Museum of Islamic Art In Doha, Qatar

While in Doha, Qatar I went to see the Museum of Islamic Art, beautifully located in the water off the Doha corniche. It's an impressive building - its geometric shapes seem to change depending on the angle you see it from and somehow it's like you never see the same building twice. It is the work of the famous I.M. Pei (the architect behind the steel and glass pyramid outside Louvre in France and the Bank of China building in Hong Kong among many others). He drew his inspiration from many corners of the Muslim world in search of 'the essence of Islamic architecture'.


(The impressive Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar)

A nice palm-lined road with a small cascade running down leads up to the museum - and it is already clear that geometric shapes and symmetry play a large role here (as they do in Islamic art):


(Leading up to the museum)

It'll be date season soon - the dates are growing but are still green:


(Date palm along the road leading up to the museum)

This little bird was eating one of the unripe dates:


(Bird eating an unripe date outside the museum)


(Bird outside the museum)

There is one thing I really appreciate when it comes to museums in the Gulf region: most of them charge no entrance free! I am not sure if it is in order to cultivate a culture of going to museums (something that isn't as prevalent here as in the west for example) or whether it's that the governments have enough money and don't need the entrance fees. Either way, I appreciate it! It's not that I don't want to pay to see what they have on display. There are plenty of museums back home that I have never been to even if they have beautiful collections - the entrance fees are so high that I would never just go for an hour or two - I feel like I would have to see the entire collection to get my money's worth (and because I probably wouldn't come back any time soon). This way I keep putting it off for a rainy day and end up not seeing them.

Inside the museum is this impressive atrium (the entrance door is in the middle of the picture) - it is so thought-through and so geometric. I rarely get really excited about buildings but this one was nothing short of amazing:


(Atrium, entrance level)

At the very top there is a bit of daylight coming through:


(Daylight coming through the top of the atrium)

The atrium - and the giant circular lamp with traditional patterns providing some pleasant indirect light:


(The atrium)

The first thing that becomes visible immediately when one enters the museum is this huge window frame which offers unobstructed views of the Doha city skyline:


(The atrium (seen from the first floor) with its huge window frame)


(View of the Doha city skyline from the atrium - the museum is built in the water hence the unobstructed view)

There was an excellent temporary exhibition on pearl diving, cultivation and trade across the world and across times. It was a really beautiful collection of some of the best pieces in the world and like the rest of the museum it was so well thought-through, detailed and with perfect displays in Arabic and English (no photos allowed). I am not generally a big museum fan but I was really impressed with the quality.

A real favorite of mine is Arabic calligraphy. I truly appreciate the shapes of the letters and the skill of the person who has written them (as I appreciate Chinese calligraphy for the same reason). Being able to write Arabic myself now - with the handwriting of a 6-year old I might add - certainly has not made me appreciate the skill any less... There was a lot of calligraphy on display at the museum - from beautiful illustrated books with golden decorations:


(Book with Arabic writing and beautiful illustrations)


(Book with Arabic writing and beautiful illustrations)

...to exerts from the Qur'an and other scripts in various styles of calligraphy from all over the Islamic world:


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)

This one is a favorite - you can click on the photo to enlarge it - it has different animals drawn within the Arabic letters:


(Arabic calligraphy - with animal drawings in and around the letters)

The museum of course has many other items on display apart from calligraphy.

A book listing all the different star constellations with illustrations and explanations on how to identify them:


(Book of constellations)

...along with a model of the sky with the constellations marked on it:


(Globe of the sky with constellations marked)

I cannot remember how old the items were but most of them were several hundred years old - I saw very few recent items on display.

Old anatomical drawings of the human body (as it was thought to look pre x-ray):


(Anatomical drawings of the human body)

A scared looking little blue monkey:


(Blue monkey on display)

And some of the traditional doors I described in my post about the Arab Fund building in Kuwait - no glue is used, it is all carefully carved pieces of wood put together in a complicated jigsaw puzzle that allows the pieces to move (depending on temperature):


(Traditional wooden doors)

And in a very old Egyptian version as well:


(Traditional wooden doors from Egypt - preserved through times)

The museum also has some beautiful wall carpets on display - intricately woven with patterns and Arabic writing in gold thread:


(Wall piece)

...as well as unique pieces of carpets custom ordered for past rulers and their palaces:


(Woven carpet on display)

...and of course paintings of past rulers:


(Paintings on display)

It's not just the items on display that are beautiful, the rooms are as well. Carefully selected construction materials, really amazing lighting and an atmosphere that is difficult to describe. It's the kind of place that makes you forget all about time and the world outside:


(One of the exhibition rooms)

The exhibitions are spread out over the different floors and each time one exits an exhibition room there is a new view of the atrium (that never seems to look the same):


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of one of the upper floors)

Another favorite of mine is ceramics (and the craft and skills that go into it):


(Blue glazed ceramic tiles with Arabic inscriptions)


(A glazed ceramic tile)


(Ceramic tiles forming a geometric pattern)


(Ceramic tile with Arabic inscriptions)

What I also really appreciated about the museum was that they offered an excellent audio guide (again free of charge) - that had extremely detailed information about Islamic art and its different periods in general and about the specific items. It even had a small screen where pictures and video clips were shown to offer more information or to allow a look into the inside of some of the pieces on display. I know many museums offer audio guides nowadays but this one was really something special - also because it allowed you full control over the amount of information you wished to hear. I suppose you could spend an entire day - if not more - in there if you listened to everything on the guide.

Some more details from the museum itself (yes, I went a little crazy with the camera but I just kept seeing new angles and patterns):


(Day light coming through the top of the atrium)


(View of the floors with the circular patterns and the lights of the ceilings)


(Even the ceiling forms a beautiful pattern in itself)


(Close-up of the circular suspended lamp hanging in the atrium)


(From the main staircase - it looks like a 'funny house' where there are stairs upside down as well)


(Different materials, structures and patterns - yet it all comes together beautifully)

The museum has an outside terrace with fountains as well. I suppose they use it for outdoor events during the winter but I don't know if it has other use than being a pleasant 'oasis' offering great views of the city:


(Outside terrace and fountains - and a local man taking pictures)


(Close-up of the outside fountains with a view of Doha city across the bay in the background)


(View from the terrace: the Qatar Islamic Cultural Center Fanar and a fishing boat)


(View from the terrace: a local fishing boat returning to the harbor)

As you walk away from the museum it - again - seems to change its shape:


(The museum from the side)


(The museum from the side - with palm trees, lamp posts, arches and walkways perfectly aligned)

And a last view from ashore (where the water access becomes visible as well):


(The museum seen from ashore)


(The Doha city skyline across the water - as seen from the side of the museum)

There is one more thing I really appreciated about the museum: the custodians were all young local women (I'd guess final year of high school or maybe college students). I don't know if they were paid for their job or if it's somehow part of their studies (maybe they get credit for doing voluntary work at the museum?) but it is the first time in this region that I have seen this scale of locals working.

As I have talked about before, most non-governmental jobs are held by migrant workers. Almost all service jobs (from cleaning and driving to hotels, shops and restaurants) are held by migrant workers from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Egypt and other Middle Eastern and Asian countries. In Kuwait I have seen a few locals work in some of the mobile phone service offices, some doing passport control at the airport and a few are in charge of security at the malls (maybe they don't trust foreigners to do that) but apart from that I rarely see Kuwaitis work in the public space (the majority as I said hold office-type government and ministry positions and a lot of women work from home doing food and cake businesses for example so it's not that they don't work they are just not very visible).

Apart from the many young women employed at the museum - and may I add in very stylish yet conservative uniforms that were designed to integrate the black veils that most Qatari women wear - I also saw a lot of women employed at the airport. Apart from the passport control women there were also uniformed women in control of the queuing lines. I found this a bit of an unusual sight because the women would actually tell men off if they did not wait in line.

I don't intend to make it sound like women in this region don't work - or that locals in general in this region don't work because that is certainly not the case. But as I said I have never been anywhere else in this region where I have actually seen so many locals work in visible positions that elsewhere would have been offered to migrant workers.

Walking The Corniche In Doha

While K was busy at work, I decided to go sightseeing in Doha. Just like in Kuwait there is a nice corniche and it's possible to walk all the way along it - which I decided to try.


(I walked roughly from the dhow harbor (bottom arrow) along the corniche - with a few detours - to the Sheraton hotel (upper arrow))

From our hotel it was a short walk to the beginning of the corniche. On the way I passed this reminder of the Asian Games 2006 that Doha hosted (there are a few more in other colors spread throughout the city):


(From the 2006 Asian Games in Doha)

Of course one should never try and compare two countries but I tend to do it because I am trying to understand more of the Gulf region and how Kuwait fits into that picture - i.e. how it is similar and different to other countries in the Gulf. I already wrote about how the Qatari seem to dress more conservatively/traditionally (How To Spend A Week-end In Firenze, Italy (Mall-O-Mania Qatar Style) but another thing that I noticed was that it seems the population of Doha is more mixed than that of Kuwait in terms of nationalities represented. I saw a lot of African people (and later a Kenyan lady I know in Kuwait told me that there is indeed a large Kenyan community in Qatar) and what appeared to be a more mixed Arab population as well. I couldn't really find any comparable statistics to support this, so it's just an observation. Like in Kuwait, the Qatari are a minority in their own country (about 3/4 of the population is expatriate with temporary residence permit).


(A shop selling Sudanese requirements (whatever that includes))

Down by the corniche is the impressive Museum of Islamic Arts. I went to see it and it was absolutely amazing - so much so that I will do a separate post on it later.


(Museum of Islamic Arts, Doha corniche)

From the museum it is also clear how green Doha is in some places - I suppose the humid climate helps but they still must be using an enormous amount of water to keep it this green and beautiful (I realize that to many of you this looks like nothing extraordinary but once you live in a desert country you really come to appreciate seeing green grass):


(Green Doha - a small park/patch of green grass by the corniche)

Right next to the museum is a small harbor that serves as the hub for many of the local fishing boats:


(Local fishing boats, Doha corniche)

...And there was even some wildlife to be spotted:


(Birds - one looks like a type of heron? - in front of local fishing boats - and with a hazy Doha city skyline in the background)


(A heron (?), a sea gull and another little bird hanging out by the water, Doha corniche)


(Another tourist taking a photo of a roundabout close to the corniche - often the roundabouts are nicely decorated - in this case with clay pots and water coming out of some of them)

It seems that Qatar is trying to enforce the traffic regulations - I saw quite a few signs reminding drivers to take care of the pedestrians and people working roadside. This one is also quite nice:


(A lifted finger to remind of the traffic regulations, under a stop sign in Arabic)

From the corniche walk, this impressive building is very visible. It is the Qatar Islamic Cultural Centre - also known as Fanar:


(Qatar Islamic Cultural Centre, Doha)

It also looks really nice at night when it is all lit up:


(Qatar Islamic Cultural Centre by night)

Actually the big Souq Waqif is located in this area as well but I will write a separate post about the souq as I spent quite a lot of time there.

Another Doha landmark is the Pearl monument. Something the Gulf countries share is a pre-oil past of pearl diving (I wrote about this in a Dubai post as well - Soaking Up Culture In Dubai). While it is oil and gas that has paid for much of the modern developments, pearl diving was the main economic activity in many of the Gulf countries until it collapsed in the 1930s.


(The Pearl with local fishing boats and Doha city skyline in the background)


(Close-up of the Pearl)


(The Pearl about to eat the Qatar Islamic Cultural Centre - Pacman style)

Close by the corniche walk is the Diwan Amiri - the residence of the Emir of Qatar (on the right hand side covered as it is undergoing renovation) along with the Grand Mosque and a pink clock tower:


(Diwan Amiri, the impressive green mosque and a pink clock tower)

Further along the corniche, the skyline of Doha city becomes clearer. In this particular part of the corniche walk are large yellow letters forming some words including 'Realize' and 'Think'.

I particularly liked this one as it must really have taken a lot of effort and vision to realize this impressive skyline in what was a traditional desert country:


('Realize' in front of the Doha city skyline)

The 'Think' is in front of the Palm Tree Island. However, I am quite convinced that it is not actually a palm tree but a sidra/cedar tree - a tree important to Qatar and the region and the logo of the influential Qatar Foundation. Considering the Qatar Foundation's heavy involvement in education, I suppose it is a very fitting word to have 'think' in front of that island with the tree:


('Think' in front of Palm Tree Island)


(Getter closer to Doha city skyline)

At one point along the corniche walk there was a long wall with colorful mosaics depicting Qatar's development (there were many more mosaics but I chose just 4 sections to show here):


(From a Bedouin past of roaming the desert with camels...)


(...to trading and selling products...)


(...to diving for precious and at that time (before cultured pearls) expensive pearls...)


(...up until a modern Qatar with oil, gas and the pleasures of modern life and leisure activities set against the Doha skyline)

Qatar has the 4th largest gas reserve in the world and the largest GDP per capita.


(Birds promenading along the corniche)

I also spotted this nice bird - it looks like a blue heron of some kind:


(Blue heron (?), Doha corniche)


(Blue heron (?), ready for take-off)

Speaking of animals, this one - which is an oryx and is also the logo of the national carrier Qatar Airways - is, I believe, the mascot from the 2006 Asian Games. The Asian Games logo has been scratched off its shirt and the count-down display in the background is now used for advertising other sports events. At least they found a way to recycle it:


(Asian Games 2006 mascot with Doha city skyline in the background)


(Another yellow word - 'Achieve')

As I got closer to the skyline, I realized the blue bird had accompanied me (it's at the bottom of the picture):


(Doha city skyline and the blue heron(?))

I got another good shot of it...



...Before it flew off for good:



By then I had gotten into the Doha city centre:


(High rises in Doha city centre)


(Close-up of twisted high rise)

This one appears as nothing special from a distance:



...but as you get closer it becomes clear that it is actually an intricate mesh of Arabic patterns:




(Bird along the corniche)

As I touched upon, Qatar is heavily investing in the education of its population - through the Qatar foundation and other means. I did not go and see it but they have built an entire Education City that has become home to a number of prestigious American university branch campuses and other educational institutions.

Along the corniche there is the newly opened Knowledge Enrichment Centre - another testament to the value placed upon education and knowledge:


(The Knowledge Enrichment Centre - closed when I was there so on the to-do list for next visit)

Here is another thing I did not expect to see in this region. I don't know if anybody actually uses them but the idea is great (the display was all black so I'm not sure the machine is working). If it wasn't for the heat I would have loved to do a bike ride along the corniche:


(Bikes for hire along the end of the corniche)

The trip ended at the Sheraton park - next to the landmark Sheraton hotel (to the right outside of this picture). It was truly a wonderful little park with blossoming trees, lots of green grass, a nice little playground and of course wireless internet throughout the area:


(Beautiful tree with deep orange flowers in Sheraton park)


(Beautiful trees in Sheraton park, downtown Doha)

My trip ended here (I took a taxi back to my hotel) and although it was not much longer than 4 km (without the detours) it felt more like I had walked 25 km. The humidity in Qatar is quite intense and I am still learning how my body reacts to the high temperatures and how little physical effort I am able to make in this climate. It is quite strange as I can only walk about half a kilometer before I need to drink water and gain my breath - and after a trip like this (which is something I would usually do in an hour or two) I went straight back to the hotel and slept for an hour before I felt normal again. I am glad I experienced it though - if we will do more traveling this summer I know not to plan too much in a day.

On a last note, I thought about how the place we grow up shapes our perception of things and in particular how we get used to certain pictograms as generally valid and applicable. To me for example, the symbol for a pedestrian is quite simply a man (walking or standing - depending on whether it is related to a green or red light at a pedestrian crossing) looking something like this:


(What I perceive as a pedestrian pictogram)

I never really thought much about how in other cultures this would look different - here's the pictogram for a pedestrian in Qatar (where both men and women wear clothes that have this silhouette):



I will be posting some more about the Museum of Islamic Arts as well as the Souq Waqif and some of the yummy food we had, so stay tuned...