Aga Khan Museum | Proposed | Museum | Downtown [Archive]

Travis007

June 10th, 2005, 05:07 PM

From the Star:

Jun. 9, 2005. 01:00 AM

Ismaili Muslims reaching out
Religious centre, art and heritage museum set for city

The Aga Khan speaks to 70,000 devotees at CNE

HICHAM SAFIEDDINE
STAFF REPORTER

The Ismaili Muslim community plans to build a massive religious and cultural complex in east Toronto in a broader effort to reach out to other Canadians.

Ismailia's revered spiritual and temporal leader yesterday confirmed plans for multi-million-dollar facilities in this city and Ottawa, designed to build bridges of understanding between Muslims and other groups in this country.

The Aga Khan told the Toronto Star that his religious sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, will construct an Islamic art and heritage museum as well as a centre of worship on a site of almost seven hectares on Wynford Dr. near Eglinton Ave. and the Don Valley Parkway. It is expected to cost upwards of $200 million.

During a stop in Toronto on his trip to Canada this week, the Aga Khan also revealed plans for two centres in the nation's capital. A building on Sussex Dr. will house the Delegation of the Imamat, a body representing the Aga Kahn. The facility will provide information about the community's work, and house public events and educational programs.

Plans are also underway for a Global Centre for Pluralism designed to facilitate discussions about policies in place in Canada in the hope that countries in the developing world could adopt our philosophies in areas such as health, education and laws.

"Of all the modern industrialized societies, Canada is by far the most effective and by far the most successful in its pluralism, and therefore there was something very serious to learn from Canada and to try and move ... it into parts of the developing world," the Aga Khan said.

He said much of the work of the institutions will be in close collaboration with the Canadian International Development Agency and leading academic institutions in Canada.

The Aga Khan hopes Canada will help with development programs in the Muslim world.

The beloved leader was presented the insignia of Companion of the Order of Canada earlier this week for devoting his life to philanthropy.

He addressed an estimated 70,000 Ismailis who flocked from across North America yesterday to the Canadian National Exhibition for morning and afternoon sermons.

Many people who didn't get a chance to attend the service wept with joy as they caught a glimpse of the Aga Khan leaving the CNE grounds in his four-limousine motorcade.

"This is a very important event for Ismailis," said Wilma Jiwani, whose husband and three children travelled from Georgia.

"He is like what the Pope would be to Catholics," she added.

Jawed Ayam, 15, who came with his family from Whitby and was present at the sermon, said the imam is a source of inspiration for him.

"The talk was all about knowledge and how to seek knowledge, and it was very important to be here."

416

June 10th, 2005, 05:39 PM

"will construct an Islamic art and heritage museum as well as a centre of worship on a site of almost seven hectares on Wynford Dr. near Eglinton Ave. and the Don Valley Parkway."

WTF? I had no idea there was even 7 hectares available in that area! Great news though.

samsonyuen

June 11th, 2005, 12:07 PM

What's the timeframe of construction, design, etc.?

TORONTOCOPENHAGEN

June 11th, 2005, 03:05 PM

Now, I'm not a permanent Toronto-resident, but I cannot see how this in will change the demography of the city. I think that it is great, that minorities and majorities have a place, where they can excercise their religion.

Thumbs up!

valantino

June 11th, 2005, 05:42 PM

"WTF? I had no idea there was even 7 hectares available in that area! Great news though."

It's on the huge site of the old Bata headquarters (would be cool if this building was somehow retained)

Byron

June 11th, 2005, 06:12 PM

Hmm, is this project going to get off the ground this time? Last time there was an article on this was in October 2002.

http://www.akdn.org/news/toronto_101002.html

partybits

June 11th, 2005, 07:02 PM

Anyways, back to the topic of the thread. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this will look like. Hopefully they can have a mix of Western-Muslim architecture styles. If they make a very large Mosque in the middle, it would really stand out and could potentially look very attractive.
Other than that, I'll hold my thoughts until I see some pics

June 12th, 2005, 09:56 PM

As for the project...great news...but I don't care much for the location.

I hope it can result in some better development in the area.

Lucky 24

June 12th, 2005, 11:14 PM

This thread is getting way off topic. All posts regarding the racist behaviour will be deleted because 1) The material can easily offend someone 2) This is a thread regarding new development and I wouldn't want to delete the whole thing 3) This thread isn't to argue the issues of immigration in Toronto. The person who started this incident has been sent a warning. Once again, messages with racist undertones is not welcome on this forum. I will give this forumer the benefit of the doubt that he isn't a racist, but if it occurs again, there will be discipline. Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world...if you can't handle it's changing demographics, then you shouldn't be living here or conversing in an urban Toronto forum.

Are Be

June 12th, 2005, 11:43 PM

Oh, me so solly. Fank you fo let me in yo country. Fogiverness please. Me welfare person who look for country like Canada that take in peopo from countree that dumb for overpopulation. So solly Regan. You Knoh my peepo so well. Thank for explain to me cause me don't know nothing cause me visibo minoritee.

That's funny! :lol: :hahaha:
OK, something completely different:
1, Toronto - like many, many other cities - is culturally diverse (I'm tired of the myth that Toronto is somehow unique in being culturally diverse: see New York, London, and any city in the Western World with over 2 million people in it. I've never been to Cleveland, but I bet they have a China Town too, so let's stop going on and on about our diversity. It's fantastic, to be certain. And for a city of its size, Toronto is very diverse. But if you think that is unique to Toronto, you should travel more.)

2, Toronto is culturally diverse, and you have to handle that fact, or not live here. If you cannot handle crowds, don't; go to Tokyo. If you can't handle ethnic diversity, then don't come to Toronto. You have to, at the very least, 'deal' with it.

3, . It's 'live and let live'.' Some ethnic group wants to close down part of a major street for a weekend and do their thing, and have food, ethnic dancing and singing, etc., then wonderful! Great! You're welcome to come if you so please. And you're welcome to not come- as you see fit.

4. Toronto is not about ACCEPTING diversity, it's about TOLERATING it. How many blacks have you seen working in an Italian bakery? How many Indians have you seen working in a Rotti house? Are Italians being racist for employing only Italians... well.. sort of, and sort of not. So what? The point is that the Italians allow the Jamaicans to run their own business, etc. Are Jamaicans happy seeing Rotti to Greeks? No doubt. Do Greeks mind selling lamb to Poles? No... Toronto is full of ethnic enclaves, where people from one predominate ethnic group control the area to the exclusion of others. Is this a bad thing? Not at all. Is it racist? Maybe. Is it evidence of ethnic tolerance or ethnic acceptance? I its clear evidence of ethnic TOLERANCE, not ACCEPTANCE. If there was true acceptance, there would be more Jamaicans serving schnitzel.

Regan4000

June 13th, 2005, 12:18 AM

isn't that same speech from South Park's "Death Camp of Tolerance"?

partybits

June 13th, 2005, 01:47 AM

3, . It's 'live and let live'.' Some ethnic group wants to close down part of a major street for a weekend and do their thing, and have food, ethnic dancing and singing, etc., then wonderful! Great! You're welcome to come if you so please. And you're welcome to not come- as you see fit.

Very good points Are Be
One thing I hate though is how they never advertise these events. There was a Portuguese Week Party at Trinity/Bellwoods park this week. If I had'nt cut through the park I would've never known. Toronto should do a better job promoting ALL our ethnic events, not just the big ones (Caribana, Taste of the Danforth, etc).

Sorry Luck24, just had to sneak that part in!

Anyways, is there any timetable for when renderings for the museum will be available, when construction will start, and will it will be completed?

June 15th, 2005, 10:06 PM

That's funny! :lol: :hahaha:
OK, something completely different:
1, Toronto - like many, many other cities - is culturally diverse (I'm tired of the myth that Toronto is somehow unique in being culturally diverse: see New York, London, and any city in the Western World with over 2 million people in it. I've never been to Cleveland, but I bet they have a China Town too, so let's stop going on and on about our diversity. It's fantastic, to be certain. And for a city of its size, Toronto is very diverse. But if you think that is unique to Toronto, you should travel more.)

4. Toronto is not about ACCEPTING diversity, it's about TOLERATING it. How many blacks have you seen working in an Italian bakery? How many Indians have you seen working in a Rotti house? Are Italians being racist for employing only Italians... well.. sort of, and sort of not. So what? The point is that the Italians allow the Jamaicans to run their own business, etc. Are Jamaicans happy seeing Rotti to Greeks? No doubt. Do Greeks mind selling lamb to Poles? No... Toronto is full of ethnic enclaves, where people from one predominate ethnic group control the area to the exclusion of others. Is this a bad thing? Not at all. Is it racist? Maybe. Is it evidence of ethnic tolerance or ethnic acceptance? I its clear evidence of ethnic TOLERANCE, not ACCEPTANCE. If there was true acceptance, there would be more Jamaicans serving schnitzel.

Those are some bizzare examples. Toronto is very much about accepting diversity - sure, there are some negative elements, but overall, the city is a very accepting place.

In any case, I've seen all kinds of people working at all kinds of restaurants...Im not sure which Toronto you're living in.

You also seem to forget...there is a difference between just having a lot of different ethnic groups and accepting diversity. The latter describes Toronto.

June 15th, 2005, 10:07 PM

Buster

June 16th, 2005, 03:07 AM

Well, the city isn't responsible, really, for promoting these events to us...the event organizers are. I think for most events, the city promotes as much as it is their responsibility too.

I hope a rendering for this comes out soon...it's been talked about for a long time now.

Funny you should mention this. The promoters for this year's Brazillian festival were advertising primarily along Dundas West. I'm sure that no one outside of the community would have heard about this.

They're finally trying to expand to the greater community. Thank god! We could use a little more Brazilian flair in Toronto!

June 16th, 2005, 05:41 AM

Funny you should mention this. The promoters for this year's Brazillian festival were advertising primarily along Dundas West. I'm sure that no one outside of the community would have heard about this.

They're finally trying to expand to the greater community. Thank god! We could use a little more Brazilian flair in Toronto!

Exactly...a lot of these events don't promote themselves in the best way or make the most efficient use of their promotional budget...thus, they don't grow as fast as some other events.

Taste of the Danforth did a good job in that respect...they quickly grew into one of the larger festivals in the city.

walli

September 26th, 2005, 03:16 AM

Hmm, is this project going to get off the ground this time? Last time there was an article on this was in October 2002.

It's a complex project which changed half way. Initially, it was just the land at DVP and Eglinton, and the Museum part came in play only after acquiring the Bata building and land. The two lots together form a large piece of land. Recently, some folks put a wrench in the project as they wanted to make the 40 year old Bata building a heritage site, however, that was voted down at the North York Community Council meeting last week. I believe the designs, by world renouned architects Fumihiko Maki and Charles Correa, are almost ready. I'm hearing construction from 2006 to 2009.

algonquin

September 26th, 2005, 04:55 AM

I am so torn apart by this.... between my approval of multiculturalism and my dissaproval of religion in general.

That was just a personal insight... I'm delighted by such a project. Go Toronto!

iownyou14

September 26th, 2005, 10:51 PM

I have the renderings in my hands RIGHT NOW. I need to get my scanner working and when i do, ill post it.

walli

September 29th, 2005, 07:23 PM

Still waiting for the renderings from iownyou14, however, both the Globe and the Star reported approval for the Aga Khan project at yesterday's council meeting.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050929/COUNCIL29/TPNational/?query=Aga+Khan
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&call_pageid=971358637177&c=Article&cid=1127944212155&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes

iownyou14

September 29th, 2005, 11:14 PM

addisonwesley

September 29th, 2005, 11:19 PM

valantino

September 29th, 2005, 11:43 PM

red x's

walli

September 30th, 2005, 12:36 AM

Is there a strong Muslim population in Toronto? I thought that something like this would work out better in Brampton (minus the museum, I think that would get quite a bit of attention from non-muslims).

It's the Shia Imami Ismaili Community [its complex, but just as there are many groupings in Christianity, there is a similar plurality within the 1.4 B Muslims] and about 50% of their Toronto population is located within a few kilometers of this location. In fact they have several offices and other buildings in the region also, though most are not purpose built.

iownyou14

September 30th, 2005, 12:41 AM

Should be working now.

Metroland

September 30th, 2005, 12:55 AM

It's nice. Although I'd prefer a more traditional structure with a bold Ismaili theme.

BTW does anyone have any shots of the beautiful existing mosques around the GTA (like Ahmadiyya? in Vaughn)???

walli

September 30th, 2005, 12:56 AM

Alright, here you go. I dont want to pass these pics around too much. These are pictures of the Spiritual Centre, not the Museum.

http://img298.imageshack.us/img298/2888/akmuseum13yk.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img298.imageshack.us/img298/3967/akmuseum26ic.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Sorry for the quality.

Excerpt from the Globe and Mail ...
http://www.pressdisplay.com/pressdisplay/showlink.aspx?bookmarkid=N756VPYTJJF

"At the Don Valley Parkway and Eglinton Avenue East on Wynford Drive,
the Bata headquarters occupies the highest and most desirable part of
the property in suburban Don Mills - acreage the Aga Khan purchased
from the Batas in 2002. Parkin picked it right for his
shoe-manufacturing clients. And, 40 years later in what is a
dramatically different, pluralistic Toronto, Correa has picked it
right for his: the Ismailis, a community-in-exile that fled to Toronto
from eastern Africa. About 35,000 Ismailis now live in Toronto, with
another 50,000 spread across Canada.

Most of the 90,000-square-foot Ismaili Centre is designed to be modest
in scale with the building's social spaces, library and meeting hall
broken down like two-storey houses in a village. The Jamatkhana, or
prayer hall, is designed to rise 20 meters <that's 66 feet for our US
friends>. Its roof is to be constructed of two layers of frosted
glass with varying transparency, an expansive and poetic proposition
that, lit up, might make travelling the expressway a little more
bearable at night."

iownyou14

September 30th, 2005, 01:00 AM

Im trying to get some renderings of the Museum now. It will be accross the Spirtual Centre (garden in the middle).

walli

September 30th, 2005, 01:17 AM

It's nice. Although I'd prefer a more traditional structure with a bold Ismaili theme.

Don't have pictures of other Muslim centres in Toronto, however, here are interesting pictures and discussions of other Ismaili Centres. You'll find that they are all quite diverse.

Burnaby [several thumbs]:
- http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=5387
- sample picture
http://archnet.org/mediadownloader/LibraryImagesBig/image/38740/0/IAA15864.jpg
http://archnet.org/mediadownloader/LibraryImagesBig/image/38748/0/IAA15872.jpg

London [several thumbs]:
[this one is intersting as it's along museum row - directly across the Victoria & Albert. One of it's two gardens is on the roof]
- http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=5388
- http://www.christopherlong.co.uk/pri.ismaili.html
- sample pictures
http://archnet.org/mediadownloader/LibraryImagesBig/image/38754/0/IAA15878.jpg
http://archnet.org/mediadownloader/LibraryImagesBig/image/38765/0/IAA15889.jpg

Lisbon:
- http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3575/is_1273_213/ai_99215195

Metroland

September 30th, 2005, 01:55 AM

It's nice. Although I'd prefer a more traditional structure with a bold Ismaili theme.

BTW does anyone have any shots of the beautiful existing mosques around the GTA (like Ahmadiyya? in Vaughn)???

replying to my own.....
GTA mosques.. all I could find.
http://libraries.mit.edu/guides/subjects/islamicarchitecture/visual/images/102.jpg
http://www2.alislam.org/gallery/watermark.php?image_file=/mosques/aad.sized.jpg
http://www.gawaher.com/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=492
http://info.uah.edu/msa/pics/islamfou.jpg

iownyou14

September 30th, 2005, 02:17 AM

Ismili Mosques are different than usual mosques.

Metroland

September 30th, 2005, 02:23 AM

Yeah, but I very much like the above masjids.

walli

September 30th, 2005, 05:49 PM

Masjid architecture has not been stagnant, though for large swats of time it may have seemed so. An example is the fact that the first Masjids did not have minarets. Just look at the Al-Aqsa Mosque (691) which appears in the news now and then. Though there are some people who point to North Africa, many believe the first minaret was actually a bell tower from a converted church in Damascus around 715. The folks who used to call for prayer from the roof-tops and going up and down streets figured, hey, this tower could be useful.

The fact that a building from 1300 years ago may not have had heating doesn't mean we don't have it now ... and beyond that, there is no "lock" on asthetics and creativity. The fact that a minaret existed in a building from 1000 years ago may not be as relavant today, as there isn't a need [or a want] for some guy to call for prayer from a loud speaker in Toronto.

Another example is the contemporary Mosque of the Grand National Assembly in Ankara, Turkey. Built into the side of a hill, its qibla wall [IE the direction the folks attending the mosque face during prayer] is made of glass, and opens to the garden. Quite a change from prior structures, and inspirational.

Mosque of the Grand National Assembly, Ankara, Turkey
http://www.akdn.org/agency/akaa/sixthcycle/turkey1.html

walli

May 9th, 2006, 01:53 AM

I had been made to understand that design details would be prepared in the first half of 2006, and then go back to council for review prior to the Bata building being taken down. Wondering if anyone has more recent news, IE date of the review, etcetera.

Also - I've received more recent news that there is a third premier architect assigned for the broader project. Fumihiko Maki is the architect for the Aga Khan Museum, Charles Correa is the architect for the Ismaili Centre, and there is a Lebanese architect for the public park - not sure of the name yet. Previously, one of the people posting on this thread suggested it was only one prime architect with a couple helpers - that's not the case, as this project is working like the WTC site - where different architects are given pieces to prime (Maki being one of them for the WTC project).

Bertez

May 9th, 2006, 03:04 AM

200 mill eh, seems like a whole lot.......

walli

May 9th, 2006, 05:13 AM

^^ All private too ...

Taller, Better

May 9th, 2006, 07:56 AM

Man, I wish this baby had gone in downtown somewhere.

walli

July 27th, 2006, 09:31 PM

Have just learned who the third architect is ...

First we had the famous Maki of Japan (for the Museum). Then with had the famous Correa of India (Ismaili Centre). Now I've just learned that we have the famous Djurovic of Lebanon (for the public gardens). You might be wondering about Djurovic's name ... turns out his father is from Serbia.

Quite the cultural mix we have there!!

Djurovic gives an interview in this month's Interior Design:
http://www.interiordesign.net/id_article/CA6355730/id

Taller, Better

July 28th, 2006, 01:59 AM

It is a pretty exciting project.. but still wish it were going downtown and that they didn't have to demolish the old Bata Shoe headquarters. However, I am dying to see good renderings.

p5archit

July 28th, 2006, 03:09 AM

walli

July 28th, 2006, 07:01 PM

Considering that this is a privately funded project, i find it odd that it is taking so long for anything to get rolling. I mean, yes the project is probably quite large in scope, but besides those few grainy renderings published by the Globe, we have almost nothing to go on. No model pictures, no renderings or even sketches..?

The same goes for the aga kahn building in Ottawa on Sussex Drive - nothing circulating about this either...

p5

With respect to the Ottawa building - there is a virtual reality tour of the building - I posted a link on SSP in the ottawa thread. There has been a model on that for a long time (and was present in 2005 when the Governor General conducted the sod turning ceremony). That building is well under contruction.

With respect to this building, it is very complex as you've noted. The designs have gone back and forth numerous times (internally from what I understand - not with city). Keep in mind also that the design houses are all of significant standing and internationally distributed. It has got to be tricky. The other part is, much of the coordination of the project is being conducted by a volunteer team.

You'll find many of the 'Aga Khan' projects take a long time, but in the end are very well thought out and generally worth the wait. The Al-Azhar Park project in Cairo is one such example. Massive positive impact to the surrounding areas ... it is now the second most popular tourist spot in Egypt (after the pyramids)!

The relatively smaller Ismaili centre in Burnaby, BC is spectacular. If anyone ever goes to Vancouver and is interested in fine architecture, I highly recommend a visit.

p5archit

July 28th, 2006, 10:17 PM

^^^thanks walli!

I had no idea that the project in Ottawa had actually commenced construction- that is great news. I can wait for this project-especially considering it is being pulled together by volunteers- i was just curious to see a little more information, in the form of drawings and renderings etc.

p5

Taller, Better

July 28th, 2006, 10:29 PM

I think we are damned lucky to get this project. And all because his first choice, London, made it very difficult for him to build it there so he finally gave up and started planning it for Toronto. Their loss = our gain.

Martinsizon

July 29th, 2006, 12:53 AM

Got a question. where is it going to be located, and when is the earliest you think it will start construction?

p5archit

July 31st, 2006, 09:38 PM

The museum will be built along the 404 at Eglinton Ave East. If you are familiar with the location of the present Bata Shoe building, which is located on top of the groomed grass hill, then you know where it will be built..

p5

Martinsizon

August 1st, 2006, 02:08 AM

Somewhat close to the Onatario Science Centre

p5archit

August 1st, 2006, 06:06 AM

yup, exactly!

walli

September 13th, 2006, 07:38 PM

I had no idea that the project in Ottawa had actually commenced construction- that is great news.

The interesting thing about the Ottawa building is that it is in the midst of several 'Muslim' country embassies - Saudi, Kuwait, Malaysian, and the recently topped off UAE embassies ... so it will create an interesting area.

The museum will be built along the 404 at Eglinton Ave East. If you are familiar with the location of the present Bata Shoe building, which is located on top of the groomed grass hill, then you know where it will be built.

Right. The entire parcel is something like 17 acres, as it includes the undeveloped lot along DVP with the row of large trees as well as the entire Bata site including the aged parkinglot and undeveloped field along its North. As p5 indicated, the Museum (Maki - Japanese architect) will be along the DVP side. On the Bata side will be the Ismaili Centre (Correa - Indian architect) and between the two, covering a majority of the site, will be a public garden (Djurovic - Lebanese architect). Parking will be underground, including under the garden.

walli

November 15th, 2006, 02:12 AM

The interesting thing about the Ottawa building is that it is in the midst of several 'Muslim' country embassies - Saudi, Kuwait, Malaysian, and the recently topped off UAE embassies ... so it will create an interesting area.

Haven't had any news on the Toronto projects for a while, IE the museum, public gardens and the cultural centre ... anyone else have more news on those?

I sent a note to the architectural firm that is doing the gardens, asking if any renderings were available. They said their site will be update in January.

I recall hearing that the project team is supposed to present detailed designs to city council, however, that might have gotten delayed with the elections.

The Aga Khan was in Ottawa a couple weeks ago at the invitation of the Prime Minister. During that visit he probably engaged the project team(s) in discussions / progress on the Toronto projects also.

Tangential item ... update on the two Ottawa projects (and keep in mind that all of the 'Aga Khan' Canadian projects are being managed in a somewhat inter-woven pattern)

The Aga Khan's The Global Centre for Pluralism will not be a brand new building, but instead will be housed in the old archives of the dominion building (old war museum, between the national art gallery and the royal canadian mint, on sussex drive). It is a heritage building, and the Aga Khan will be investing $20M just to rehabilitate it. [he'll be adding a further $10M for the endowment, and the government is matching the total $30M with another $30M, also towards the endowment].

With respect to the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat (also on Sussex drive, next to foreign affairs / Lester B Pearson building), that is supposedly well on it's way to completion ... formal opening in spring I would think!

urban 2.0

November 15th, 2006, 04:47 AM

Please clarify, what exactly are we going to see in this museum?

Do you go there for a picnic? Sunday with the family?

Thanks.

walli

November 15th, 2006, 05:53 AM

Please clarify, what exactly are we going to see in this museum?

Do you go there for a picnic? Sunday with the family?

Thanks.

I'd suggest a review of the thread. In addition, the following may help ...

Press release:
http://www.akdn.org/news/toronto_101002.html

specifically:
"The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) today announced its intention to establish in Toronto a museum housing exceptional collections of Islamic art and heritage as well as a unique academic and cultural center focused on the study and practice of human pluralism.

The museum, which will be the first of its kind in the English speaking world, is expected to include artefacts from renowned private collections including those of His Highness the Aga Khan and of the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London. Prince Sadruddin and Princess Catherine Aga Khan have also expressed a desire for their collection to be part of the museum. The museum will be dedicated to the acquisition, preservation, display and interpretation of artefacts relating to the intellectual, cultural, artistic and religious traditions of Muslim communities, past and present. Artefacts will include ceramics, metalwork and paintings covering all periods of Islamic history. Manuscripts in the collection will include the earliest one extant of Avicenna’s Qanun fi’l Tibb (The Canon of Medicine) dated 1052. "

Of the above two, the global centre for pluralism was moved to ottawa, and I mentioned above that it will be in the former war museum building, the second 'Aga Khan' building along confederation blvd on sussex drive.

It is also important to note that this museum, of international standing, is 100% funded by the Aga Khan and his institutions (including the land).

aktc museums project:
http://www.akdn.org/agency/aktc_museum.html

There are also several documents on the city of toronto web-site.

Here are some excerpts from articles that have appeared on the subject:

-----
The Ismaili centre and the museum will be a monument to a history
older than modernism. In doing so, it will add something to the North
York fabric that civic leaders old and new have always found elusive:
a meaningful celebration of the rich - and ancient - cultures of those
who live here.

It will also provide parks, culture and amenities to another group of
modernism's victims - the families and children who are living in
Flemingdon Park.
http://www.insidetoronto.ca/to/opinion/column/story/3045777p-3532317c.html
-----

Jenkins (Ward 25, Don Valley West) spoke glowingly of the group's plans.

"It will truly be a jewel in Toronto's cap," he said. "It is an
extraordinary development that will put Toronto on the map and we very
much appreciate the Aga Khan Foundation identifying Toronto as an
appropriate site for this investment."
Sep. 29, 2005. 01:00 AM
City removes obstacle for Aga Khan centre
PAUL MOLONEY
CITY HALL BUREAU
-----

"In the interest of the whole city, the cultural centre should be
built," Bata said. "It is an honour Toronto was chosen for the project
and this opportunity should not be passed up. It would be most
unfortunate and a great loss to Toronto if this marvelous project does
not go ahead."

Former Toronto mayor Barbara Hall also threw her support behind the
Aga Khan project, adding she was excited about the proposal for the
Don Mills community.

"This community wants to make a contribution to Toronto," she said.
"It is world class in the real meaning of those words. Don't put
barriers and roadblocks in the way of this proposal."
http://www.insidetoronto.ca/to/northy/story/3045815p-3532245c.html
-----

"Correa's client, the Aga Khan, is without parallel in the Western
world for his dedication to rebuilding communities through healthcare,
education, business and architecture. His pledge of $200 million for
the Ismaili Centre by Correa and the Aga Khan museum, to be designed
by acclaimed Japanese modernist Fumihiko Maki, provides an exceptional
model of arts patronage for the city.'
Sept 22, 2005 Globe and Mail
-----

Taller, Better

November 15th, 2006, 07:55 AM

go there for a picnic?

KGB

November 17th, 2006, 09:08 AM

ScrapeTheSky

November 17th, 2006, 09:23 AM

I hardly see it as imposing itself on society. If it's a nice building, then its a nice building. If it's a drab one, it's a drab one. If it provides a point of interest in the city, then so much the better. This particular one I probably won't be visiting, I must admit. In fact, I don't think there are any churches really worth visiting in this city. Maybe in Europe.

KGB

November 17th, 2006, 09:37 AM

I hardly see it as imposing itself on society.

Well, that's what religions do...recruit and try to improve their influence on society. When I said impose, I also meant in subtle ways. This project is to support a specific religious movement...Toronto was picked because of problems elsewhere, and using Toronto's "pluralism" as a PR slant is just that. Ironic, in that I have never run across a religious movement that is actually pluralistic...they are generally the opposite.

I don't think there are any churches really worth visiting in this city. Maybe in Europe.

Oh, from a purely architectural point of view, there are many fine churches in Toronto to visit (and I do it often). The architectural details, the workmanship, the stained glass, the bells, the art, etc are all as good as can be found anywhere.

It's only a problem when you bring in the whole god/jesus/mohamad/nike running shoes aspect of it. LOL

On another level, I actually enjoy watching everyone running around with all their very different views on religion...makes it interesting when I don't think about it too much. It's all good I guess...especially here. In other parts of the world it aint so wonderful.

KGB

November 17th, 2006, 04:53 PM

This isn't just some religious establishment. The new collections will be welcome and I look forward to seeing them.

walli

November 17th, 2006, 07:00 PM

Sorry, but I generally can't get excited about or get behind any kind of organized religious facility...and at the end of the day, this is all it is...organized religion imposing itself on society. Reminds me too much of those tv evangilists who used to try and "raise" funds to build jesus theme parks or some shit.

The Aga Khan Museum is not a religious facility, and it is absolutely not organized religion imposing itself on society. Also, all the funds have already been committed, and they are not being requested of you, the public, or any level of government.

The ignorance in society is at unbelievable levels (even on this thread) and as such, this type of international caliber project is most welcome!

This will be Pritzker prize winning Fumahiko Maki's second building in Canada.

For you not to get excited is your prerogative, but at least understand the facts first!

Here are some comments from a prior City of Toronto report:

---
Plans for the design of the project are still preliminary. Discussions with the architect indicate the museum alone will be approximately 200,000 square feet, and will be of world wide prominence. The museum’s collection is to include ceramics, metalwork and paintings from all periods of Islamic history. The collection of manuscripts is to include the earliest one extant of the Avicenna’s Qanun fi’l Tibb (The Canon of Medicine) dated 1052.

Discussions are underway concerning the educational centre, which is collaboration between the AKDN and the Government of Canada focusing on human pluralism. The AKDN has longstanding relationships with the University of Toronto, McMaster University, McGill University, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prime Minister Chrétien and senior government ministers are understood to have been involved in discussions
concerning this initiative.

The AKDN is an umbrella organization that operates numerous agencies in the fields of health, education, culture and rural economic development. These agencies, which include the Aga Khan Foundation, Aga Khan Education Services, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, Aga Khan University and the Aga Khan fund for Economic Development, operate primarily in Asia and Africa.

<...>

The AKDN proposal would appear to be a major acquisition for the City of Toronto, and demonstrates that the world recognizes Toronto’s longstanding tradition of tolerance. It further adds to Toronto’s appeal as a vibrant international city capable of competing for prominent business, research and cultural attractions. This announcement made world coverage in many major newspapers increasing Toronto’s world wide profile.

http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/2003/agendas/council/cc030204/edp2rpt/cl001.pdf

-----

Taller, Better

November 17th, 2006, 10:23 PM

This project is most welcome. I am very excited to see the artifacts when it is open. This is the type of investment we need more of in Toronto.... I hope he invests more here, and in different ways.

thryve

November 18th, 2006, 12:08 AM

Well, to quell fears of ignorance in this thread, I am going to state that although I'm a Christian (to use a label that can mean alot of things these days), I am really glad we're getting this!

Should be really interesting, and I am definitely going to check it out... sorry when did they say it's being constructed/completed, again?

-thryve

walli

November 18th, 2006, 01:17 AM

Should be really interesting, and I am definitely going to check it out... sorry when did they say it's being constructed/completed, again?

Timeline has not been made public, but people have noted that the Aga Khan will have his 'Golden Jubilee' from July 11th 2007 to July 11th 2008, and as such, speculation has it that the ground breaking would be within that period of time. Not sure how long construction would take.

Projects related to his 'Silver Jubilee' (1982/3) included the Aga Khan University (which now has ten teaching centres / campuses, distributed over seven countries on three continents), among other significant projects.

camel_trainer

November 20th, 2006, 08:43 PM

Ironic, in that I have never run across a religious movement that is actually pluralistic...they are generally the opposite.

KGB

Actually, the rapid rise of the Ottoman Empire is attributed in large part to the pluralistic nature of Islam. There was generally no attempt to convert those conquered. Ottoman rulers were very tolerant of other cultures and faiths. In the West, we tend to think everyone approaches religion the way Christianity does. In fact, that's often not true.

walli

November 20th, 2006, 09:06 PM

Actually, the rapid rise of the Ottoman Empire is attributed in large part to the pluralistic nature of Islam. There was generally no attempt to convert those conquered. Ottoman rulers were very tolerant of other cultures and faiths. In the West, we tend to think everyone approaches religion the way Christianity does. In fact, that's often not true.

Same goes for the Fatimid Empire, led by the forefathers of the Aga Khan, who in their time, founded the city of Cairo (969AD). Sevearl leading positions in the government were given to Jews and Christians - the equivalent of the finance minister, was a Jewish fellow for a long period. This is well documented in Jewish history.

Relating to this sub-topic of pluralism (in context of the Aga Khan's global centre for pluralism in Ottawa - www.pluralism.ca), a recent speech by Chancellor Cantor of Syracuse University is most interesting:

http://www.syr.edu/chancellor/speeches/faradaySpeech.pdf

Now - I'd suggest we leave this side discussion alone for now ... I'm waiting for more renderings / details!

BTW - the Canon of Medicine is also an item of great importance to the Western history of medicine. I'm very excited that the oldest copy of it will be housed at this museum in Canada!

Details can be found at - United States National Library of Medicine
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/arabic/E8.html

and there always is wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Canon_of_Medicine

Taller, Better

November 21st, 2006, 01:24 AM

InTheBeach

November 21st, 2006, 05:30 AM

I am MOST interested to see the priceless artifacts this museum brings to our city. London gave him so much attitude about it that he decided to build it here. London's loss = Toronto's gain. How sad for them. My only regret is that he did not build it right downtown.

That is an interesting point. Somewhere more central would have been great.

However, the current location could use a boost, so this is a positive injection for sure.

Taller, Better

November 21st, 2006, 06:42 AM

I can think of a few gem locations downtown, but I believe he wanted it to be closer to the actual community.

walli

May 2nd, 2007, 06:58 PM

A portion of the to-be-built Aga Khan Museum's permanent collection is currently on tour in Europe. It opened in Parma, Italy some weeks ago and will be there till June. It will then be traveling to London and other European centres, prior to landing at the Toronto permanent home.

Italy exhibit press release (includes a link to some pictures):
http://www.akdn.org/news/2007march30_Parma.html

Exhibit web-site (in Italian):
http://www.splendoriacorte.org/

It is interesting to note that along with the exhibit is a lecture and public engagement series, and a number of musical performances from various parts of the world. Somewhat of a cultural extravaganza!

Lastly, the press release states construction of the Toronto structure is to be complete in 2010.

p5archit

May 6th, 2007, 04:57 AM

walli

May 6th, 2007, 05:27 AM

Construction to be complete by 2010? There haven't even been any preliminary plans completed-not to mention, Charles Corea's projects tend to take a long time and undergo numerous changes during the design process.

p5

ALL of the plans are completed at this point - they just are not public. You are right that Charles Correa projects take a long time and undergo numerous changes. His portion of the design started in 2000, IE seven years ago, and indeed went through a ton of changes. Interestingly, of the three international calibre architects, Correa was done his portion first.

walli

May 6th, 2007, 05:39 AM

^^ one more thing to point out. Correa is NOT working on the Museum part of the project - that would be Fumihiko Maki. It is the museum that the prior document mentioned would be ready in 2010. Though I'd suspect that they would want all parts of this broader project completed together, it is possible that the different pieces finish at different times.

Epi

May 6th, 2007, 06:20 AM

Can't wait for this project to be completed, should be a real jem. One of my best friends is Ismali, they seem like a very tolerant people. There's a big community in Toronto as well, so it makes sense for it to be here if not London.

Taller, Better

May 6th, 2007, 06:35 AM

I heard that he felt London was making it difficult for him to locate the museum in the city, so he warned them if they didn't want it, he would build elsewhere. London's loss=Toronto's gain.

kettal

May 6th, 2007, 09:17 AM

A seven hectare museum? That's massive.

walli

June 21st, 2007, 02:32 AM

I believe this exhibition, also containing works that will end up in the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, will open July 12th in London, England. Note that the pieces are different than the ones shown recently in Italy ... so this is unveiling of a second complimentary / additional component of the collection. The highlights listed in the article appear to be absolutely world class!

-----
http://www.artdaily.com/section/news/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=20649

Unseen Masterpieces of Islamic Art Revealed

LONDON, UK.-Spirit & Life, an exhibition of rare Islamic art and manuscripts never before displayed in the UK, will run this summer at The Ismaili Centre, South Kensington, London. Highlights will include miniatures from one of the finest illustrated manuscripts ever produced, the Persian epic Shahnama (The Book of Kings) and an extremely rare copy of the Canon of Medicine of Ibn Sina, used in Europe and the Middle East as the standard medical textbook for over 500 years.

Organised by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, Spirit & Life will present treasures from the permanent collection of the Aga Khan Museum, which will open in Toronto, Canada, in 2010. The museum is an initiative of His Highness the Aga Khan, (Spiritual Leader) of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, who intends the museum to be a centre of education and learning dedicated to the presentation of Muslim arts and culture in all their historic, cultural and geographical diversity. Surrounded by a large landscaped park, the museum will be housed in a 10,000 square-metre building designed by the Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki. The Aga Khan Museum will offer unique insights and new perspectives into Muslim civilisations.

“This exhibition of artistic masterpieces from the Islamic world underlines that the arts, particularly when they are spiritually inspired, can become a medium of discourse that transcends the barriers of our day-to-day experiences and preoccupations,” said His Highness the Aga Khan. “Many questions are currently being raised in the West about the Muslim world, with countless misconceptions and misunderstandings occurring between our contemporary societies. I hope that this exhibition will hold a special significance at a time which calls for enlightened encounters amongst faiths and cultures.”

The London exhibition will display over 165 objects from the collection showing the diversity of artistic traditions in the Muslim world. Textiles, exquisite miniatures, rare manuscripts, ceramics, precious pages from the Qur’an, scientific medical texts, books of fables, and tiles and musical instruments will be shown alongside some of the finest portraits of Ottoman sultans and Qajar shahs of the 19th century. The exhibition covers a geographical area stretching from India in the East to Morocco in the West and spans over a thousand years from the ninth to the 19th century.

“The political crises of the last few years, and the large numbers of Muslims emigrating to the West, have revealed – often dramatically – the considerable lack of knowledge of the Muslim world in many Western societies,” said Luis Monreal, General Manager of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC). “This ignorance spans all aspects of Islam: its pluralism, the diversity of interpretations within the Qur’anic faith, the chronological and geographical extent of its history and culture, as well as the ethnic, linguistic and social diversity of its peoples. The supposed ‘clash of civilisations’ is in reality nothing more than a manifestation of mutual ignorance.”

Highlights from Spirit & Life include:

An extraordinarily rare and probably the earliest extant manuscript of volume 5 of the Canon of Medicine of Ibn Sina (Avicenna) dated 1052 CE. The Canon is perhaps the single most influential text in the history of medicine. Such was its usefulness that from its origins in the early 11th century in western Iran, it was used all over the Middle East and Europe as the standard medical textbook for a period of five centuries. The Canon formed the basis of medical teaching at European universities until the beginning of modern times.

A folio from the ‘Houghton’ Shahnama, made for the Safavid ruler of Persia, Shah Tahmasp. The manuscript is decorated with 258 miniatures, attributable to almost all of the major Persian artists of the first half of the 16th century and universally acknowledged as not only one of the finest illustrated manuscripts of any period but also among the greatest works of art in the world. The Shahnama or Book of Kings is the Persian national epic by Firdausi, who spent almost 35 years composing the 30,000 couplets, finally completing it in about 1010 CE.

A page from the Blue Qur’an, one of the most extraordinary and most luxurious Qur’an manuscripts ever produced. Created for the Fatimid imam-caliphs ruling North Africa in the early 10th century, it is a wonder of Islamic calligraphy.

A dervish’s begging bowl made in the form of a boat. Such bowls were carried by itinerant dervishes. This refined and beautiful bowl is one of five important Safavid examples from the end of the 16th century and has a wide band of elegant inscriptions in Persian and several bands of floral interlace decoration.

An 11th century bird incense burner. A masterpiece of medieval bronze casting, it was probably made in the Islamic Mediterranean. Metalwork incense burners were made in a variety of shapes including animal forms such as lions and birds and the incense was emitted through the pierce-work decoration of their bodies.

A late 10th or early 11th century lustre jar. Produced in Egypt, the jar appears to be the only surviving example of this type that is intact. The beautiful decoration consists of knotting or braiding cables and foliated kufic calligraphy.

Albarellos (apothecary jar for medicaments) were popular in Syria in the 14th century, and such jars were produced in large quantities both for the home market and for export to Europe, especially Italy. This example has an armorial shield which is an azure on argent variant of the arms of the city of Florence.

A slip-decorated pottery dish decorated with geometry and calligraphy and produced in the eastern Iranian world in the 10th century. The organised polychrome decorative programme consists of a central interlacing strapwork pattern. Colourful abstract motifs are inserted between the vertical letters of the kufic inscription.

Three folios from the Akhlaq-i Nasiri, a philosophical treatise divided into three discourses, dealing with ethics, social justice and politics. Written by Nasir al-Din Tusi, a philosopher, man of letters and one of the great intellects of medieval Iran, the subject-matter of the Akhlaq-i Nasiri did not lend itself to illustration. However, this manuscript was commissioned by the Mughal emperor Akbar in the late 16th century and is uniquely illustrated with 17 full-page miniatures.

One of the most sumptuous and rarest examples of a complete robe from the Mongol period. The cut of the robe is typically Mongol, with its full skirt, its broad wrap-over, and the extremely long sleeves. It is likely that this robe originated in Central Asia in the late 13th or early 14th century.

walli

June 21st, 2007, 02:36 AM

Additional info ... there is now a web-site for this exhibit from the Aga Khan Museum Toronto:
http://www.spiritandlife2007.org/

The web-site for the prior exhibit from the Aga Khan Museum Toronto is:
http://www.splendoriacorte.org/

Taller, Better

June 21st, 2007, 03:39 AM

Walli, thanks for keeping this thread alive every now and then with additional news. I am very interested in it and think we should be thanking our lucky stars
that we got it. Wish the Aga Khan would invest more money in our city....

walli

June 23rd, 2007, 08:23 AM

This is a much better rendering than we had previously. I think this is only a portion of the complex ...

http://www.akdn.org/graphics/uk/ak_museum.jpg

Aga Khan Museum (AKM) (http://www.akdn.org/agency/aktc_museum.html)

Conceived as an educational and cultural entity of international pre-eminence expected to attract scholars and the general public from both sides of the Canadian/United States border, the Museum will be situated in a prime location, close to other important cultural institutions, in the city of Toronto.

It will present and promote knowledge of the diversity and breadth of Islamic art, through permanent and temporary exhibitions, with emphasis on Shia Islam and the Ismaili community in particular. The museum will be dedicated to the acquisition, preservation, display and interpretation of artefacts relating to the intellectual, cultural, artistic and religious traditions of Muslim communities, past and present. Artefacts will include ceramics, metalwork, and paintings covering all periods of Islamic history. Manuscripts in the collection will include the earliest known copy of Avicenna’s Qanun fi’l- Tibb (The Canon of Medicine) dated 1052. It will be the first of its kind in the English-speaking world, and will also include important collections, including those of His Highness the Aga Khan and Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan. Selected items from the collections (http://www.akdn.org/museums/index.html).

A music programme is planned, which will work to expand knowledge of the traditional music of Asia and the Islamic world, as well as their contemporary expression.

The museum will become a repository of historical materials related to the Ismaili community and house research programmes related to each one of the aspects of its institutional mission. It will also provide a space for permanent exchanges between the Islamic and the Western worlds on educational, cultural and socioeconomic issues.

Taller, Better

June 23rd, 2007, 08:59 AM

Very cool.... can't wait til work begins on this.

phunky

June 23rd, 2007, 09:53 AM

I like that white part. It looks like a mountain.

walli

July 13th, 2007, 08:42 PM

Guys - the Aga Khan Museum's "Spirit & Life" exhibition just opened yesterday in London. There were a couple of interesting speeches that also touched on the final site in Toronto for these pieces. I really recommend reading the speeches - Prince Charles' speech really provides us a glimpse of the calibre of these items!

Speech by HH the Aga Khan:
http://www.akdn.org/speeches/2007July12.htm

Speech by HRH the Prince of Wales:
http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speechesandarticles/a_speech_by_hrh_the_prince_of_wales_at_the_opening_of_the_ag_1254785784.html

A few pictures of the opening event:
http://www.akdn.org/news/2007July12_photos.html

Web-site of the specific exhibition:
http://www.akdn.org/museums/index.html

ALSO - there have been a number of articles on this exhibit, and the fact it will be part of the museum in Toronto. Here are just a few:

GLOBE & MAIL (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070711.AGA11/TPStory/Entertainment)

A stunning debut for Toronto-bound Treasures of Islam
Headshot of Elizabeth Renzetti

ELIZABETH RENZETTI
July 11, 2007

LONDON -- On the top floor of the Ismaili Centre in London there is an architect's model for a building that will one day be built across the Atlantic Ocean: the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto.

The museum, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki, combines Eastern influences with concessions to its host country's climate. It's early days yet - with luck, the museum will open in 2011 - but there are constant discussions about what is possible. The museum's walls, which slope gently out from the ground, might be clad in Norwegian marble. "The plan is for the building to glow," says Benoit Junor of the Aga Khan Foundation.

Eastern influences are evident throughout, from the six-sided dome at one end of the roof to the courtyard at the museum's other end. That courtyard may yet be covered, and the shallow rectangular pools that lie within the museum's gardens will be a magnet for visitors in spring, but in the winter? "Maybe they could be skating rinks," Junor says with a smile.

Downstairs, the treasures that will one day fill the museum are about to go on display for the first time in a show called Spirit & Life: Masterpieces of Islamic Art from the Aga Khan Museum Collection. The exhibit is drawn from the Aga Khan's vast holdings, including everything from paintings and textiles to Koranic scripts, calligraphic instruments to ceramic bowls.

The London show will be opened tomorrow by the Aga Khan, one day after he begins the celebration of his Golden Jubilee. The spiritual leader of the world's Ismaili Muslim community, Prince Karim Aga Khan became the 49th imam in 1957.

Amassing treasures for his cultural foundation may have been easier for the Aga Khan than for some - as he points out in the catalogue accompanying Spirit & Life, his family has been collecting for more than 1,000 years (his uncle Prince Sadruddin is a particularly passionate collector of Islamic art). "Many questions are currently being raised in the West about the Muslim world, with countless misconceptions and misunderstandings occurring between our contemporary societies," he writes. The exhibit, he says, is an opportunity for a more enlightened encounter.

Such encounters form a small but important part of Spirit & Life. One of the exhibit's centrepieces is a segment of The Canon of Medicine by Ibn Sina (also known as Avicenna), which was a primary medical text through the Middle East and Europe for 500 years. A painting of Iran's Fath' Ali Shah shows the ruler taking pride of place over ambassadors from European courts, who are decidedly less grand in dress and stature.

There's also a series of exquisite illustrations from the 16th-century Persian Shahnama, or Book of Kings. The manuscript was split apart in the 20th century and about 30 years ago, according to Alnoor Merchant of the Ismaili Centre, the Iranian government traded a Willem de Kooning nude to retrieve some of the drawings.

"The whole scope in Islamic art is represented here," Merchant said, before leading a tour of the exhibit, which is divided into two themes, The Word of God and The Power of the Sovereign. In the first, Koranic texts - from a tiny, almost illegible script on a 21-foot scroll to a striking gold-and-blue fragment of verse - sit next to paintings of Sufi mystics and the tools they used (a dervish's brass begging bowl looks too large for one fellow, who presumably doesn't eat very much, to carry around all day.) The show's second half focuses on the reign of kings and more earthly pursuits, from musical instruments to calligraphic tools to a beautiful lacquered archer's bow painted with scenes from a hunt. In all, there are more than 160 objects in the show, spanning a period of 1,000 years.

After it closes in London at the end of August, the Spirit & Life exhibit will move to the Louvre, and possibly other European destinations, before landing in its permanent home in Toronto's Aga Khan Museum. The 10,000-square-metre museum is slated for a site in Don Mills, northeastern Toronto, on a lot that used to house the headquarters of Bata Shoes. The Toronto site was announced in 2002, after two attempts by the Aga Khan Foundation to find suitable London properties failed.

There are about 70,000 Ismaili Muslims in Canada, with about half that number in Ontario. Toronto might not seem the most obvious home for the Aga Khan museum, but according to Luis Monreal, head of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, it's perfectly situated, within easy travel distance of the large metropolitan hubs in southern Canada and the northeastern United States.

As well, Monreal says, the museum will be "a real signature building," yet another attraction for culture vultures drawn to the city by all the big-name architects working on projects there.

UK CHANNEL 4 (http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/arts_entertainment/art/rare+islamic+art+makes+first+trip+to+uk/592857)
Rare Islamic art makes first trip to UK

ASSOCIATED PRESS PAKISTAN (http://www.app.com.pk/en/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12337&Itemid=2)
Rare Islamic manuscripts to go on public display

walli

July 13th, 2007, 10:38 PM

Here is another article - this one from the CBC - mentioning the museum in Toronto. The mention is some ways down, but the entire article is interesting as it provides context.

-----
Aga Khan, spiritual leader to 15 million Ismaili Muslims, marks golden jubilee
Published: Tuesday, July 10, 2007 | 3:00 PM ET
Canadian Press: ANNE-MARIE TOBIN

TORONTO (CP) - As Ismaili Muslims around the world mark the occasion Wednesday of the Aga Khan's golden jubilee, Canadians among them are grateful not only for his guidance and leadership, but also for his assistance in helping them make their homes in Canada.

"We know from our parents and our grandparents the conditions under which we lived in East Africa, the conditions under which we had to flee Africa," said Amir Karim, a Montreal volunteer with the Ismaili Council for Canada.

"And I think we are very thankful to His Highness that 35 years later we are here, we got ourselves a good education, careers, and are, most importantly, contributing back to the society which accepted us."

The spiritual leader of the Ismailis is His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan, who became the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims on July 11, 1957, at age 20, following the death of his grandfather.

He's well known beyond his religious community for his wealth and for his good works - the Aga Khan Development Network, or AKDN, a group of private, international and non-denominational agencies, spends more than US$320 million a year on social and cultural development activities, mostly in the poorest regions of Africa and Asia. Among the many honours bestowed on him is honorary companion of the Order of Canada.

The Aga Khan was born in Geneva, spent his early years in Nairobi, was schooled partly in Switzerland and graduated from Harvard University in 1959 after studying Islamic history.

He now resides in France and leads about 15 million Ismailis in about 25 countries, including a vibrant community of between 80,000 and 100,000 in Canada.

Karim said there were two major waves of migration to Canada.

"Idi Amin in Uganda had asked all residents of Indian descent to leave Uganda within a certain number of days. Ismailis had to find new homes, and so a number of them came to Canada in 1972-ish," he said.

"The second big wave of immigration was in the early '90s with the collapse of the Soviet Union. There are many, many Ismailis who live in central Asia, and some of them were fleeing the Taliban regime in Afghanistan."

Eighty to 90 per cent of Muslims are Sunni, while 10 to 20 per cent are Shia, Karim said. Ismailis are Shias, and along with other Shia Muslims believe that after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, authority and leadership of the community was passed to his cousin and son-in-law, Ali, and would continue by heredity though Ali and his wife Fatima, the Prophet's daughter.

"What characterizes Ismaili Muslims is that we consider the Aga Khan, the 49th direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, as our Imam, or spiritual leader," Karim explained.

"This is not only a commemoration of 50 years of leadership, but it is also a commemoration or a reminder to ourselves, Ismailis, that this is 1,400 years of history."

Karim said it's part of Ismaili tradition to mark epochal events in the lives of their imams, and a time to reflect on their work.

Reena Lalji, a Toronto lawyer and volunteer with the Ismaili Council for Ontario, agreed.

"A very fundamental ethos of Islam is to give to the less fortunate, to help the less fortunate, to assist with the betterment of the lives of people around you," she said. "And that's what is being accomplished through the AKDN."

Karim noted the importance of compassion and sharing.

"His Highness tells his community to always remember, not to think about 'what have I achieved today?' but 'what have I helped others to achieve?"'

A statement issued by the Aiglemont estate in France, headquarters of the AKDN, said jubilee celebrations "offer occasions to launch new social, cultural and economic development projects."

An event in France marking the jubilee Wednesday will be private, but Karim and Lalji both expressed the hope that the Aga Khan's travels in the coming year will bring him to Canada.

Jason Kenney, secretary of state for multiculturalism and Canadian identity, issued a statement recognizing the golden jubilee and encouraging Canadians to learn more about the Aga Khan's "substantial contributions to international development, and the Canadian community's very impressive achievements."

Last October, the Aga Khan and Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the federal government and the Aga Khan would each contribute $30 million to a new Global Centre for Pluralism in Ottawa.

The think-tank and research facility will be housed in the old Canadian War Museum.

The Aga Khan wants "to essentially export the Canadian values of pluralism and tolerance to other countries," Lalji said.

The Aga Khan is also establishing a representative office on Sussex Drive in Ottawa, designed by architect Fumihiko Maki.

In addition, Toronto will be the site of the Aga Khan Museum, and a new Ismaili Centre with classrooms, a library and a prayer hall.

"The museum will contain works from the Aga Khan's family collection, as well as other collections," Lalji said.

The relationship between the federal government and the Aga Khan dates back about 25 years, when the Canadian International Development Agency, or CIDA, became involved with the network.

"I think by building such a strong presence in Ottawa, what His Highness is saying is that this relationship is ready to go to the next level," said Karim.

walli

July 13th, 2007, 10:41 PM

One last post for today ... Peter Mansbridge interviewed the Aga Khan for the program "Mansbridge One-on-One" some time ago. Here, there was mention of the museum and other Canadaian Aga Khan projects. It might be interesting for some.

Go to: http://www.cbc.ca/mansbridge/ and then select the Aga Khan interview from the column on the right (entitled 'some of our favourite interviews). I believe it is 23 minutes long.

walli

July 14th, 2007, 09:08 AM

More about pieces headed to Toronto ...

-----

http://www.indianmuslims.info/news/2007/jul/12/shahnameh_canon_display_islamic_arts_exhibit_london.html

Shahnameh, Canon on display at Islamic arts exhibit in London
Posted July 13th, 2007 by Indian-Muslim

London, July 12, IRNA, An illustrated folio from the Persian epic Shahnameh and an extremely rare copy of Ibn Sina's Canon of Medicine are at the centerpiece of Islamic masterpieces on display at a 'Spirit & Life' exhibition, opening in London on Saturday.

The six-week exhibition includes over 165 displays of textiles, exquisite miniatures, rare manuscripts, ceramics, precious pages from the Qur'an, scientific medical texts, books of fables, and tiles.

The manuscript of Shahnameh (or Book of Kings), made for the Safavid ruler of Persia Shah Tahmasb, is decorated with 258 miniatures, attributable to almost all of the major Persian artists of the first half of the 16th century.

It is universally acknowledged as not only one of the finest illustrated manuscripts of any period but also among the greatest works of art in the world.

The poetic opus, which is among UNESCO's list of cultural heritages, was written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi, who spent almost 35 years composing the 30,000 couplets that tells the mythical and historical past of Iran up until the advent of Islam.

The Canon of Medicine by Persian physician and philosopher Ibn Sina (Avicenna) is described as the single most influential text in the history of medicine.

Such was its usefulness that from its origins in the early 11th century in western Iran, it was used all over the Middle East and Europe as the standard medical text for a period of five centuries.

The exhibition, which is being held at the Islmaeli Centre, also includes a dervish's begging bowl made in the form of a boat, with a wide band of elegant inscriptions in Persian. It is one of five important Safavid examples from the end of the 16th century.

There is also a slip-decorated pottery dish decorated with interlacing patterns of geometry and calligraphy, which was produced in the eastern Iranian world of the 10th century.

The displays also include three folios from the Akhlaq-i Naseri, a philosophical treatise divided into three discourses, dealing with ethics, social justice and politics, which was written by Persian philosopher Naser al-Din Tousi.

Organisers said that the Islamic masterpieces "underlines that the arts, particularly when they are spiritually inspired, can become a medium of discourse that transcends the barriers of our day-to-day experiences."
They said that many questions are currently being raised in the West about the Muslim world, with countless misconceptions and misunderstandings, and hoped the exhibition to help enlighten the Western intellectuals about treasure of the Islamic civilization.

walli

July 19th, 2007, 10:19 PM

walli

July 23rd, 2007, 10:35 PM

This is very exciting! This BBC coverage relates to the exhibit currently touring in London (from where it will go to the Louvre in Paris, followed by Lisbon, and then by 2010 in Toronto at the Aga Khan Museum).

These clips are excellent - I really recommend both to all who are in the slightest interested in the Aga Khan Museum project.

BBC's Newsnight on 7 June 2007
http://www.iis.ac.uk/SiteAssets/video/Newsnight.wmv

BBC Radio 4's Today programme on 10 July 2007
http://www.iis.ac.uk/SiteAssets/video/today_nf_01.mp3

leaf345

July 23rd, 2007, 11:21 PM

I'm looking forward to this project. Toronto could use as many cultural institutions as it can get. Hopefully we'll get some clearer renderings soon.

walli

August 1st, 2007, 01:47 AM

From Moriyama and Teshima Architects' web-site news section ...

-----
http://www.mtarch.com/mtanews.html

Aga Khan Museum Treasures On Display:

From July 14 to August 31, 2007 at The Ismaili Centre in London, England, the Islamic treasures that will be on display in the Aga Khan Museum that will be built in Toronto, Canada are showcased in an exhibit under the title of "Spirit & Life: Masterpieces of Islamic Art from the Aga Khan Museum Collection."

Continuing a successful collaboration initiated on the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat project due to open in Ottawa, Canada in 2008, Maki and Associates of Tokyo, Japan (Design Architect) and Moriyama and Teshima Architects (Architect of Record) are creating this world class museum. Also being built on the Wynford Drive site in Toronto is the Ismaili Centre, a collaboration between Charles Correa from India and Moriyama and Teshima Architects, with landscape design for the entire site by Vladimir Djurovic Landscape Architecture from Lebanon along with Moriyama and Teshima Planners.

The opening of the Spirit & Life exhibit coincides with the start of the Aga Khan's Golden Jubilee celebrations which will occur over the next year. Fifty years ago, at the age of 20, the Aga Khan succeeded his grandfather, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan, as the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims.

"This exhibition of artistic masterpieces from the Islamic world underlines that the arts, particularly when they are spiritually inspired, can become a medium of discourse that transcends the barriers of our day-to-day experiences and preoccupations," said His Highness the Aga Khan. "Many questions are currently being raised in the West about the Muslim world, with countless misconceptions and misunderstandings occurring between our contemporary societies. I hope that this exhibition will hold a special significance at a time which calls for enlightened encounters amongst faiths and cultures."

Links:
+ Images Of Items In The Spirit & Life Exhibit
+ 2007-07-11 A stunning debut for Toronto-bound Treasures of Islam - Globe and Mail
+ Aga Khan Development Network - Museums

walli

August 9th, 2007, 08:24 PM

There have been a TON of articles about this exhibit of the permanent collection of the Aga Khan Museum, but this one is special in a different way. Check out how this guy (who is a curator of a museum in malaysia) contrasts London to this exhibit. It is actually quite funny.

Article source (http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/Columns/20070809075805/Article/index_html)

2007/08/09
Lucien de Guise: A tale of two sides to one sweltering city
By : Lucien de Guise

A RETURN visit to the town of my birth is always a memorable experience. The gateway is still Heathrow Airport, an unpromising start to any holiday. If this is the level of welcome that London offers, it is amazing that more people don’t look at the queue for Channel 3 (non-European Union passport holders) and go for voluntary repatriation.
Even the English have begun to realise what a third-rate introduction to their country this provides. Its main appeal is to long-distance walkers in training.

Once you have made the trip into London, the situation doesn’t always improve.

As soon as the weather picked up recently, which meant going from floods to a heat wave of 30°C overnight, there was a spontaneous shedding of clothes.

A hot weekend after weeks of rain means it is time for the locals to get their kit off. Hectares of wobbly white flesh were exposed, often exacerbated by the use of a bicycle.
The metropolis was turned into what looked like day release for inmates from an institution for the vitamin-D deprived. The shock is greater if you have stepped off a plane from Malaysia, where a different attitude to public semi-nudity is rare and sun worship non-existent among the population.

There was a sanctuary of Malaysian values that weekend, however.

The exhibition "Spirit & Life: Masterpieces of Islamic Art" from the Aga Khan Museum Collection has impressive air-conditioning, sumptuous surroundings and respectably-attired visitors.

Never has it been more obvious how different the British museum-goer is from the sort of person who wears an England football jersey when he has to be dressed, and nothing when the weather warms up a bit.

I can understand why in the UK, Muslims get agitated. They would have been happy at the Ismaili Centre as it was filled with the first type of Briton.

These are people so determined to be respectful, they would put on a three-piece wool suit in a heatwave if they were asked to.

Most conspicuous of all was the number of visitors. Bearing in mind that all this was happening at an Islamic institution, it might come as a surprise to those visitors to Britain who feel a Muslim name is not much of an asset when they present their passport to the immigration officer.

The Ismaili Centre in South Kensington seems to be a reassuring force for the British public.

This is not the norm for an Islamic-art exhibition. Having been to quite a few, I haven’t usually seen much more than the security guards taking an interest.

A lot of people were intrigued by "Spirit and Life" and they were very different from the great unclothed masses of Londoners.

At the same time, the Shia Ismaili hosts are a different cup of chai from the men with big beards from London’s East End who feature so often in the British media. There weren’t many of them at the show.

For those Brits who are not madrassa alumni, there is enough at the exhibition to convince them that they made the right decision. The exhibits are eye-catching and wide ranging, including everything from an eighth-century Quran leaf to 19th-century musical instruments.

There are also a few display innovations, such as a gravestone on a slowly revolving stand.

This is dynamic and at the same time allows you to see how a North African craftsman 1,000 years ago put an older Roman architectural fragment to practical new use. Two cultures for the price of one. This shows the versatility of Muslim craftsmen of the past.

Craftsmen of the present are another feature of the exhibition. Aga Khan, 49th hereditary Imam of the Ismaili Muslims, has tied up with another royal with an interest in Islamic culture.

Prince Charles’ country house, Highgrove, is famous for its Islamic garden, and The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts was present at the Ismaili Centre with a number of activities to excite visitors.

At most museums, these attractions tend to be reserved for children. As the youth element at "Spirit & Life" was small, artists from the Prince’s School were happy to put on a demonstration for older visitors.

The adults were enraptured by the sight of calligraphers, illuminators and a man with a pair of compasses who did remarkable things using geometry. It all made a pleasant change from the usual view of Shia Islam. Iran and Iraq have been the biggest news source on this subject lately.

It can’t be said that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad or mass self-flagellation is an inspirational sight. Ismailis are in a different category, and there could be few more civilised spiritual leaders than the Aga Khan.

In a city that is famed for being just about the most expensive in the world, all this was offered for free. Further good value was provided by top-quality postcards at a mere 20 pence each (RM1.40) and a lovely catalogue with a useful overview of Ismaili history.

The whole venture managed to do an extremely good job of convincing people that Islamic art is something worth seeking out on one of those rare Sundays when London swelters.

Lucien de Guise is curator at the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia. He can be contacted at luciendeguise@yahoo.com.

elliot

August 9th, 2007, 11:11 PM

Hope they don't use any gold.

walli

August 10th, 2007, 12:15 AM

Hope they don't use any gold.

:) ...

I think you'll find when looking at architecture sponsored by the institutions of the Aga Khan, there is a lot of focus on the society and spaces wherein the buildings are to be. As an example, this project is providing a somewhat central space to the area, with pathways and meeting places that are meant to be public. It connects to the area, and while meaning to be unique and exemplary, does not overwhelm the spaces. There is also focus on manifesting symbolic elements in a more modern way and not always reverting exclusively to history (not that there is anything wrong with that).

Does that mean there will be or not be gold? Not sure. But certainly it will not be a gold dome framed by two or four minarets ;)

I do expect glass, many facets, stone, water, a variety of garden and public spaces, and an overall plan where walking through the project will reveal variety and pleasant surprises along the way!

Robin155

August 10th, 2007, 12:18 AM

Walli when does this project start?

walli

August 10th, 2007, 12:47 AM

Walli when does this project start?

No one that I know actually knows for certain, other than the latest it would break ground would be July of next year. The reason is that consensus has it that the Aga Khan wants to have the ground-breaking ceremony within his 'golden jubilee' year (July 11/07 - July 11/08). I think all of the details are being held for this.

Now, he would be visiting anytime within this period, but there are a couple of other factors to consider. First is that he may also open the 'Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat' during the same visit - it is currently under construction on Sussex Drive. I think it should be complete early next year - in fact, structurally, I wouldn't be surprised if it is done by end of this year with the inside details being finished over the winter months. The other piece of the puzzle is that the Aga Khan needs to work out a schedule with the Federal Government. I believe he will be coming at their invitation, though certainly, all parties would likely be working very closely with each other. Note that he may also visit more than once, so that increases the options.

It has already been announced publicly that the museum will open in 2010. The selected collection currently touring in Europe has traveled from Italy to England (where it currently is), and over the next few months will move to the Louvre in France, then to Portugal and then to Germany (or is it Germany and then Portugal). Not sure if there are other European stops, but after all that is done, it is supposed to travel through the US. After that, it will end up in Canada - and 2010 aligns with this also.

He's a busy guy ... and people may be asking, who exactly is this "Aga Khan". Here is a recent Vancouver Sun article about him. It might give a flavor of who this guy is. The article also talks about the Aga Khan's Canadian projects.

-----
Jubilee Year for world's Ismailis (http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/editorial/story.html?id=bc1454a4-0c52-434d-9df2-486335d87ef3&p=1)
Mansoor Ladha, Special to the Sun
Published: Tuesday, July 10, 2007

He is a king without a kingdom. His influence, authority and power surpasses leader of any stature. He meets more foreign heads of state, presidents and prime ministers than the president of United States, the most powerful nation on earth.

He is the Aga Khan, the direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed through his cousin and son-in-law Ali, the first Imam, and his wife Fatima, the prophet's daughter.

This charismatic and dynamic leader of the Ismailis, a minority sect among the world's 20 million Shia Muslims, ascended to the throne of the Imamat on July 11, 1957, on the demise of his grandfather, Sir Sultan Mohammed Shah, or Aga Khan III, at the age of 21 while a student at Harvard University.

The Aga Khan was chosen because his grandfather wanted to be succeeded by "a young man who has been brought up and developed during recent years and in the midst of the new age and who brings new outlook to life in his office as Imam."

On Wednesday, Ismailis, many of whom have settled in Canada following their expulsion from Uganda by dictator Idi Amin in 1972, celebrate the Aga Khan's 50th anniversary with festivals and religious ceremonies in cities throughout the world, including Vancouver.

The year July 2007-2008 has been declared the Jubilee Year during which new initiatives will be announced as a tribute to the Aga Khan's humanitarian work. This is also the time for the Ismailis to re-dedicate their allegiance to their faith and to their Imam.

In the past 50 years, the Aga Khan Development Network (http://www.akdn.org/)'s contribution to international development in many developing countries is well known. Canada, through the Canadian International Development Agency, has partnered with AKDN in several countries in projects to eradicate poverty and providing humanitarian assistance.

But the Aga Khan's contribution does not just end with international development and humanitarian aspects. He is also a promoter of education and a lover of architecture.

Perhaps the most monumental project of the Aga Khan's Imamat was the founding of Pakistan's first private university in 1983 -- the Aga Khan University and the Aga Khan University Hospital (http://www.aku.edu/), inaugurated in Karachi in 1985.

The Aga Khan scored another first by founding another of the world's first internationally chartered institution of higher learning in Central Asia. Following the fall of the Soviet Union in that region, the Aga Khan and the governments of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan signed agreements to establish the University of Central Asia in 1994.

As a great lover of architecture, in 1977 he established the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, the world's largest architectural award totalling $500,000 US. The award's objective is to encourage architecture that reflects pluralism that has always characterized Muslim communities. It was established to enhance the understanding and appreciation of Islamic culture.

Apart from giving the award, the Aga Khan has done a great deal to boost Islamic architecture in the United States and elsewhere. The Aga Khan Program in Islamic Architecture at MIT and Harvard has an endowment of $58 million US offering American students fellowships to travel to the Middle East and other Islamic countries to study Muslim architecture.

The Aga Khan has strong ties with Canada. A friend of the late Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the Aga Khan was one of the pallbearers at his funeral.

Trudeau is reported to have facilitated easy entry into Canada of Aga Khan's followers, the Ismailis, when they were expelled from Uganda. The Aga Khan has several times publicly thanked Canada for its generosity in accepting and opening its doors to Ismailis during the Uganda crisis.

However, the Aga Khan's admiration of Canada goes beyond that. He has described Canada as "a model for the world."

It was, therefore, only natural that the Aga Khan and the feds join hands to establish the Centre for Pluralism (http://www.pluralism.ca/) in Ottawa, in which each of the participants invested $30 million.

The centre is expected to draw from Canada's successful track record of pluralist civil society and working closely with governments, academia and civil society around the world. It will undertake research, deliver programs, facilitate dialogue and work with international partners to build the capacity of individuals, groups, educational institutions and governments to promote indigenous approaches to pluralism in their own countries and communities.

The Aga Khan's faith in Canada is so enormous that he has made this country the headquarters of the world Ismailia community.

In this respect, in 2005 he announced three major Ismaili projects -- the Delegation of Ismaili Imamat, also being built in Ottawa and the Aga Khan Museum and Ismaili Jamatkhana and Centre, both under construction in Toronto.

The Delegation of Ismaili Imamat will have an ambassadorial role in that it will serve as a representative of the Imamat institutions and its non-denominational, philanthropic and development agencies such as the Aga Khan Development Network.

The Aga Khan Museum will promote Islamic art through exhibitions with special emphasis on Shia Islam but particular emphasis on the Ismaili community.

It will include collections of His Highness the Aga Khan and his late uncle, Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan. Manuscripts in the collections will include the earliest known copy of Avicenna's Qanun Fi'l-Tibb (The Canon of Medicine) dated 1052.

Described as "Prince of the Islamic World," the Aga Khan has made the Ismailis a successful model community, which has been an envy of the world.

Taller, Better

August 10th, 2007, 06:43 AM

Hope they don't use any gold.

You are evil, elliot!

phunky

August 10th, 2007, 08:16 AM

Glad to know a mod thinks it's funny that someone is trying to get a rise out of me.

Taller, Better

August 10th, 2007, 08:02 PM

Maybe you read too much into things, phunky.

Just so that you are clear about it, the fact that I am a mod in
the Canada section does not mean I am going to curl up into a ball
and stop making any comments here.

phunky

August 11th, 2007, 02:05 AM

Reading into things too much. Maybe you should go read the temple topic and come back here and read his fucking comment again.

noob(but not really)

August 11th, 2007, 02:17 AM

another phunky-related dispute? .... :cheer:

Taller, Better

August 11th, 2007, 02:43 AM

That.... is entirely up to phunky.

phunky

August 11th, 2007, 03:19 AM

Whatever, this is bullshit. You know that comment was targeted at me.

isaidso

August 11th, 2007, 03:37 AM

I don't think it was meant to insult, but in the realm of poking fun. You did get a rough ride on that other forum, so I understand your sensitivity right now. BUT, it was funny.

It's healthy to be able to accept a good humoured wisecrack or playful teasing. Perhaps I am reading it wrong, but do you not see the comedic element in the statement? OK. I'l shut up now.

Taller, Better

August 11th, 2007, 03:44 AM

What is the status of this project? Has the old Bata Shoe office building been demolished yet?
Shame to see it come down, but what a gem of a site.

walli

August 11th, 2007, 11:31 AM

The Aga Khan just gave an interview in Germany on architecture, where he was also asked about his Canadian projects. I think this will be a very interesting read for all architecture lovers:

http://www.qantara.de/webcom/show_article.php/_c-310/_nr-450/i.html

Also, there is a brand new book about to be released that looks at the Aga Khan's engagement with architecture, and various 'Aga Khan' projects. It is called, "Under the Eaves of Architecture: The Aga Khan: Builder and Patron" and has a publish date of August 15th, 2007:

http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/Under-Eaves-Architecture-Aga-Khan-Philip-Jodidio/9783791337814-item.html?ref=Search+Books%3a+'Under+the+Eaves+of+Architecture%3a+The+Aga+Khan%3a+Builder+and+Patron'&sterm=Under+the+Eaves+of+Architecture%3a+The+Aga+Khan%3a+Builder%7cPatron+-+Books

from Amazon:
---
This thematically arranged book displays the full range of the Aga Khan's patronage of architecture.

The Aga Khan is one of the most ardent patrons of architecture and historic preservation in the world. Since inheriting his title as spiritual leader of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, usually known as Ismailis, fifty years ago, he has fostered and commissioned numerous structures and restored a multitude of buildings from North America to East Africa. The prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture, first given in 1980, recognizes projects that benefit the Muslim world for their excellence in contemporary design, community improvement and development, restoration, re-use, and area conservation. For the first time, this book presents projects from universities and historic restoration programs that bear the Aga Khan's name to religious centers, museums, and development efforts in more than twenty countries. Through the Aga Khan Development Network, the Aga Khan occupies a unique place in the world of architecture and this book reveals the range and breadth of his activities.

http://g-ec2.images-amazon.com/images/I/51mlm7HBFUL._SS500_.jpg

EDIT: Wanted to mention that the picture on the cover of this book is of an 'Aga Khan' building in Vancouver. When you go to Vancouver, visiting this place is a must - the courtyard and gardens are spectacular.

Jaye101

August 11th, 2007, 07:47 PM

Whatever, this is bullshit. You know that comment was targeted at me.

Brush it off, it was harmless.

walli

August 12th, 2007, 02:43 AM

Someone overseas scratchin' his head wondering how and why Londoners let this project go, with Toronto winning the battle ...

-----
http://desertonfire.blogspot.com/2007/08/brilliant-and-subtly-subversive.html

Saturday, August 11, 2007
A brilliant and subtly subversive exhibition

http://bp1.blogger.com/_nCB1eZG3Zkw/Rr3jemUw-YI/AAAAAAAAAFs/PQ9dlq_ayBU/s1600-h/shanama800.jpg
The Houghton Shahnama, courtesy of the Aga Khan Development Network

You realise just how stupid a decision it was for London to refuse the Aga Khan planning permission to build a museum in the city at the Ismaili Centre's exhibition of artefacts from the Aga Khan's collection, entitled Spirit and Life. It only runs until the end of the month and, as the illustration above suggests, it is superb - and free to see. The items on display range in age from a page from a ninth century Cufic Qu'ran to a quirky twentieth century Sufi hat.

The exhibits - which are beautifully displayed - are quietly controversial. There are the familiar abstract geometric and foliage patterns that have come to epitomise Islamic art. But, to challenge that perception, there are dozens of different representations of the human form, as in the illuminated Shahnama above, many of them from Iran. In London they do not look as extraordinary as perhaps they should.

Further afield in the Islamic world, the sudden appearance of the human form is more arresting.

http://bp0.blogger.com/_nCB1eZG3Zkw/Rr3nsWUw-ZI/AAAAAAAAAF0/wWsW5V9-ig4/s400/IMG_2045.JPG
This picture shows one of the thirteenth century Bayil stones, which I saw in Baku last month. Taken from a nearby castle, they can now be found in the courtyard of the Shirvan Shahs' palace in the wonderful old city. The only other place where I have seen similar depictions of people in Islamic art is at Qasr Amra, in eastern Jordan. There the ceiling frescoes of this eighth century hunting lodge of the Umayyads have been badly damaged - whether by malice or the weather I am not sure - but, as you can see below, the energetic dancing girls painted to amuse the Caliphs can still be made out.

http://bp2.blogger.com/_nCB1eZG3Zkw/Rr3rR2Uw-bI/AAAAAAAAAGE/i6dbBGjhpPA/s400/Qasr+Amra+Jordan.jpg
One connection links all three: all these representations were private art, bought by the seriously wealthy to be enjoyed beyond the general public's gaze. Thanks to the Aga Khan, we can now see many of them for ourselves - and savour their collector's poke in the eye for the petrodollar-fuelled Wahhabi extremists who would like to ban them. What a pity it is for London that the collection will be permanently housed in Toronto.

Taller, Better

August 12th, 2007, 07:46 AM

I can't help but wonder if there was a bit of jiggery-pokery involved in turning them down for permission. I wonder if some elitism was afoot, knowing London.

walli

August 13th, 2007, 06:45 AM

I can't help but wonder if there was a bit of jiggery-pokery involved in turning them down for permission. I wonder if some elitism was afoot, knowing London.

I'm not sure what jiggery-pokery is, however, I do know that the Aga Khan is a diplomat extraordinaire, and as such, would likely have just moved on without comment. London's decision will likely result in an overly favorable response for something or other in the future, as 'unsaid' restitution for their boneheadedness.

Taller, Better

August 13th, 2007, 06:29 PM

Jiggery-pokery means something a bit "fishy".

walli

August 16th, 2007, 06:13 PM

This article about the showing of items from the permanent collection of the Aga Khan Museum, includes a video link. It is less than three minutes, but includes pictures and discussion of several objects that are Toronto bound. Very nice!

-----
Source (http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-08-16-voa28.cfm)
Islamic Art Exhibit Big Hit in London
By Suzanne Chislett
London
16 August 2007

Watch Islamic Art Exhibit report / Windows Broadband - download video clip (http://www.voanews.com/mediaassets/english/2007_08/Video/wmv/IslamicArt_bb.wmv)

Ten thousand people have already come to see an exhibition featuring Islamic masterpieces at the Ismaili Centre in London. And the exhibition just opened in the middle of July. The collection is a unique preview of 165 works of art from across the Islamic world -- a collection meant to encourage understanding and dialogue. From the British capital, Paul Burge reports.

The "Spirit and Life" is not just an exhibition showing the history of Islamic art. It has a message for its viewers.

Many of the paintings, manuscripts and ceramics show the early overlapping of eastern and western cultures and Muslim and Christian identities.

The artwork spans more than 1,000 years of history from the ninth to the 19th century. The pieces come from a huge geographical area too -- from as far west as Spain, to Indonesia in the Far East.

The exhibition shows how Muslim and Christian cultures exchanged ideas about medicine, education, philosophy, religion and trade over hundreds of years.

Alnoor Merchant is co-curator of the exhibition. "There must have been the exchange of goods, the exchange of craftsmen who were coming from the West to the East. We know of outstanding trade routes between the Middle East and Italy as well"

Advanced knowledge of mathematics and medicine became the hallmark of the Muslim courts between the eighth and 12th centuries.

One example of the overlapping of knowledge between east and west is shown in Samanid court official Ibn Sina's "Canon of Medicine."

Co-curator Alnoor Merchant says the text is an important encyclopedic body of medical knowledge in the Islamic world. It became the standard reference text in the medical schools of Europe until the beginning of modern times. "You have there a very fine example of a scholarship that had originated with the Greek and the ancients which came down through the translations of the Muslim scholars who added to that corpus of knowledge and then it appears back in the West at the time of the Renaissance. And this exhibition reflects a number of objects and works that relate to that transference."

The team behind the "Spirit and Life" exhibition says showing this history of the mixing of Muslim and Christian cultures and identities reinforces the Ismaili Centre's mission -- to encourage understanding and dialogue between eastern and western societies.

Professor Azim Nanji is director of the Ismaili Centre. "It uses art as a common language. It's a shared vocabulary no matter what culture you belong to. And particularly there are items here that show that the West and Muslim world were always in interaction -- and I think that's an important message for our times. "

After the exhibition in London, these Islamic masterpieces will be shown at Ismaili Centres around Europe. Then they will become a key part of the permanent collection at the new Aga Khan museum opening in Toronto, Canada in 2010.