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Art Talk Live: A Persian Calligraphy Album

This folio has a gold-decorated margin and an illuminated heading with floral motifs. Two bordered columns below the heading include calligraphy, written at a slant. Decorated triangles in blue adorn the top right and bottom left corners of each column.
An illuminated folio with calligraphy, from an album of calligraphy specimens, Persian, Qajar period, 1854. Ink, colors, and gold on paper. Loan from A. Soudavar in memory of his mother Ezzat-Malek Soudavar, 18.2015.

Gallery Talk

This event was recorded. Please view the talk here.

Persian albums contain specimens of calligraphy in various scripts, normally compiled from different sources and several artists, and mounted on decorated margins. We will look at a beautiful example from our Islamic art collection and explore its artistic and aesthetic features together.

Led by:
Shiva Mihan, Schroeder Curatorial Fellow of Islamic Art, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art

This free talk will take place online via Zoom. To join, follow this link: https://harvard.zoom.us/j/95718891121 (pre-registration not required).

For instructions on how to join a meeting in Zoom, please click here.

Art Talks Live offer an up-close look at works from our collections with our team of curators, conservators, fellows, and graduate students. Presented live via Zoom on every other Thursday afternoon at 2pm (Eastern Time), these short talks—along with our Art Talks video series—investigate artists’ materials and techniques, reveal our latest discoveries, offer a fresh look at old favorites, and explore big ideas through the collections of the Harvard Art Museums.

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