60‘Strait is the Gate’: Anatolian gateway kilims
99‘Shah Abbas: The Remaking
of Iran’ at the BritishMuseum
74‘Dressed to Impress’:
Central Asian Robes
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CONTENTSISSUE 159 SPRING 2009
FRONTLINES LETTERSA question of dyes, and looking to the future of the rug trade; a Baluch collector’s response to Adil Besim’s new M&M volume;Tony Kitz‘s new showroom in San Francisco 23 NEWS Safavid silk turns to auction gold in Doha; Francis Bacon rugs withdrawn; New locations for James Cohen (Milan), Alex Zadah (London), and Miri (Dubai); Indo-Pacific art at Yale 25 PROFILEStefan Weber, the youthful new Director of Berlin’s Islamic Art Museum, talks to Philippa Scott about the future of this renowned collection of Islamic art (and carpets) 28 FROM THE ARCHIVE Late 19th and early 20th century photographs offer a glimpse into the nomadic world of Central Asia, its tents and its decorative textiles 30 BENCHMARKSIdentifying ‘good’ examples of rug and textile types 35 MASTERPIECE An outstanding palepai maju at the Metropolitan Museum, New York 40 FEATURES UNWRAPPING QATAR 50 WILLIAM ROBINSON An on-the-spot view of the opening ceremonies at the new Museum of Islamic Art in Doha and the inaugural exhibition and international symposium held to mark the occasion
MATERIAL WITNESS
The Tilleke & Gibbins Textile Collection, Bangkok LINDA SUSAN MCINTOSH A growing professionally managed corporate collection of Thai and other regional textile art in the high-rise offices of Thailand’s oldest law firm
56
STRAIT IS THE GATE
60
Ancient City Gateways & Their Textile Representations ULRICH TÜRCK An examination of so-called ‘niche’ imagery in Anatolian kilims, with a particular focus on urban architectural forms, specifically representations of ancient city walls and gateways
DESIGN WITHOUT END
The Essential Art of African Textiles
CHRISTINE GIUNTINI The Metropolitan Museum’s stunning exhibition juxtaposing historical and contemporary African textile art, in which some of the British Museum’s outstanding but seldom seen holdings are revealed
70
DRESSED TO IMPRESS
74
Exemplary Central Asian robes from the Marshall & Marilyn R. Wolf Collection JEFF SPURR In the latter years of the 20th century, geopolitics turned the Istanbul bazaar into a cornucopia where Western collectors were able to acquire breathtaking Central Asian costume and textiles
CAMELOT PENNSYLVANIA-STYLE
84
THEODORE MAST Glencairn’s curatorial consultant delves into the history of the Museum, just outside Philadelphia, and uncovers issues affecting the conservation of a rug collection that is in constant use
CONTEXT EXHIBITIONSAntique Indian textiles in Boston and Mulhouse; Tudor and Stuart textiles in New York; Shah ‘Abbas at the British Museum; San Francisco’s Tribal & Textile Art Show 99 CALENDAR Auctions, exhibitions, fairs and conferences worldwide 113 AUCTION PRICE GUIDE Recent sales in NY, Dedham, London, Stuttgart and Wiesbaden 119 BOOKSSoies De Paradis(Tokatlian); Mythos und Mystik 4(Walter & Breuss);In Adoration of Krishna (Krishna, Talwar et al.); Clothing Culture (Pritchard); Persian Pile Weaving (Collins) 130 TITLES RECEIVED Recent book and catalogue releases 137 IN MEMORIAM Martin Volkmann, Marcel Korolnik, Lisbet Holmes, Lis Granlund 138 MARKET REPORT Amadi Carpets’ latest ikat-inspired collection 149 PARTING SHOTS London to Hanover via Tehran, San Francisco and Dubai 150 FIRST VIEW A Mongol-style Tibetan Khalka Su from the Wolf Collection 152
HALI ISSUE 159 5
