A sparkling new exhibition will make its North American debut in Dallas next spring: "Cartier and Islamic Art: In Search of Modernity" will go on view at the Dallas Museum of Art from May 14 through September 18, 2022, following its presentation at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, this fall.
The major exhibition will examine inspirations from Islamic art and design, "including from Louis J. Cartier's (1875-1942) exquisite collection of Persian and Indian art and the work of the designers of the Maison Cartier from the early 20th century to present day," a release says.
The exhibition of 400 objects is co-organized by the Dallas Museum of Art and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, in collaboration with Cartier and the Musée du Louvre.
“For over a century, Cartier and its designers have recognized and celebrated the inherent beauty and symbolic values found in Islamic art and architecture, weaving similar elements into their own designs," says Agustín Arteaga, the DMA’s Eugene McDermott Director, in the release. "This bridging of Eastern and Western art forms speaks exactly to the kinds of cross-cultural connections that the DMA is committed to highlighting through our programming and scholarship."
The display will showcase Cartier jewelry and luxury objects (such as tiaras) alongside historical photographs, design drawings, archival materials, and works of art.
It will explore how Cartier’s designers adapted forms and techniques from Islamic art, architecture, and jewelry, as well as materials from India, Iran, and the Arab lands, "synthesizing them into a recognizable, modern stylistic language unique to the house of Cartier," the museum says.
Renowned studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R), is creating a contemporary display that will offer enhanced opportunities for close looking and analysis of form throughout the exhibition.
“It has been an extraordinary experience working with Cartier’s very astute team and amazing collections and archives, and with our colleagues at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs and the Louvre, to uncover a story about modern design rooted in the active engagement of Cartier’s designers with superb, complex works of art and architecture from the Islamic lands,” says co-organizer Heather Ecker in the release. “Cartier’s jewels and bejeweled objects have an unmistakable style and sense of taste that was cultivated, in part, through this aesthetic appreciation and study of Islamic art.”
For more information about the exhibition, visit the DMA's website.
Bandeau, Cartier Paris, special order, 1923.
Solomon Thomas outside "MJ The Musical" at the Neil Simon Theatre.Photo by Andy Henderson
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