THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FRANCE AND ISLAMIC ARTS
Director of the Department of Islamic Art at the Louvre, to oversee the project. The project takes the form of a series of exhibitions to be held siFrench Prime Minister Jean Castex has called for multaneously in 18 French cities for four months. launching a national project, led by the Ministry of La Réunion is the only overseas location to host Culture, to promote Islamic arts, in order to raise one such exhibition of “Arts of Islam… a Past for awareness about the history of multi-cultural Is- a Present”. lamic civilization, in a governmental move follow- Jean Castex evoked the relationship between France and the arts of Islam saying, “The exhiing the murder of the teacher Samuel Paty. The Prime Minister appointed Yannick Lintz, bition is about the dialogue between cultures that enriched each other throughout more than 13 centuries.” He went on to say, “The Exhibition “Arts of Islam… a Past for a Present” traces back a rich and sophisticated history which brought to us a precious heritage. In the drawings of funerals, lanterns of mosques, or other daily works of art: we are stunned by the impressive diversity of these treasures of the past (whether secular or sacred). Then we discover the intimate ties between our country and these arts of Islam as they enrich our life and culture. What’s prominent is the call for openness to others as a reflection of the permanent mutual fascination between the East and the West. From the arabesque that adorns some of our Cathedrals, to reading (One Thousand and One Nights) and use of some Persian letters, we can see that the dialogue is permanent.”
French PM, “The intimate ties between our country and these arts of Islam enrich our life and culture. What’s prominent is the call for openness as a reflection of the permanent mutual fascination between the East and the West.”
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A QURAN SHEET: Maghreb or Muslim Spain 13th or 14th century (Supplied)