VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston presents the exhibition Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam, on view May 16 through August 8 at the Caroline Wiess Law Building.

Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam, opening Sunday, May 16, 2010, is the first exhibition at the MFAH to be devoted to Sufism, a historic branch of Islam whose followers seek mystical union with God. Light of the Sufis travels to Houston from the Brooklyn Museum, where it was organized by Ladan Akbarnia, the Hagop Kevorkian Curator of Islamic Art, and originally exhibited in the summer of 2009. The expanded Houston presentation, coordinated by Francesca Leoni, MFAH assistant curator of the Arts of the Islamic World, with Ladan Akbarnia, will include some fifty works of art which are drawn from public and private collections, and will incorporate additional contemporary pieces.

"The MFAH launched the Arts of the Islamic World initiative in 2007 and has since given significant attention to this area, from exhibitions and collection-building to public programming," said Dr. Peter C. Marzio, MFAH director. "We are pleased to further the museum´s efforts to explore and interpret art created in the Islamic world, and Light of the Sufis will introduce the general public to Sufism and to the beautiful works of art inspired by its ideas."

"Although Sufism reached its peak in the medieval and early modern period, it is still practiced today," commented Francesca Leoni. "Light of the Sufis explores some of its facets and driving principles through the lenses of artistic inspiration and production."

Light of the Sufis focuses on some of the most important Sufi ideas and practices that found expression through the arts of the Islamic world, beginning with light, which symbolizes both God and enlightenment. The exhibition features objects that span from the 9th century to the present, and includes furnishings used for mosque lighting; attributes and representations of Sufi mystics; illustrated, illuminated, and laser-etched manuscripts of Sufi poetry; and contemporary works inspired by Sufi principles and practices.

Some outstanding objects on view include an early photograph (late 19th-early 20th century) of A Family of Dervishes; a 19th-century Kashkul, or beggar´s bowl, made from coco de mer shell; pages of illuminated calligraphies with Sufi poetry; and an inlaid wine bowl from the late 16th-early 17th century. The exhibition will also include a reading space for visitors who are willing to learn more about Islamic art and the themes in the exhibition. The space will feature reading materials for a variety of age ranges and interests, including books on Islamic art, Sufism, Islam, and poetry.

About Sufism
The word Sufism, from the Arabic tasawwuf, is used to define Islamic mysticism. Through a long spiritual path that entails the abandonment of worldly attachments, Sufis aim to achieve mystical union with God (tawhid). The movement grew from early Islamic asceticism, and evolved into a series of movements and organized confraternities (tariqa) lead by spiritual leaders (shaykh or pir). Sufism also absorbed traditions and practices of other faiths and cultures, incorporating elements of Greek philosophies, Christian mysticism, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism, and Buddhism. Sufi-inspired lyrical poetry and literature became one of the principal forms of expression of Sufi ideas and aspirations, part of which eventually found expression in the visual arts.

Catalogue
A lavishly illustrated catalogue, published by the MFAH and distributed by Yale University Press, accompanies the exhibition. This book by Ladan Akbarnia, with Francesca Leoni, is the first scholarly study of Sufism through its visual and artistic manifestations.

Exhibition Funding
Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam was organized at the Brooklyn Museum by Ladan Akbarnia, Hagop Kevorkian Associate Curator of Islamic Art. In Houston, generous funding is provided by Sara and Bill Morgan and Ms. Martha K. Long.

Arts of the Islamic World: Collection and Growth at the MFAH
The MFAH unveiled plans in 2007 to broaden public awareness of the artistic traditions of the Islamic world, and to raise funds to begin a collection of its art. The initiative has four key components: presenting innovative exhibitions of Islamic art; building a permanent collection of art from the Islamic world; opening permanent gallery space dedicated to the presentation of the art; and developing and hosting educational programs to advance the interpretation and understanding of Islamic art. At the inaugural, biannual Arts of the Islamic World gala, the museum acquired a number of Islamic art objects.

To oversee the new department, Francesca Leoni was appointed as assistant curator of the Arts of the Islamic World in the summer of 2008. Dr. Leoni earned her Ph. D. from Princeton University; and was a Sylvan C. Coleman and Pamela Coleman Memorial Fund Art History Fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art before joining the MFAH´s staff. To support and broaden the scope of the department, the MFAH created the Friends of the Arts of the Islamic World support group and initiated the Arts of the Islamic World Trustee Subcommittee. In October 2011, the MFAH will present The Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts, an exhibition on gift-giving organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Related Events:

Whirling Dervish Performances
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Sunday, May 16, 2010 3:30 PM

Friday Afternoon Lecture: Rumi and the Imagery of the Sufis
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Friday, May 21, 2010 1:30 PM

Friday Afternoon Lecture: Mysticism: The Quest for Oneness with the Divine
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Friday, June 4, 2010 1:30 PM

Friday Afternoon Lecture: The Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Friday, May 14, 2010 1:30 PM

Friday Afternoon Lecture: The Qur´an: A Primer for Non-Muslims
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Friday, June 11, 2010 1:30 PM

Gallery Talk: Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Wednesday, June 2, 2010 12:00 PM
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 12:00 PM
Wednesday, June 16, 2010 12:00 PM
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 12:00 PM
Wednesday, June 30, 2010 12:00 PM

Gallery Talk: Light in Art
At the Audrey Jones Beck Building
Thursday, June 3, 2010 7:00 PM
Thursday, June 10, 2010 7:00 PM
Thursday, June 17, 2010 7:00 PM
Thursday, June 24, 2010 7:00 PM

Saturday Afternoon Lecture: The Qur´an: A Primer for Non-Muslims
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Saturday, June 12, 2010 4:00 PM

Saturday Afternoon Lecture: Mysticism: The Quest for Oneness with the Divine
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Saturday, June 5, 2010 4:00 PM

Saturday Afternoon Lecture: Rumi and the Imagery of the Sufis
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Saturday, May 22, 2010 4:00 PM

Saturday Afternoon Lecture: The Light of the Sufis: The Mystical Arts of Islam
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Saturday, May 15, 2010 4:00 PM

Whirling Dervish Performances
At the Caroline Wiess Law Building
Sunday, May 16, 2010 2:00 PM

Pictured:  Pouran Jinchi, Untitled, 1998, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., gift of Bertram Schnaffner, M.D. © Pouran Jinchi, courtesy Art Projects International, New York .