A new exhibition of Islamic art and photography has gone on show in the historic Durbar Court at the FCO. The exhibition featured contemporary art and photography by British Muslim artists.

Visitors to the Islamic art exhibition saw work by some of the UK's leading Muslim artists. The show's organiser said Ramadan - the Muslim holy month of fasting - is the perfect time of year to showcase Muslim talent.

Nazish Jalini, who helped arrange the event said the idea struck her as she tried to start a Muslim social network and thought that during Ramadan would be the ideal time to showcase Muslim talent through art.

Speaking at the launch of the exhibition was Imran Daud, whose company Elevation Arts represents some of the UK's finest up and coming artistic talent:

"I think this is an important exhibition because you need to showcase Islamic art, it’s an emerging art form, It’s something that we need today in order to be able to speak to wider communities, to bridge the gap, there’s a lot of forces out there who seek to polarize and cause divisions between communities and I think art is one of those things that is used to transcend normal modes of communication it brings out things that are deeper and underlying issues that you might like to express in a way that is not hostile."

One of the artists exhibiting at Durbar Court was Samir Malik:

"We are right in the middle of a massive transition and people are getting up and creating amazing new pieces of art and creating new opportunities, really having it explode, because we want to be understood and we have found art as a medium to actually get out there and to touch movements via the public and we are doing it, so it’s really exciting, the way it’s going, in Birmingham, in London there’s amazing stuff going on and new opportunities being created all the time and it’s a fabulous time to observe this and be part of it."

 

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