The Madina Collection Of Islamic Art At The Lacma

The Madina Collection of Islamic Art at the LACMA

Introduction

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) announced recently that it had acquired "the remarkable Madina Collection of Islamic art. The collection contains works of various media dating from the late 7th through 19th centuries from the vast areas that comprise the Islamic world, from Southern Spain to Central Asia" (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). While the museum already had quite an extensive collection of Islamic art, this particular exhibit truly adds the collections as a whole.

The Madina Collection of Islamic Art

The first item to be examined is a bowl from the 14th century, from either Egypt or Syria (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). It is ceramic, fritware and is underglazed-painted (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). It is 10 and Ð'Ñ* inches in diameter. The design is very symmetrical and incredibly colorful in its green and cream along with black lines. Without knowing what the design symbolizes one could imagine that it is very much an Islamic design, and appears to be religious or spiritual in content. There is a Mandela presence to the design, with very strong lines and striking elements. http://collectionsonline.lacma.org/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=record&key=8533

The next piece to be examined is cup from the 13th century, from Greater Iran. This cup is "Silver, gilded, chased and punched" and measures "3 7/8 x 4 5/8 in. (9.84 x 11.75 cm)" (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). It is a relatively simple cup, almost seemingly like a cup with very little, if any, base. It is very rounded and almost appears as though it is to be only held, and never set down. There is a design around the rim of the cup. The design is a repetitive design and appears to be an almost universal type design that could be attributed to any culture. It is something of a floral, or leaf design and looks to be gold rather than silver as is the rest of the cup. It is a very balanced and beautifully simple piece. http://collectionsonline.lacma.org/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=record&key=17763

There is a finial from the 14th century Northern Iran, perhaps from Mazanderan (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). This piece is intricately carved from wood and possesses traces of paint (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2005). It measures 14 inches tall and 6 inches in diameter at its widest point. It is wide at its base and tapers off, not completely to a point, at the top. It is a very solid as well as very patterned piece of art, or architecture. Like the previous items discussed or examined, it seems to have a very symmetrical feel to it, as there is not necessarily a picture to be seen, but a repetitive element that is seen throughout the piece, or all around the piece in this case. The carving appears to be