Canada Presents "Cairo Under Wraps: Early Islamic Textiles"

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS NEWS

CANADA---The Royal Ontario Museum presents "Cairo Under Wraps: Early Islamic Textiles" through January 25, 2015. The exhibit features almost 80 precious Early Islamic textiles dating from the 7th to 14th centuries – including rare examples of clothing – are featured in this original exhibition of ROM material. The decoration on these textiles mainly consists of Arabic inscriptions, often invoking Allah and naming the ruler. Many of these items were intended for the royal household. Some of the earliest pieces were collected by C.T. Currelly, the founding director of the Royal Ontario Museum, and are thus especially appropriate to show in our centennial year. Complementary material in other media (ceramics, glass, metalwork, coins, etc.) has been selected from the ROM’s collection of Islamic art.

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Sharing Islamic Experiences Through Art in Canada

THE SURRY LEADER

A photo called Taj Mahal, by Aziz Dhamani, one of nine artists featured in
Change: Contemporary Ismaili Muslim Art at the Surrey Art Gallery. — image credit:

CANADA---Established and emerging B.C.-based members of Ismaili Artists Canada show the humanistic approach of Islam and share their experiences through paintings, photographs, calligraphy, and ceramics in the exhibition "Change: Contemporary Ismaili Muslim Art," on now at the Surrey Art Gallery. Visitors will see works ranging from images of local scenes to landscapes of Africa and India; and from symbolic works that express ideas of peace and harmony to abstract compositions that explore the ideas of change and cycles. [link]

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Known For His Art for Dante’s ‘Inferno,’ Gustave Doré Merited Wider Fame

MaCLEANS

David Beckman's lower right torso by Gustave Doré. Courtesy The Times.

CANADA---You may not have heard of Gustave Doré, but you’ve seen his art. The 19th century’s most famous illustrator was so influential that his compositions made it into the paintings of Picasso and Van Gogh and the films of Cecil B. DeMille, Orson Wells, Terry Gilliam and Roman Polanski. And then there’s David Beckham’s lower right torso, which shows off a tattoo of a sitting Christ lifted straight from the French artist’s engraving The Agony in the Garden. Although a legend in his day, the Strasbourg-born colossus remains largely unknown in the 21st century, a fact that “can be blamed on art history,” says Paul Lang, the National Gallery of Canada’s deputy director and chief curator, who brought Gustave Doré: Master of Imagination to Ottawa, where it will be on show from June 13 through September (following its run at Paris’s Musée d’Orsay).[link]

Musée d’Orsay, Paris

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Canada's Sikh Community Celebrates Holyday of Vaisakhi

PRINCE GEORGE: THE CITIZEN
By Arhur Williams

Sikh demonstrates his skill with an urumi -a flexible whip-like sword 

CANADA---Prince George's Sikh community marked Vaisakhi on Saturday with a celebration of food, music, dance and a demonstration of traditional martial arts. The celebration began with a Nagar Kirtan - a traditional parade -from the Guru Nanak Darbar Sikh Temple on Davis Street to CN Centre. The Khalsa School Gatka Team from Surrey brought a demonstration of Gatka -a traditional Indian martial art often associated with Sikhism - to the event. "The Sikh community is a martial community," he said. "Always Sikhs, who were living in the Punjab [region of northern India] were like a wall to [invaders]. In the past this was how we always protected our community, our faith, our people." [link]

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Without Masks: Contemporary Afro-Cuban Art Unmasks Complexities of Racism and Religion in Cuba

THE VANCOUVER SUN
By Kevin Griffin

Vancouver Sun reporter Kevin Griffin reflect on Without Masks

CANADA---Most art exhibitions have fairly traditional methods of showing works. In group shows, for example, they’re often displayed alphabetically or by themes. "Without Masks" doesn’t follow any of those rules. Instead, the works in the group show are arranged according to a different system. They’re displayed according to the age of the artist, starting with those who have died and then oldest to youngest. The exhibition’s organization at the Museum of Anthropology relates directly to how contemporary Afro-Cuban artists have made work inspired by their own religious beliefs. [link]

Museum of Anthropology (UBC): "Without Masks: Contemporary Afro-Cuban Art" (November 2, 2014); 6393 N.W. Marine Drive Vancouver, B.C. V6T 1Z2; (604)827-5932; moa.ubc.ca.

Alexis Esquivel Bermudez, a Cuban of African descent, with some of his art at the Museum of Anthropology. Photograph by: Gerry Kahrmann, Vancouver Sun

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Sikhs Buy Back Their History One Bid at a Time, But Say Museum Space is a Hard Sell

THE GLOBE & MAIL
By DAKSHANA BASCARAMURTY

The sword is believed to have been owned by Maharajah Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire in India.

CANADA---“In the last 10 to 20 years, there’s been a huge surge of what are classified as Sikh objects entering the market,” said Deepali Dewan, senior curator of South Asian Arts & Culture at the Royal Ontario Museum. “Because of the demand mostly coming from the Sikh community, the prices have skyrocketed … it has priced museums out of the market.” Although Canada’s Sikh population is large – 1.4 per cent of the population follows Sikhism (compared to 1.9 per cent in India) – none of the major galleries or museums has a sizable permanent collection devoted to Sikh history in India. Even internationally, representation of Sikh history in major museums is limited, Ms. Dewan says. [link]

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