EXHIBITIONS
REUNION DES M– USEES NATIONAUX – GRAND PALAIS
Réunion des Musées Nationaux – Grand Palais in partnership with the Musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet presented exhibition “Des grands Moghols aux Maharajahs. Joyaux de la collection Al Thani” from 29 of March till 5 of June 2017 in Paris. Need to say, that this venue is generously supported by Cartier Maison. According press release, the creation of this collection by His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani has been driven by his passion for the taste and style of Indian jewels across various historical periods. In this exhibition pieces from the Al Thani Collection are complemented with loans of celebrated jewelled objects from the Bibliothèque nationale de France, British Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, State Hermitage Museum, Victoria & Albert Museum, Royal family of Quatar as well as prestigious private collections. Together they tell a story of the jewelled arts of India from the age of the Mughal emperors (1526–1858) through to the British Raj (1858–1947) and the present day. There are 5 themes at the exposition: the Mughal treasury: dynastic and jewels, objects of jade and rock crystal, objects in gold and enamel, regalia and jewelled ornaments, Cartier and great european jewellers, contemporary creations. Curator of this exhibition Amin Jaffer commented: “The Indians have always had a relationship with stones different from that of Europeans. Facetting a stone, giving it a symmetrical waist was a heresy; they preferred to preserve natural forms, even irregular ones. On the other hand, many gems were engraved. The imperial dynasties made their names appear on the most precious stones of their treasure, which was transmitted from father to son”.
