October 25, 2016
Openings proudly presents the first exhibition ever of contemporary Islamic Art in a Catholic place of worship.
October 25 – November 15, 2016
Artists’ reception: Thursday, October 27th, 7 – 9 pm
Church of St. Paul the Apostle
Corner of W. 60th St and Columbus Ave.
New York, N.Y
This historic event features the work of nine New York-based artists who work in centuries-old traditional Islamic art forms or who draw inspiration in their work from traditional Islamic sources. Included are examples of Arabic calligraphy, illumination and paper-cutting, as well as traditionally Western media (oil painting on canvas, etchings) and animated video projection. It will take place in the historic Church of St. Paul the Apostle.
Exhibition curated by Mark Brennan
- Mujgan Baskoylu
- Zinnur Doganata
- Elinor Aishah Holland
- Behnaz Karjoo
- Daniel Nelson
- Shahzia Sikander
- Nadiah Tayeh
- Nurdan Yeneroglu
- Mohamed Zakaria
The selection of artists ranges from relatively unknown artists who have rarely exhibited in the United States to Ms. Sikander, who has been featured at major museums in Europe, Asia and America, including a solo show this summer at MAXXI (Rome.) She is the 2016 winner of the prestigious American Academy of Religion’s Religion and the Arts Award. Five of the artists belong to New York Islamic Arts, a collective dedicated to the practice and preservation of the most time-honored of Islamic art forms, often using traditional materials.
The Church of St. Paul the Apostle is the largest Roman Catholic church in New York other than St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and is the third largest Christian church of any denomination in the entire city. A NYC historic landmark building, it is the mother church of the Paulist Fathers, whose mission statement is in part to “build bridges of respect and collaboration with people of other world religions.” This exhibit will occupy the entire south side of the church, placing the Islamic work side by side with the permanent Christian frescoes and statuary, creating extraordinary visual and ideological dialogs between the two traditions’ expressions of faith.
The exhibition runs:
October 25 – November 15, 2016
Mon – Fri 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Sat – Sun 8:30 am – 6:00 pm
Please join us in this timely and historic statement of brotherhood and solidarity between people of two great religious traditions at the
Artists’ reception:
Thursday, October 27th, 7 – 9 pm
The Church of St. Paul the Apostle
Corner of West 60th Street and Columbus Ave.
New York, NY 10019
(212) 265-3495
Press Contact: Frank Sabatte, (212) 265-3209 x218