Arts of Islamic Lands: Selections from The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait January 31, 2015–April 10, 2022
Mosque Lamp, Egypt, c. 1319, colorless glass; blown and decorated with polychrome enamels and gold, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
Tile, Iranian world, 17th century, glazed fritware, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
Syria, Bowl, 13th century, underglaze-painted fritware, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
India, Bird Pendant, late 16th–early 17th century, gold set with gems, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
Uzbekistan, Sufi Watching the Poet Sadi in Ecstasy (illustration from the Subhat al-Abrar of Jami), 2nd quarter of 16th century, opaque watercolors, gold, and ink on paper, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
Egypt, Bowl, 1300–1350, brass with inlaid silver, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
Prayer Carpet, Turkish, late 16th century, wool and cotton pile on silk foundation, The al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait.
The Museum’s landmark partnership with the Kuwait-based al-Sabah Collection and the cultural institution Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah continues with an expanded installation of Arts of Islamic Lands: Selections from The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait.
The renowned al-Sabah Collection is one of the greatest privately held collections of Islamic art in the world. The collaboration with the Museum, established in 2012, led to the 2013 Houston debut of 67 objects ranging from carpets and architectural fragments to exquisite ceramics, metalwork, jewelry, scientific instruments, and manuscripts.
This expanded installation more than triples the display, increasing the art on view to some 250 works that, together, present an impressive and comprehensive spectrum of Islamic art. Objects from the 8th to 18th century—made in North Africa, the Middle East, Türkiye, India, the Iberian Peninsula, and Central Asia—demonstrate the development of techniques, craftsmanship, and aesthetics in Islamic visual culture.
Among the highlights are a 16th-century Ottoman Turkish prayer carpet; a glass mosque lamp from 14th-century Cairo; an extraordinary earthenware bowl from 9th-century Iraq that transcends its humble function; early gold jewelry from Afghanistan and Syria; and opulent Mughal jewelry crafted in the refined kundan technique, including a brilliant bird pendant fabricated in late 16th-century India from gold, rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and rock crystals.
Arts of Islamic Lands: Selections from The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait | January 31, 2015–April 10, 2022
• Included with general admission. Advance timed tickets recommended.
► Publication
The accompanying catalogue is available through the MFA Shop (713.639.7360) and the Museum’s Hirsch Library (713.639.7325).