Stars in Symmetry

Continuing on from my last post, we go on to the next gallery, The Malay World, which is immediately in front of the China Gallery. This gallery, in my opinion, houses a significant collection of Islamic Malay artifacts, ranging from small coins to handwritten manuscripts to carved gateways. All of these artifacts to me seemed eerily familiar even though they obtained many of the items from Malaysia and Indonesia – perhaps simply because I have lived in the Malay archipelago all my entire life, i might have chanced on one of the items or its replicas.

the exhibits are displayed around a large hall, and like the China Gallery, under another heavily decorated dome, amber in colour. Surrounding the hall are artifacts such as coins and manuscripts displayed in glass cases, as well as some smaller items displayed under the massive dome itself.

Medallions on display in the Malay World Gallery of the Museum – apologies for my reflection!

Some artifacts are displayed against one wall of the hall in glass cases. Here medallions, coins and more manuscripts and hand written Al-Qur’an are being displayed, alongside explanations of motifs and designs common to the Malay Islamic world.

A panel explaining the different motifs found in Islamic Malay world – this one discusses foliage type of motif, the similarities and differences between the motifs and arabesques of the middle east as well as samples

In my opinion by looking at the exhibits, and having been to Indonesia a couple of times before, I see the similarities of the designs with Javanese batik designs and Balinese woodcarving motifs. Hindu and Buddhist influences are aplenty, as shown on the designs   on the illustrated pages of the handwritten Qur’an which looks similar compared to the traditional paintings of Hindu-Java or Bali, minus the figures. Also, the liberal usage or reds and warm colours, that can be seen on Buddhist or Hindu paintings are in contrast to the traditional Middle-Eastern illumination which mostly features cobalt and blues with golds.

Breakdown of Malay Qur’an design and other motifs. The Qur’an radial design evokes traditional Hindu-Buddhist influences

Larger artifacts were displayed against one wall with velvet ropes around them. Among the larger artifacts are a majestic carved gateway with Malay designs. Traditionally in the Malay world, carvings are inspired by flowers and vegetation. Though stylized, one, with a very keen eye, can still see the specific plants or flowers the design were based upon, since the design were not as heavily stylized as the ones found in the Middle Eastern Islamic world.

The large carved gateway. This magnificent paneled doorway were carved and painted with golds and red and oranges.

Another large artifact of note is a chair, more like a throne made of silver and leather. The chair is for the Khatib, the sermon reader in the Mosque during Jumu’ah or congregational Friday prayers. The seating was a gift from the Indian government to the Malaysian government, however it still has Malay characteristics to it.

The Khatib’s chair made of Silver and leather.

And finally, above all the displays and the artifacts is the majestic dome, decorated with arabesques in amber, like a sun radiating its light above the visitors.

The dome high above the visitors in a warm amber light

For the nest post of this series I will start on the Indian Gallery.

I now have a bit of time in my hands so I am posting a continuation of my last post about my visit to the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur. As you may have read from my previous post I had visited KL late last year with my parents and my oldest brother. We had a chance visiting an Islamic museum  in the middle of the city in front of the mosque.

Continuing on my last post, we were in the lobby of the museum. Taking a flight upstairs passing a large souvenir store for the museum as well as an upscale restaurant, we reach the first gallery of the museum, The China Gallery.

The banner for the China Gallery of the museum

The gallery is quite large for a museum for that size, topped with a decorated warm coloured dome (more on that later ). The space is airy because of the position of the gallery being in front of the large windows of the modern facade of the museum.The gallery focuses on Islamic art in China and influences of both China culture to the Islamic countries and vice versa.

A little history lesson first ; Islam was believed to be introduced in China around the early 5th Century when a companion of the Prophet Muhammad, Saad bin ibn Waqqas arrived in the country, even though it is disputed amongst historians, citing that Muslim merchants and diplomats were responsible for the introducing the faith into China . Islam began to rise and expand since, inviting converts in the country, creating a large Muslim community. Cultures mingle between Middle Eastern and Chinese and this can be seen in the arts and architecture.

Calligraphic scrolls on display in the China Gallery

The gallery, as I mentioned before , shows the influences of both Islamic and Chinese aesthetic, combining into one unique culture. Along the walls of the gallery are scrolls with samples of Arabic calligraphy done in Sini script – script of Arabic language done with influence of Chinese characters, defined  with square like script done with traditional Chinese brushes and ink. In the middleof the scroll are paintings of fruits, peaches perhaps, with calligraphy in the middle of each fruit.

Chinese Underglazed dishes on display

Ceramics such as tiles and dishes are one of the most important exports of China to  the Islamic world – without it, there would be no
iznik Tiles in Turkey, or the blue tiles of the Shah Mosque. Techniques such as underglazing were introduced to the Islamic world gradually and motifs such as the flowery ones seen on the tiles of Suleymaniye Mosque in Turkey were adored and fashionable within the Islamic artistic community. Muslim artisans emulate and improved technologies from China to be used in their respective countries. The above dishes were underglazed ceramics with painted calligraphic Islamic texts  which is probably talisman in nature.

Detail of a Chinese bowl with Islamic and Chinese decoration

This is one of the dishes on display in the Gallery. the depictions of birds, as  well as any other living figures are prohibited in Islam. However the depiction of animals are common in Chinese art. Here you can see the Chinese influenced decorations of birds and vegetation, combined with abstract vegetal design and medallions of Islamic calligraphy in various scripts. I can read some Arabic but the script is actually foreign to me – possibly the script is in South Asian language or even Persian.

The dome above the Gallery

Above the gallery is yet another dome decorated with gold filigree design. It is quite awe-inspiring to see when you enter the gallery although a bit distracting to me, since the dome lead the eye upward instead on focusing on the displays.

Next, I will post about the Malay World Gallery which is just next to the China Gallery…stay tuned!

Wow…a month of no posting? That is so not me. But then, things happen – like getting a terrible fever for two weeks, and then  severe procrastination (which takes up most of my time anyway. However, today I have some spare time in the office, so I am going to start blogging again. This time, I am starting the KL trip series, regarding my visit to the Islamic Art Museum.

After spending some time trying to find the best pixel ratio for my photos so that it can be uploaded, I finally got the optimal size…which is about 65% less than the original. Thankfully, the pictures still looks very good and have good details , so all is not lost, I guess.

So as you might know, a few months ago I went to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with my parents and my brother, and one of the highlight of my journey there is my visit to the Islamic Art Museum Malaysia. Of course, being an aficionado of Islamic art, I just had to go to the museum after reading it on Tripadvisor.com, even if it means I have to drag my family  along (who, unlike me, doesn’t share my passion for art)

The place is rather secluded, even though it is situated right next to the modern National Mosque that when I arrive, hordes of tourist buses were parked in the mosque’s vicinity. The gentleman of a taxi driver we employed were confused when I mentioned Islamic Arts Museum – perhaps because he is Chinese – that seemingly he is not familiar with the place. I mentioned that it is near to the National Mosque, then it struck him. Even then, when we were in the area he still struggles to find the place…either that or he is trying to get the taxi fare higher. It took us about 15-20 minutes from Ulu Pudu area to the museum, and fare costs about RM15…not that I take particular attention to it. If you are planning to come to the museum on your visit to KL, tell the taxi driver to go to the area where the National Mosque as well as the Bird Park is, and take note of the museum’s address and perhaps show him the map to the museum – it might save you a lot of time and money.

Arriving at the front door of the museum, we saw a modern facade with a traditional Islamic twist. The front gate of the museum has modern sleek lines, with floor-to-ceiling glass panels and doors, but the whole front facade is decorated with blue-green Arabesque decorative tiles, similar to the ones you might be able to see in Iranian mosques. on the top of the facade is a calligraphy of an excerpt from the Qur’an which reads

قُلْ سِيرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَٱنظُرُوا۟ كَيْفَ بَدَأَ ٱلْخَلْقَ ۚ ثُمَّ ٱللَّهُ يُنشِئُ ٱلنَّشْأَةَ ٱلْءَاخِرَةَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍۢ قَدِيرٌۭ

Which means – Roam the earth and observe how the creation was initiated,. Thus God will establish the final creation. Verily, God is capable of all things.The front facade of the museum. Note the calligraphy on top of the facade, the flanking panels of tiles on the either side, the modernistic front door. There is a dome, but I forgot if there is any decoration in it. Also, note the car – it was the taxi we were in, never realized how beaten up it looked like…until now.

Having not seen such tiles in my life before I spend some time examining the tiles closely, while waiting for my brother to arrive. The blue-green tiles were just magnificent to behold. On close inspection, you can see the Arabesques were done tiled piece by piece just how it was made traditionally – meaning it wasn’t just huge slabs of tiles with pre-assembled patterns but mosaics of tiles that forms flowers, stalks, leaves and medallions. My parents watches me as I gasped and oohed and aahed.

A close-up of the blue-green tiles of the facade. You can see the separate tiles of each segment of the blue-green tiles as well as the medallions and the flowers.

Entering the lobby of the hotel…I mean the museum, my attention was immediately diverted to the ceiling. The intricately designed ceiling was made in a 10-pointed star, with very ornate Arabesque design all over the star. The design is almost non-traditional in Islamic art sort of way, perhaps it looks more like a design found in Malay art, or maybe it looks strange because it is more suitable for the inside of a dome…or perhaps because of the lack of colour? The design itself is not on the ceiling, but protrudes down forming a rather 3D sculpture.

The ornate ceiling, greeting visitors as they enter the museum. The front counter is modern decorated with Kufic calligraphy. This is where you first enter the museum, and get your tickets and visitor’s map and information pamphlet. There is also a small souvenir kiosk next to the staircase and the workshops, a branch of the much larger souvenir shop on the first floor.

After buying the tickets (which by the way costs RM12 per person…seniors and young children gets half price) for three people ; me and my parents, which summed up to RM36, the counter staff courteously given us instructions as well as an A5 sized pamphlet with a mini-map of the entire museum. The map is colour coded to show different parts and exhibits of the museum. Immediately to the left of the entrance is the souvenir kiosk and workshops as well as toilets, and to the right are lifts. As you enter, you would notice the gentle sound of water lapping – that’s the sound of the fountain upstairs, in the Arabic restaurant (which we never had the chance to go, the prices are okay but luxurious to my parents)

Inverted dome with gilded and mirrored accents on the first floor

Taking the lift up to the first floor (not sure if there is a staircase up to the floor) another surprise awaits us in the form of inverted dome. It was huge and like the ten pointed star in the ground floor, decorated with Arabesques. The dome is accentuated by mirrored medallions , outlined in gold.  You can easily see the ornate details of the inverted dome. In my opinion, it could be used as the external decoration of a dome – one can compare the inverted dome with the carved domes of the Mamluke era of Egypt, only this one is more smaller in size in terms of the designs.