By Victoria Scott
A Qatari man hoping to promote cross-cultural understanding and debunk myths about Muslims is launching a new Islamic art museum in downtown New York next month.
Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Al-Thani told Doha News that he hopes the Institute of Arab and Islamic Art (IAIA) will “challenge stereotypes and grant artist, curators and writers from the region an opportunity to engage with a broader audience.”
The institute will present three to four temporary exhibitions a year.
They will feature artists from the Arab and Islamic world, with the aim of “enabling them to join a broader global conversation,” the IAIA’s website states.
Its first exhibition will go live on May 3 and involve Islamic architecture and geometry, Al Thani told Doha News.
“Though there are foundations in the US that engage in Arab and Islamic Art, the narratives presented and the exhibitions curated by these foundations are not quite reflective of our societies and cultures,” he added.
Background
A graduate of Georgetown University in Qatar’s School of Foreign Service, Al Thani has worked for the UN and Qatar Foundation.
He is currently writing a dissertation on Cezane and the advent of Fauvism and Cubism.
The IAIA is a non-profit organization funded by several donors from around the world, but does not have ties to governments, Al Thani said.
Emiratis and Qataris, including Mohammed Al Rabban, Sheikh Nasser Al-Thani, Sheikh Rashid Al-Thani, Safiya Al-Ghaith and Sheikha Sharifa Al-Qubaisi, are listed on the museum’s website as its founding benefactors.
Program
In addition to exhibitions, the institute also plans to launch a residency program. This will be for artists, critics and curators who are interested in engaging with a New York audience.
Residents will be provided housing and workspace, as well as learn about different artistic movements that originated in New York. They will also present work and projects at the IAIA.
Another goal of the institute is to increase knowledge of Islamic civilization and history.
It plans to do this by engaging writers and scholars in translations and publications, the museum’s website states.
Finally, the IAIA is planning to host an outreach program with schools and universities through collaborations with Arab cultural center across the US, Al Thani said.
Thoughts?
