The World on a Plate
From illuminated manuscripts to jewelled vessels, A Seat at the Table offers a sensory journey through the history of feasting
From royal banquets to street food stalls, A Seat at the Table: Food & Feasting in the Islamic World was an exploration of the universal language of food and the ways it connects people. Exhibited recently at Doha’s Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) and presented in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the show was testament to a globe-spanning partnership between Qatar Museums, LACMA and the Yuz Museum Shanghai that was signed into being in 2019.
A Seat at the Table was an evolution of two LACMA exhibitions: Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts, which ran in 2011, and Dining with the Sultan: The Fine Art of Feasting, from 2023-24. “This exhibition is, in many respects, the second iteration of Gifts of the Sultan, an exhibition that curator Linda Komaroff did at LACMA over 10 years ago,” says Dr Tara Desjardins, senior curator of decorative arts and design at Doha’s Lusail Museum. “We realised that it was an opportunity to move away from the purely imperial or sultanate patronage of Linda’s exhibition and to, instead, speak to our local communities and their interests. We adopted some of Linda’s stories but adapted most of the exhibition.”
The resulting exhibition featured more than 100 objects – from Qur’anic manuscripts displaying verses on gratitude to contemporary food trucks and jewel-encrusted vessels used for serving or storing delicacies – as well as contemporary video installations showing chefs at work. Komaroff also contributed an essay to the exhibition catalogue, highlighting the relationship between LACMA and QM and the way the two institutions have created an important cross-cultural dialogue.
“Food is much more than just eating,” says Teslim Sanni, curatorial affairs researcher at MIA. “It reflects identity, hospitality and even spiritual beliefs. The real challenge was pulling everything together without it feeling disjointed, because you are moving from historic to modern objects. Our wish was for visitors to feel that flow – to see that the story of food in the Islamic world did not stop in the past but is still alive.”
Sharing Platter
Since 2019, Qatar Museums and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) have shared a curatorial partnership dedicated to expanding cross-cultural understanding through exhibitions, public art and knowledge exchange.
Dan Flavin / Donald Judd
Al Riwaq Doha, 2023
This landmark exhibition brought together the pioneering minimalist works of American artists Dan Flavin and Donald Judd. The first major survey of both artists in the Middle East, it featured large-scale installations and sculptural forms.
LA Arts Community Fire Relief Fund
Los Angeles, 2023
When devastating wildfires struck California, LACMA and Qatar Museums united with the J Paul Getty Trust, Mellon Foundation, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and others to establish the US$12 million LA Arts Community Fire Relief Fund to support creative communities affected by the disaster.
Watering the Desert: Contemporary Art from Qatar
China, 2023
This travelling exhibition – a joint venture between Qatar Museums, LACMA and the Yuz Museum Shanghai – was the first large-scale exhibition of Qatari and Qatar- based contemporary artists to be presented in China. It showcased the work of 34 multidisciplinary artists, designers and filmmakers.
Smoke by Tony Smith
Doha Exhibition & Convention Centre, installed 2015
Smoke is a six-metre-tall architectural sculpture created by American artist Tony Smith in 1967. In 2008, a second edition was installed at LACMA. A third edition was installed in front of Doha’s main convention centre in 2015 – before the agreement between QM and LACMA was signed – symbolising the shared commitment of both institutions to public art and international cultural dialogue.
