Islamic Art at the Metropolitan Museum

Not having to do any holiday shopping, I spent Black Saturday at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts' new permanent gallery on Islamic Art.  It is named "Islamic Art" even though the curator of the gallery describes the collection as "primarily secular". It is also exclusively about the material culture of the padshahs, the sultans, and their nobles. If you are interested in knowing how the common people lived or what they consumed, you would not find it here. Despite such problematics, it is a grand visual and artistic treat and worth a visit. To whet your appetite, below is a sample of what you will find there:

Damascus Room, Syria, 17 century 

Latticed stone window, Mughal Empire, India, 16th cent

Page from one of the largest Qurans, (each line 3 ft. long), Samarqand, early 14th cent,

Album of Calligraphies, Ottoman Period 1500

Turquoise and Black Raqqa Ware, Iran, 15th cent

Enameled Glass, Syria

Tombstone, carved marble, Iran 1352

Gallery Entrance

All photos except the "Damascus Room" are by Indira Govindan


Damascus Room from the Museum website 


Thanks for visiting.

Mod Podge Transfer on Wood Surfaces

I picked up these cute little wooden boxes from Michael's for $1.50 a piece. They looked like little portmanteaus waiting for something to be put inside or on it. I decided to add a label on the lid using the modge podge transfer technique. I used this label from the Graphics Fairy. My method was simple but turned out quite well. Below are the instructions:

1. Print a mirror image of the label using ink jet printer.
2. Apply  a thin coat of the modge podge on the image and glue it on the top of the lid with the image side down. Press the paper gently but firmly so that it adheres on the wood.
3. Let it dry completely.
4. Wet the surface of the paper with little water and gently rub off the paper till the whole image is revealed.
5. I painted the box white around the image so that the image would retain its vintage yellowing color. After the painting, I applied a thin glaze on the image.

Thanks for visiting.