Exquisite Islam: Qatar's Museum of Islamic Art reopens amidst global fanfare

Doha’s Museum of Islamic Art reopened earlier this October, following extensive renovations and an overhaul to the way it displays its collection.

After closing in April 2021, the reimagined museum is now ready to receive the influx of visitors expected for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 in November, with upgraded facilities and an enhanced, more immersive experience of the permanent galleries.

“I am honoured to lead this extraordinary institution into its next chapter,” MIA director Julia Gonnella said. “This enhancement will benefit generations of visitors, providing an even more meaningful experience and allowing guests to explore the rich vast history of the Islamic World as told through our unparalleled collection.”

"[The museum] aim's to show the wealth of materials used in Islamic art across the ages, including carpets and textiles, manuscripts, ceramics, wood, ivory, metalwork, stone and glass, spanning Spain and North Africa to China"

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect I.M. Pei, the MIA first opened in 2008 and remains the only museum in the world to give a comprehensive look at Islamic arts across three continents, over 1,400 years from the 7th to the 20th centuries.

Over 1,000 objects, including some newly acquired pieces, are now on display in the museum’s permanent galleries for the first time.

The new visitors' trail will help provide narrative and context to the masterpieces on show, with new mobile and child-friendly resources to make the museum more accessible to families and younger visitors. The galleries are now organised according to broad historical and cultural themes, periods and geography.

“The MIA is one of the really beautiful museums in the region, and from the beginning, it was very clear that the museum lacked a visitor trail and some context,” Gonnella told The New Arab. “We wanted to change that and give a storyline, to make it more a museum of culture, rather than just beautiful looking art and objects.

“We have about 70 percent of the objects now on display because some of them were in storage,” she added. “The most important change is the galleries, which now have a visitor trail. We have 18 galleries on two levels, spanning from Spain to China.”

The Majlis area on the ground floor is where most visitors will begin their journey. What used to be a reception hall is now an immersive room with a film detailing the MIA’s history and architectural significance.

The first gallery on the first floor now showcases some of the MIA’s masterpieces – objects prized for their historical and cultural significance – dedicated to the very beginnings of Islam. The gallery spotlights object like the 13th-century Cavour Vase, an 18th-century Mughal Varanasi necklace and the Franchetti Tapestry from 16th-century Iran.

A gallery dedicated to the Quran also displays several rare texts and tablets with verses on them, with recordings of prayers filling the hall.

“We have now introduced a whole wing called Dunya w Deen (The World and Religion) about the Caliphates around the world,” Gonnella said. “Then we have a new section on religious life, the society, followed by one on learning and sciences because we think that also this is a very important part of the religion.

“We have the spread of Islam, which of course started in Mecca, Medina, going out into the Arab world,” she added. “We have one gallery devoted to the Arab world and going to the east – the Silk Road through Iran, Central Asia, then spreading to the west, to Al Andalus – we have two galleries devoted to Spain.”

These galleries aim to show the wealth of materials used in Islamic art across the ages, including carpets and textiles, manuscripts, ceramics, wood, ivory, metalwork, stone and glass, spanning Spain and North Africa to China. Visitors can see the Sitara (a large decorative textile) of the Holy Ka’ba, a copy of al-Sufi’s treatise on the fixed stars, an Abbasid-era blue-and-white bowl and a post-Islamic Spanish ceiling in these galleries.

Level three focuses on the arts and societies of the 11th to 19th centuries. The main galleries explore the three ‘Gunpowder’ empires: the Ottomans, the Safavids and the Mughals, with additional new galleries dedicated to China and Southeast Asia, an often overlooked part of Islamic discourse, despite today having the largest Muslim community worldwide.

The MIA’s revamp also gave the opportunity to upgrade the museum, integrating new technologies – from interactive displays and immersive audio to multi-sensory elements, such as Persian poetry and fragrances of Silk Road spices and perfumes – all to enhance the visitor experience.

“[These new technologies] should provide more context. An example is our new family application introducing what an astrolabe was used for and how, or explaining how jewels were actually worn, as people who don’t come from this part of the world might be unaware that lots of the jewellery were actually worn by men,” Gonnella said. “We will also be showing films to introduce the different historical-geographical areas to give an impression from where the objects actually from."

“I think most people expect this today, with all the new technology around - especially the younger generations,” she added. “Museums are no longer sacred art temples but have become more holistic in their experience- to support people in getting a more comprehensive view on context and why the objects on display are important.”

During October, the MIA will present a new exhibition, “Baghdad: Eye’s Delight,” which will focus on Baghdad’s heritage as the capital of the Abbasid caliphs (750-1258 CE) and its legacy in the 20th century as a centre for culture and commerce. The exhibition will run until Feb. 23, 2023.

“It’s important to offer an exciting program that speaks to both its community and beyond - this is crucial for each museum,” Gonnella said. “We hope that the new display gives a bigger picture about the Islamic world and its values and histories rather than simply showcasing beautiful objects.”

Maghie Ghali is a British-Lebanese journalist based in Beirut. She worked for The Daily Star Lebanon and writes as a freelancer for several publications, including The National, Al Arabiya English, Al Jazeera and Middle East Eye, on arts and culture/design, environment and humanitarian topics.

Follow her on Twitter: @mghali6