MA Opens Art of Travel Exhibition in Poland

Q Doha, July 17 (QNA) - Bartholomaus Schachman (1559 1614): the Art of Travel exhibition opened on Monday in the National Museum in Gdansk in Poland under the patronage of HE Qatar Museums Authority chairperson Sheikha Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. The exhibition is a joint initiative between QMA's Qatar Orientalist Museum and the National Museums of Gdansk aiming to familiarise visitors with the story of a journey to the Ottoman Empire done by Gdansk mayor Bartholomaus Schachman during the 16th century. The exhibition will remain open to public in Poland till October 15, and will be on view at the ALRIWAQ DOHA, exhibition space, in the Museum of Islamic Art campus, in November. A copy of a letter from Poland President Bronis?aw Komorowski, was read during the ceremony. He expressed his support for the event and praised the growing ties between Poland and Qatar. The exhibition's opening ceremony was held in Gdansk in the presence of Dr Olga Nefedova, collections director at the Orientalist Museum, Kholood al-Fahad, head of research at the Orientalist Museum and Sara al-Mana, Orientalist Museum researcher and one of the authors of the exhibition catalogue. The ceremony was attended by various members of Poland's art community and a number of Polish officials including Professor Malgorzata Omilanowska, Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Pawel Adamowicz, mayor of the City of Gdansk, and Wojciech Bonislawski, director of the National Museum in Gdansk. The exhibition introduces visitors to the story of a journey to the Ottoman Empire done by Gdansk Mayor Bartholomaus Schachman. The latter travelled to the most popular destinations among nobles, wealthy merchants, travellers and diplomats during the 16th century and depicted what he saw during his journey. Schachman commissioned an album, dated 1590, which contains a large number of full-page watercolour drawings that document what he saw during his travels through the Ottoman Empire in 1588-89, depicting the costumes and people of Istanbul, together with scenes of everyday life, festivals and ceremonies. The album is currently part of the Orientalist Museum collection. The Orientalist Museum will host its own version of the "Bartholomaus Schachman (1559 1614): the Art of Travel" exhibition in the Al-RIWAQ DOHA exhibition space from November 15, 2012 to February 11, 2013. An extensive educational programme, including a number of lectures, will complement this exhibition aiming to engage visitors and allowing them to enjoy exploring and recording memories. (END)