Islamic and Arab art institute opening in New York

Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Al-Thani noticed something missing in New York City’s cultural institutions – there is the Swiss Institute, the Asia Society and the Jewish Museum, but there isn’t anything to represent Arab Muslim artists, until now.

The 2,500 sq ft space will host exhibitions with Muslim and Arab artists, foster interfaith dialogue with public discussions and will be home to a new bookstore. According to Al-Thani, who is the founding director, he wanted to set straight some Muslim stereotypes.

“If we dig into how Arabs and Muslims are stereotyped, they go way back,” said Al-Thani. “It made sense to me there had to be an art and culture institute that represents the Arab and Islamic region, as there isn’t really one here in New York.”

Even with Islamophobia and Trump’s recent Muslim ban, Al-Thani has been working towards the institute since 2014.

“Our main objective is to challenge stereotypes if people have them and engage them on Islamic civilization beyond the religious context,” said Al-Thani. “We are hopeful and will do everything in our capacity to see our culture is represented and open up a cross-cultural dialogue with New York City.”

The first exhibition is themed around Islamic architecture and geometric design. “Sacred geometry,” is an Islamic tradition that dates back thousands of years as a universal language that can bring together divided communities. The artists showing include Saudi Arabian artist Dana Awartani, who creates mandala-like paintings with ancient flower motifs alongside the works of Iranian artist Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian, who combines traditional Iranian folk art with modern abstraction. They’re also showing works by New York-based Indian artist Zarina Hashmi, who uses the Islamic decorative arts to represents political borders, and Nasreen Mohamedi, a pioneering Indian artist who changed the face of minimalism. “We are hoping people see it’s beyond what the eye can see.” says Al-Thani.

The institute will be located at 3 Howard Street in Manhattan, a temporary space until the end of July.

Source: The Guardian