Release Date: July 13, 2004

NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART OPENS EXHIBITION SHOP FOR "PALACE AND MOSQUE: ISLAMIC ART FROM THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM"

Washington, DC-An extraordinary array of jewelry and textiles, posters, stationery products, postcards, note cards, culinary items, books for children of all ages, and other educational items related to Islamic culture will be offered in the special exhibition shop on the concourse level of the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in conjunction with Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Victoria and Albert Museum, on view July 18, 2004 through February 6, 2005.

Specialty Items

Islamic-inspired items include tote bags; assorted styles of sterling silver, pearl, and enamel jewelry including pins, bracelets, earrings, and necklaces; a leather jewelry case; assorted woven silk scarves; ties in various colors and designs; handbag accessories including purses and wallets; tabletop accessories that include table runners, placemats, and coasters; Islamic-inspired ceramics such as Iznik plates and vases; inlaid wood boxes; tiles; journals with Islamic tile designs; assorted candles in latticework copper; and decorative brass trays. There will be also a variety of CDs of classic Islamic music, a film in VHS and DVD formats, and a large selection of books. A wide selection of children's books will be available including David Macaulay's Mosque, for which a book signing is scheduled on November 6, 2004, during the Gallery's Family Weekend.

Catalogue

The 144-page companion book to the exhibition, Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Victoria and Albert Museum, published by V&A Publications, London, is lavishly illustrated with 210 images in full color. It is co-authored by Tim Stanley, senior curator, Middle East, Victoria and Albert Museum, with Mariam Rosser-Owen and Stephen Vernoit. It will be available for $50 in hardcover and $35 in softcover in the Gallery Shops, by calling 1-(800) 697-9350 or (202) 842-6002; or on the Gallery's Web site at www.nga.gov/shop/shop.htm.

Exhibition

Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Victoria and Albert Museum features more than 100 works from one of the most renowned Islamic art collections in the world. Selected from a superb collection of more than 10,000 objects, the exhibition will convey the richness of Islamic art of the Middle East on a scale and at a level of quality hard to find outside the region. The exhibition will travel to the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas (April 3-September 4, 2005); the Setagaya Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan (October 22-December 11, 2005); and the Millennium Galleries, Sheffield, England (January 14-April 16, 2006).

This exhibition was organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, in association with the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

The exhibition at the National Gallery of Art is generously sponsored by H.R.H. Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United States.

The international tour of this exhibition has been made possible by the generosity of Mohammed Jameel, the benefactor of the V&A's Jameel Gallery of Islamic Art, which is dedicated to the memory of Mr. Abdul Latif Jameel, the late founder of the Abdul Latif Jameel Group, and his wife Nafisa.

The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

General Information

The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden are at all times free to the public. They are located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, and are open Monday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The Gallery is closed on December 25 and January 1. For information call (202) 737-4215 or the Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at (202) 842-6176, or visit the Gallery's Web site at www.nga.gov.

Visitors will be asked to present all carried items for inspection upon entering the East and West Buildings. Checkrooms are free of charge and located at each entrance. Luggage and other oversized bags must be presented at the 4th Street entrances to the East or West Building to permit x-ray screening and must be deposited in the checkrooms at those entrances. For the safety of visitors and the works of art, nothing may be carried into the Gallery on a visitor's back. Any bag or other items that cannot be carried reasonably and safely in some other manner must be left in the checkrooms. Items larger than 17 x 26 inches cannot be accepted by the Gallery or its checkrooms.

For additional press information please call or send inquiries to:

Press Office
National Gallery of Art
2000B South Club Drive
Landover, MD 20785
phone: (202) 842-6353 e-mail: pressinfo@nga.gov

Deborah Ziska
Chief of Press and Public Information
(202) 842-6353
ds-ziska@nga.gov

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