This new permanent exhibition of Islamic artifacts was inaugurated on Nov. 1, 2011, after a long period of refurbishment. Much praise has been heaped on the new collection since it was unveiled, and it is entirely deserved. The 15 galleries, two of which bear the name of the Koç family, were designed to display some 1,000 precious art works to great effect in a spacious environment that creates a peaceful atmosphere.
In 2008, İstanbul residents were fortunate to see the “İstanbul, Isfahan, Delhi: Three Capitals of Islamic Art” exhibition hosted by the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, which juxtaposed Islamic art produced in these three great cities and offered a glimpse of the artistic diversity produced across the Muslim world.
The Metropolitan Museum followed a similar geographical approach, but it expanded it to include art works from a wide region stretching from Spain to Moghul India. It also did this in sequence, and through these artistic masterpieces, often produced for royal courts, the exhibition traces the spread of Islam over 14 centuries, highlighting the plurality of artistic expression it generated over time as well as the cross-fertilization, which produced common artistic threads linking the exhibits. Visitors who enter these galleries with the mistaken belief that the Muslim world is a monolithic cultural block will have their perceptions challenged by the incredible abundance of creativity on display, which reflects regional differences, evolution over centuries and, of course, the individuality of the artists who produced these artworks.
Aside from beautiful exhibits from Turkey that we, residents of the country, are familiar with, such as a splendid “Bellini” carpet from Uşak or Süleyman the Magnificent’s exquisite tuğra (official signature), the 15 airy galleries contain a breathtaking wealth of treasures. Delicate calligraphy and illuminated manuscripts produced across the broad region are a common thread running through Islamic art, but styles vary greatly from a Koran from 15th century Spain, handwritten in strangely elongated characters on an indigo manuscript, to the three-foot-wide pages of another version of the Muslim holy book, one of the largest in the world, produced in the late 14th or early 15th century in Uzbekistan. Great artistry and skilled handiwork was also deployed in the production of the Shahnama, the Book of Kings, commissioned in the 16th-century by Safavid Shah Tahmasp of Persia, which consisted of 750 folios of text and 258 paintings, some of which are on display at the museum. The New York exhibition also contains a richly illustrated version of the Divan, written by Persian poet Hafiz, and one of Mevlana’s poetic works, the Mesnevi, produced in Iran in the 15th century.
A variety of particularly fine carpets are on display in the Koç galleries, including a large Mamluk piece from Egypt. But the Met also managed to give a glimpse of the architectural splendor found across the Muslim world, with a tiled mihrab (prayer niche) from Isfahan, for example, or the ceiling of one of the Koç galleries, which consists of 30 carved and painted pinewood panels, produced in Andalusia in the 16th century. One of the highlights of the new collection is undoubtedly an entire reception room from 18th-century Damascus painstakingly recreated in New York. The walls and ceilings are clad in delicately carved and painted wood, the floor decorated with elegant tile patterns. It is easy to imagine people engaging in long conversations in this splendid room, comfortably seated on its low cushions, with the sound of water emerging from a small fountain providing a musical background.
Real life eventually regains the upper hand, but judging by the contented look on most people’s faces, visitors who made the brief foray into this rich artistic oasis left the exhibition as enriched as I was by the beauty of the artworks on display.
