080050 EX Kunst in Wien: Objects of Islamic Art in Vienna’s collections (2013W)

“Islamic art” lends itself to different definitions, the simplest one, which is based on the spatio-temporal extent of Islamic civilization, is not without its limits. This problem arises in particular in the context not of theoretical approaches but of specific collections. As the presence of “Islamic art” in Europe and especially in Austria and in Vienna is almost as longstanding and continuous as royal and ecclesiastical collecting, this course introduces not only to the history of “Islamic art”, but also the history of its reception and use in Vienna, from reliquaries to regalia and trophies and lastly art (?). The course will thus focus on the historical visions of “Islamic art” from the medieval period to the present, within the context of Vienna’s collections and with regard to the current debates on the subject.