Renovation of the Pergamon Museum with Deniz Erduman-Çalış

© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Juliane Eirich

The Museum of Islamische Kunst in Berlin is getting ready to undergo its biggest transformation since its foundation, with a brand-new permanent exhibition due to open in 2026. In this episode of the ART Informant, Isabelle Imbert welcomes Dr Deniz Erduman-Çalış, curator of Islamic arts, to talk about the new permanent exhibition of Islamic arts, the inherent challenges in designing new rooms, but also the opportunities to tell new stories and retell old ones. A lot to be excited for!

Reproductions of Artworks discussed in the Episode (click on the images to see more information)

Iznik tiles lunette from Piyale Pasha complex in Istanbul, where it was placed over a window, completed in 1575 (1891,102)
Iznik ceramic tiles panel, Ottoman Turkey, 16th c. (1891,122)
Ceramic tile, fragment of a frieze inscribed with Qur’anic verses. Iran, 13th c., maybe Takht-e Suleiman (I. 7709)
Prayer niche (mihrab) from the Beyhekim Mosque, Konya/Anatolia, 13th c.
Carved stone façade of the palace Qasr Mshatta, Jordania, 743-44 century. Total width: 33 m (I. 6163)
“Aleppo Room”, Syria, 17th century. Painted wooden wall from the house of a Christian Merchant.