Connections: Better Broken

Islamic art curator Navina Haidar extols the implications and aesthetics of the broken or incomplete.

Navina Najat Haidar

April 27, 2011

4 min. watch

"We live in a world of half-completed things or damaged objects, but I had never articulated to myself that in fact there were times quite often that I preferred the objects that way."

Islamic art curator Navina Haidar extols the implications and aesthetics of the broken or incomplete.

Contributors

Navina Najat Haidar
Curator, Department of Islamic Art

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Art Mentioned

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Head of Krishna: cartoon for a mural of the Raslila

, Sahib Ram, Ink and opaque watercolor on paper, India (Rajasthan, Jaipur) — Head of Krishna: cartoon for a mural of the Raslila
Sahib Ram
ca. 1800

Torso of a Bodhisattva, Sahri-Bahlol Workshop, Schist, Pakistan (ancient region of Gandhara, mondern Peshawar region) — Torso of a Bodhisattva
Sahri-Bahlol Workshop
ca. 5th century

Marble statue of a fighting Gaul, Marble, Island, Greek — Marble statue of a fighting Gaul
Greek
2nd or 1st century BCE

Marble portrait of the co-emperor Lucius Verus, Marble, Roman — Marble portrait of the co-emperor Lucius Verus
Roman
161–169 CE

Fragment of a terracotta amphora (jar), Painter of Vatican 365, Terracotta, Greek, Attic — Fragment of a terracotta amphora (jar)
Painter of Vatican 365
ca. 540–530 BCE

Fragment from a marble head of a man, preserving the nose and mouth, Marble, Roman — Fragment from a marble head of a man, preserving the nose and mouth
Roman
mid-2nd century CE

Ivory sandaled foot, Ivory, Roman — Ivory sandaled foot
Roman
ca. 31 BCE–14 CE

Pair of eyes, Bronze, marble, frit, quartz, obsidian, Greek — Pair of eyes
Greek
5th century BCE or later

Self-Portrait, from "The Iconography", Anthony van Dyck Flemish, Etching; first state of seven — Self-Portrait, from "The Iconography"
Anthony van Dyck
ca. 1640

Bowl with Inscription, "Sovereignty is God's", Earthenware; white slip with black slip decoration under transparent glaze — Bowl with Inscription, "Sovereignty is God's"
late 9th–early 10th century

Tile with 'Saz' Leaf Design, Stonepaste; polychrome painted under transparent glaze — Tile with 'Saz' Leaf Design
ca. 1545–55

"The Death of King Dasharatha, the Father of Rama", Folio from a Ramayana, Opaque watercolor and gold on paper — "The Death of King Dasharatha, the Father of Rama", Folio from a Ramayana
ca. 1605

A Nobleman Reading, Opaque watercolor on paper — A Nobleman Reading
ca. 1750–75

Elephant and Rider, Hashim Indian, Ink and watercolor on paper — Elephant and Rider
Hashim
ca. 1640

Antelope Head, Greywacke, travertine (Egyptian alabaster), agate — Antelope Head
525–404 B.C.

Fragment of a Queen's Face, Yellow jasper — Fragment of a Queen's Face
ca. 1390–1336 B.C.

Torso of a High General, Metagraywacke — Torso of a High General
4th century B.C.