Isma'il Jalayir (Iranian, d. ca. 1860–71). Calligraphy painting (detail), ca. 1860. Opaque watercolor and ink on paste board, H: 17 3/4 x W: 14 1/4 in. (45.1 x 36.2 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, 2017 NoRuz at The Met Benefit, 2018 (2018.26)
In an age when even political figures send out dispatches in 280 characters or less, the latest episodes of MetCollects—our monthly online feature highlighting works of art new to the Museum's collection—celebrate two works of art that elevate language and the printed word.
The November episode of MetCollects features a calligraphy composition by Isma'il Jalayir, a visionary painter of the second half of the nineteenth century in Iran. This intricately detailed painting depicts the artist's vision of an Edenic landscape, including imaginary architectural vistas and an extraordinary assemblage of animals, all within a beautifully executed calligraphic poem. In her curatorial essay, Maryam Ekhtiar, associate curator in the Department of Islamic Art, explains the meaning of the poem, saying that it "praises the virtues of kingship," and likens the ruler to a "flame in the night chamber of kingship." The twenty-six photos included in this episode, exquisitely photographed by Katherine Dahab, take viewers into the thickets, discovering rabbits, peacocks, snakes, an elephant, and more.
Hebrew Bible, 1300–1350 (before 1366). Spanish, Castile. Ink, tempera, and gold on parchment with leather binding, 476 folios, 9 5/16 x 7 15/16 in. (23.7 x 20.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Cloisters Collection, 2018 (2018.59)
The December episode of MetCollects provides a look inside a splendidly adorned Hebrew Bible from medieval Spain. In their curatorial essay, Barbara Drake Boehm and Melanie Holcomb, curators in the Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters, describe the textual embellishments of the Bible by saying, "words adorn words and proclaim their power." The photography by Hyla Skopitz highlights the elaborate decoration throughout the book and emphasizes the strength and beauty in the written word.
MetCollects is made possible through the continued generous support of Bloomberg Philanthropies.
