko Maki-designed museum is North America’s first major museum dedicated entirely to the arts of Islamic civilizations. Karen Donaldson, the museum’s collections manager, said that one of its most-prized items is one of the world’s 80 surviving ‘oliphants’ — a horn made from the ivory tusk of an elephant. 

Symbolizing the intersection of Islamic and Christian cultures, this elephant’s tusk, with its intricate imagery, dates back to the 11th or 12th century and was probably carved by Muslim artisans in southern Italy. It would have been used for ceremonial purposes.

“The term ‘oliphant’ was first used in the 12th-century epic poem, ‘Song of Roland,’” explained Donaldson. “In this text, when fighting Arabs in Spain during the Battle of Roncevaux Pass, Roland sounds his horn to recall Charlemagne and his army.”

Enameled jewelry ornament

From the Museum of Islamic Civilization, Sharjah

This small yet vibrant enameled jewelry ornament bears two peacocks, whose unison produces an imposing floral motif. Of the majestic bird’s symbolism, the museum’s organizers said: “In the Islamic world, the peacock was sometimes understood to evoke notions of paradise and eternal life.” 

It was created around the late-18th or early-19th century in Jaipur, Rajasthan, during the Mughal era, which witnessed the spread of Islamic art in South Asia. By the 17th century, Rajasthan was considered a powerhouse of sophisticated enamel craftsmanship. The work produced there typically included studded jewelry pieces, protected with an enameled surface on their front and backside, and embellished with pearls and precious stones. 

Universal astrolabe

From the Benaki Museum, Athens

Astronomy was widely practiced by scientists and scholars across the Arab world. The astrolabe (Greek for ‘star taker’) — shaped like a large clock topped with a rosette — was a scientific tool used to calculate locations and tell the time, among other functions. 

This piece in Athens’ Benaki Museum — founded by Islamic art enthusiast Antonis Benakis in 1930 — is the only known version of an Islamic universal astrolabe. 

The five-plated brass object comes from Syria and was produced by Aleppo-based craftsman and mathematician Ahmad ibn Al-Sarraj in 1328-9 for a patron named Muhammad Al-Tanukhi. Intricately inscribed on the rim of the astrolabe are the names of its four subsequent owners. At least one of them was known as a professional timekeeper (muwaqqit). 

Basin

From the Musée du Louvre, Paris

The Louvre inaugurated its modern and airy two-floor Islamic art galleries, designed by Mario Bellini and Rudy Ricciotti, in 2012. A particularly intriguing masterpiece on display is a large 14th-century metal basin created in either Syria or Egypt during the artistically prolific Mamluk era. It was brought to France by King Louis IX in the early 13th century and was apparently used for many years to baptize the offspring of French royalty, including Napoleon III’s son, Prince Napoléon-Eugène, at the Notre Dame Cathedral in 1856. It was an apt font for the regal babes — richly decorated with its figurines of huntsmen, courtiers, and rulers. It became known as the Baptistère of Saint Louis.

Bronze box

From the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 

This rare bronze-cast brass box was designed some time in the 17th century in China during the Qing Dynasty, the nation’s final imperial dynasty, which dissolved in 1912. Research shows that the Islamic presence in China goes back to the Tang dynasty (618-907) with the arrival of Muslim emissaries. It was not long before Chinese artisans started incorporating Islamic motifs in their designs for foreign buyers. 

At first glance, the box cover’s squiggly lines look illegible, but on closer inspection one can see that the term ‘Allah’ is inscribed on the top left part. In addition, the cover’s rim is decorated with floral motifs, which were common in Chinese art. Rendered in Sini (‘Chinese’ in Arabic) script, this free-flowing style of writing is characterized by its thick and tapered effect lettering. It was developed specifically for Islamic inscriptions found in ceramics, manuscripts and structures. 


He tries and triumphs: John Achkar’s ‘AAM JARRIB’ scores big in Abu Dhabi

Updated 02 June 2025
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He tries and triumphs: John Achkar’s ‘AAM JARRIB’ scores big in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI: Lebanese comedian John Achkar, who is on a world tour, touched down in the UAE capital on Sunday night as part of Abu Dhabi Comedy Season.

Achkar performed his latest special, “AAM JARRIB” (“Trying” in English), before upcoming stops in London, Paris and Sydney on a tour that wraps up in October.

“John has been trying new things for 34 years, and he’s still trying,” his grandmother sang in a video that opened the show.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by John Achkar (@johnachr)

At 34, Achkar claims he does not like trying new things — but as the show unfolds, it is clear he excels at turning the discomfort and quiet fulfillment of those rare efforts into comedy gold.

He paces the stage, piecing together absurd real-life misadventures — a botched sailing trip or an outrageously inappropriate skydiving incident — into hilarious anecdotes.

At one point, Achkar calls out what he jokingly dubs a modern epidemic — ADHD — which he says has become a socially accepted excuse to dodge plans. Fittingly, his performance is a whirlwind of energy: Fast-paced, delightfully chaotic and entirely on brand.

True to form, Achkar’s commentary on Lebanon is bold but affectionate. He jokes that almost every restaurant blasts the internet-famous patriotic anthem “Lebanon Will Return,” even as the country teeters on the edge of war. The satire is sharp, never cynical.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by John Achkar (@johnachr)

Behind him, a detailed sketch of the Lebanese coastline hangs throughout the performance — a quiet yet unmistakable tribute to his identity.

The show ended on the perfect note as the same anthem he mocked earlier blasted through the speakers, with the crowd bursting into applause and laughter — a full-circle moment.

In “AAM JARRIB,” John Achkar does not just try — he soars. And the audience, just as energized as he is, soars with him.


Gigi Hadid marks launch of Havaianas line with new campaign

Updated 01 June 2025
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Gigi Hadid marks launch of Havaianas line with new campaign

DUBAI: US Palestinian Dutch supermodel Gigi Hadid has unveiled a new campaign with Brazilian footwear brand Havaianas.

The model, who launched a line with the flip flop label, stars in a vintage-inspired series of photographs. In the shots, she shows off slippers from her collection with the brand and is seen wearing retro outfits on a beach.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Havaianas (@havaianas)

Hadid celebrated the launch at a party in Altro Paradiso in New York last week.  At the event, she wore flip flops paired with a white tweed Marc Jacobs minidress, featuring vibrant scattered crystals.

The model is no stranger to making creative decisions and is also the founder of her own cashmere brand, Guest in Residence.

She launched her clothing label, which features soft, colorful knitwear, in September 2022.

“Over the last handful of years, I didn’t want to be backed into starting my own line just because there was an offer on the table or a deal to be made,” she wrote to her followers on Instagram at the time.

“The earliest days of Guest in Residence came about when I started to question the cashmere market, and those answers gave me a path,” she wrote.

“I believe that because of its sustainable qualities — natural and made to cherish and to pass down — cashmere is a luxury that should be more accessible.”

Earlier this year, Hadid celebrated her birthday party at Le Chalet in New York City.

Hadid entered the venue with her partner, Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper on April 25, and met up with her sister Bella Hadid, mother Yolanda Hadid, father Mohamed Hadid, Russian media personality Keni Silva and US actress Anne Hathaway, among others.

Gigi’s birthday was on April 23, and the internet was abuzz with celebrities, designers, family and friends who sent birthday wishes to the supermodel as she turned 30.

 


Nayla Al-Khaja reflects on new film ‘BAAB’ and Canon collaboration

Updated 01 June 2025
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Nayla Al-Khaja reflects on new film ‘BAAB’ and Canon collaboration

  • The director a is frequent guest at the Cannes Film Festival and partnered with Oscar winning Indian musical composer and record producer A. R. Rahman on the score for her latest film
  • Her previous feature “Three” played at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival and the Shanghai International Film Festival

DUBAI: UAE filmmaker Nayla Al-Khaja, a pioneering voice in Emirati cinema, has wrapped production on her second feature film, “BAAB,” and is also taking part in a renewed partnership with Canon Middle East as part of the brand’s “See No Limits” campaign.

In a conversation following the film’s completion, Al-Khaja told Arab News “BAAB,” set for release after the summer, marks a creative milestone in her career. 

“It really feels like I found a language I enjoy in filmmaking,  like my own artistic voice,” she said, highlighting its striking visual style and deeply immersive atmosphere. Compared to her debut feature “Three,” she described “BAAB” as a significant evolution in her storytelling and visual approach.

“Haunted by a mysterious rhythm after her twin sister's death, Wahida's journey to find answers pulls her deep into the mountains. As she unravels her grief, she descends into madness, blurring the line between reality and imagination,” the logline of the film reads.

Her previous feature “Three” played at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival and the Shanghai International Film Festival. She is also a frequent guest at the Cannes Film Festival and partnered with Oscar winning Indian musical composer and record producer A. R. Rahman on the score for her latest film.

Al-Khaja continues to work in psychological horror, drawn to its emotional impact and the technical challenge of filming in low light. “You feel like you are pulled like a magnet, pulled into a very ethereal, very haunting world… it is just so visually beautiful,” she said.

The director is also working with Japanese corporation Canon on educational initiatives aimed at emerging filmmakers. 

As part of the “See No Limits” campaign, she led a workshop for film students, emphasizing both the technical strengths of Canon’s EOS R5 Mark II and the importance of narrative-driven visual decisions. “Although you have the camera, if you don’t know how to position it in sense of what your story is trying to say… how far can you push your own limit?” she said.

Al-Khaja’s collaboration with Canon began in 2011. Their latest campaign focuses on empowering female filmmakers across the region. 

While she notes there are still only a handful of women working full-time in the UAE film industry, she sees growing momentum driven by regional grants, commissions and the demand for streaming content.

“When I started, I didn’t have a role model,” she said. “It is good to know that you now have an older generation that you can reach out to.” 


Review: ‘Doom: The Dark Ages’ sets new bar for first-person carnage

Updated 31 May 2025
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Review: ‘Doom: The Dark Ages’ sets new bar for first-person carnage

LONDON: The first “Doom” game back in 1993 helped define the first-person shooter genre, spawning numerous sequels and even a Hollywood film. Now it is back, and in a crowded market packed with chaotic shooters and arena brawlers, this game slices its way into the pantheon with style — and a spinning shield saw.

Boasting 22 adrenaline-soaked levels, “Doom: The Dark Ages” sticks to the classic formula of annihilating every enemy in the room before moving on. Yet it rarely pauses for breath, charging through its campaign. While there are secrets to uncover and collectible toys to find, it always feels hurried, pushing players forward with breakneck urgency.

Where it stands out is in its innovative combat tools — a shield saw that doubles as a melee weapon, a flail for crowd control, and a shield charge that turns defense into offense. Combat is fast, demanding, and utterly satisfying, especially in boss fights where success hinges on timing and picking the right attack for the enemy.

The gunplay is awesomely brutal and weapons evolve through Sentinel Shrines, letting players fine-tune their arsenal to match the rising difficulty. This isn't just a shooter; it’s a metal-fueled ballet of aggression, where being passive is punished and staying alive means staying angry.

The music? Pure heavy metal fury, matching the gameplay beat for beat. Visuals run at a crisp 60 frames per second and every environment drips with cosmic dread, from crumbling hellscapes to star-forged citadels. The new cosmic realm adds visual diversity, while massive set-pieces like dragon-riding with autocannons and piloting giant sentinels crank the spectacle to 11.

This is bone-crunching mayhem at its finest. It’s Halo-esque in scope, “Doom”-like in execution, but ultimately a beast of its own making.


Basmah Felemban unpacks memory, identity in Riyadh solo show ‘Vessel of Wreckage’

Updated 30 May 2025
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Basmah Felemban unpacks memory, identity in Riyadh solo show ‘Vessel of Wreckage’

RIYADH: Seasoned Saudi artist Basmah Felemban’s work will make you think. In her latest solo exhibition, “Vessel of Wreckage,” which runs at ATHR Gallery in Riyadh until June 26, she combines elements that many of us can relate to while being authentically, fully herself.  

“In the past five or six years, my practice has been really an investigation of my family roots from Indonesia and — kind of as a result of getting into sci-fi — to have some imaginary explanations of those reasons why they came from Indonesia to Saudi, because I failed at the factual research, really,” Felemban, who lives and works between London and Jeddah, tells Arab News. 

“When did my family move? This is one of the mysteries — part of the myth of the family. I have no idea. I’d say that my granddad came to Saudi for work, probably in the Seventies. But I’d learned that Felemban, our last name, comes from an island called Palembang, so in kindergarten I used to tell people I was a princess because I’m used to, like, the Al-Saud family and Saudi Arabia, so I thought since I’m Felemban from Palembang, I must be a princess.” 

Growing up, Felemban assumed that they had no Saudi relatives, until her brother serendipitously found out that they had cousins in town.  

“I realized, ‘Oh! We do have extended family here; we’re just not connected to them.’ And that’s also part of the myth and the lore of our family story. Once I realized that, it kind of clicked with me that our identities are really just a construct — it doesn’t really matter if they’re factual. I don’t think my family intentionally tried to lie. I think they believed this was the story.” 

All of this was part of Felemban’s world building.  

“I think, in Hejaz in general, people came from all over and there was this whole umbrella under which we wanted to identify as ‘Saudi’ for a lot of time. Like, if you speak to me about anything Indonesian, I would have no idea, because my family really assimilated,” she says, adding that she hopes to visit Indonesia soon.  

“I wouldn’t say I feel like I’m part of a diaspora, even if I am, factually. But I think Saudi is a very specific, special case in terms of identity. I feel like I’m more interested in the family story and why their connections are the way they are. 

“I didn’t grow up in an environment where ours was a weird story,” she adds. “Even my friends that are Bedouin are still also away from where they are from.” 

Here, Felemban talks us through several works from the show. 

‘Pulang (To Go Home)’ 

Photo: AN/Huda Bashatah

There are five ship windows looking out on five different topics that I researched, from facts to absurd sci-fi stories. They’re videos collected from YouTube — just rabbit holes I fell into. I really like to document my research and my notes, then my work grows like a mind map — I connect words and then try to connect concepts between those words and visuals. The first window starts with a propaganda documentary about the colonial history of Indonesia and its impact on folklore dances and music. Then a scene that a lot of my world is based on; Indonesian pilgrims reciting a religious song about the prophet. 

I realized that another connection between Indonesia and Saudi is catfish — another creature of myth. A few years ago, people realized that there’s a lot of huge catfish in Wadi Hanifa and they started to ask: How did they come here? I like that, as a myth. In Indonesia, the catfish is a really huge asset, but also has some negative connotations.  

‘Fish from the Ground’ 

This work talks about the catfish myth. They are an invasive species and tend to be really vicious and really quick to adapt, so in less than a couple of hundreds of years it was able to evolve from swimming to being able to ‘walk,’ almost on land. That’s likely where the term ‘catfishing’ comes from.  

‘Wave Catcher’ 

When I was approached by the Islamic Arts Biennale (in 2023), I thought, ‘My work is quite futuristic, very colorful and digital, so how can (make it fit) in?’ I think of this work like an ancient machine used by the catfish to collect data by listening to sounds of the calls to prayer from countries around the Red Sea. And by hearing it, the fish are able to measure distances, and study the water and such. That thought was based on research from lectures from scientists. 

‘The Gömböc, the Turtle and the Evolution of Shape’ 

Photo: AN/Huda Bashatah

This is a game based on a lecture by a scientist. If you put the headphones on, you can hear the lecture and then when you reach the top of this fish mountain, there’s a room that has a table that also existed in the lecture and you can interact with that. It’s a video game I made with my husband. He’s an economist so he helps me a lot with conceptualizing what data could be like — that kind of geeky aspect of my work. It’s very experimental and it’s a little bit janky — in the best way possible!  

‘Elemental Sprite’ series  

These AI works — “Sphere,” “Rod,” “Disc,” and “Blade” (shown here) — are based on some of the same research as “Wave Catcher,” which is some sort of mathematical study of pebbles and the way that pebbles change in nature. But also, if you scan one of the squares, it animates. I’m very much a digital artist at heart and AI is something I’m really interested in, but I have to say that I don’t use AI in engines; I use sort of ‘offline AI.’ I use the modules themselves, the interfaces. Every six months, AI completely changes in quality because it really develops, and I learn more too. This is almost like a documentation of my learning curve, and of the technology itself. 

‘Before Asphalt’ 

These are pictures that I stole from my dad before he passed away. He used to work at the municipality, and these were pictures from the Nineties documenting some of the potholes around Jeddah. I like to think of the city as a galaxy and the potholes as portals. The yellow looks like slime — I’m definitely a cartoon girl and this is like “(Teenaged Mutant) Ninja Turtles” sludge. I think maybe it’ll appear again in another work and I’ll get more into this portal idea.