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Significance

The largest Muslim community in the world are inhabitants of the Nusantara region, which is the Indonesian/Malay name for the southern half of Maritime Southeast Asia. The capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, houses the largest museum for Islamic Art in South East Asia. Although a clear date for the establishment of Islamic communities on the Malay peninsula is difficult to place, the introduction of the faith was likely influenced by busy trade routes between the China Sea and Indian Ocean.

Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

Commonly seen to be on the periphery of the Islamic Art cannon, perhaps due to strong traditions of local visual cultures, scholars have argued that it is time that Indonesia and the rest of the Nusantara region be fully "brought into the main discourse of Islamic Art." Perhaps due to Islam’s later arrival in this region, art historians have grappled with defining purely Islamic art within such a dominant visual culture, where overlapping and intersection of aesthetics with other faiths in the region make strict definitions difficult.

Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

Exhibits

Art using calligraphy at the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

The museum consists of twelve gallery spaces, spread over two levels. Level one contains galleries devoted to Architecture, Qur’an and other Manuscripts, and one each for the art of India, China and the Malay Peninsula. Level two houses galleries devoted to Arms & Armor, Textiles, Jewelry and Coins, with the remaining three galleries consisting of art works categorized by their materials- Metal, Wood and Ceramics.

The museum also houses educational, research, and extensive conservation facilities. One of the most famous permanent exhibitions is a faithfully restored and complete early-nineteenth century "Ottoman Room." Conservators used data born out of the restoration of this room to collaborate frequently with international colleagues, add to the wider conversation about conserving Islamic vernacular architecture, and to draw attention to the effects on “painted woods in tropical climates such as Southeast Asia.”

Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

Architecture

The exterior of the building is defined by clean lines and 21st century construction techniques, yet includes some traditional Islamic architectural details that activate the surface. Such details include the ornate, turquoise-colored tiled domes that recall a textile aesthetic and have established the building as an iconic landmark on the Kuala Lumpur skyline. Likewise, an entrance reminiscent of an Iwan, embellished by Iranian tile workers, continues the tapestry aesthetic, engaging with the surroundings and speaking to the viewer with the incorporation of a welcoming Qur’anic verse.