Think of the Dulwich Picture Gallery and you think of white, European, dead painters. On the whole that’s who painted most of the pictures on display there. But a new series of lectures at the gallery coming soon offers a new angle on over 800 years of history Islamic art.
Three specialists in the field are due to speak at the Gallery in the next month and give an overview of three key periods: the Abbasids in and around Iraq (750-1258), Islamic Spain (711-1492) and the Safavids, notably Shah ‘Abbas (1587-1629).
Here are the details of the lectures.
Wednesday 25 February
Dr. Anna Contadini, Reader in the History of Islamic Art, SOAS, University of London
The Arts of the Abbasids, the Caliphs of Baghdad (750-1258 )
Under the Abbasids, Islamic art developed its most characteristic features: abstract geometrical design, exquisite calligraphy, and the arts of the book. Examining illuminated Qur’ans, miniature painting and artefacts ranging from glazed ceramics to delicate glass vessels carved in relief, this lecture surveys the luxurious and sophisticated artistic production of the period.
Wednesday 4 March
Dr Mariam Rosser Owen, Curator Middle East, Asian Department, V&A
Islamic Arts from Spain (711-1492)
Islamic Spain enjoyed the most sophisticated culture in medieval Europe, producing exquisite examples of art and architecture, such as the Great Mosque of Cordoba, and the palaces of the Alhambra in Granada. This talk surveys the art of the golden age of the Umayyad Caliphate (10th century), the distinctive dynastic style of the Nasrids (14th century), and the continuity of Islamic styles showing their continuing influence after the ‘Reconquista’.
Wednesday 25 March
Dr. Sheila Canby, Curator of Islamic Art and Antiquities, the British Museum
Shah Abbas: the Remaking of Iran (1587-1629)
Shah `Abbas’s artists introduced a new style of ornament that decorated carpets, textiles, manuscripts and buildings as seen in the glorious tiled mosques and portals and elegant arcades of the Maidan in Isfahan, his new capital. This visual change paralleled his restructuring of Iranian society; new trade agreements with Europe, and a legal system firmly rooted in the state religion Shi’a Islam.
Dr Canby is curator of a new special exhibition Shah ‘Abbas and the Remaking of Iran, which opens at the British Museum on Thursday 19 February.
Series of three lectures: £25, £20 Friends / Single lecture: £10, £8 friends. Coffee will be served afterwards.
Tickets are available from the Friends Desk in the Gallery or by phone with a credit/debit card (£1.00 booking fee) on 020 8299 1859.
More details on the DPG website.
