Transforming Culinary Traditions into Art in Muslim-Majority Cultures
**Exploring “The Art of Dining: Food Culture in the Islamic World” at the Detroit Institute of Arts**
Food, often described as the universal language of comfort, nourishment, and culture, holds an unmatched power in weaving the threads of connectivity across history and geography. The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) eagerly delves into this concept with its extraordinary exhibit, *The Art of Dining: Food Culture in the Islamic World*. This ambitious presentation, running through January 2025, invites visitors on a culinary odyssey that highlights the rich tapestry of food as an emblem of cultural identity, shared values, and artistic expression throughout the Islamic world.
Organized in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) but tailored to reflect a broader multicultural lens, the exhibit explores the intricate relationship between food, art, community, and tradition, addressing both practical and poetic dimensions of dining.
### A Historical and Geographical Journey
The exhibition greets attendees with a map highlighting the historic cities of the Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA) region, such as Istanbul, Cairo, Baghdad, and Delhi. These locations serve as pivotal trade and cultural hubs within the story of Islamic civilization, not only as centers of commerce but also as prominent crossroads of food culture development.
Organized around nearly 230 artifacts spanning centuries, *The Art of Dining* brings into focus the universality of food-related practices. The objects, sourced from 30 public and private collections worldwide, emphasize how food preparation, presentation, and consumption are integral to identity and shared experience. Featured pieces include steel fruit sculptures used in religious observances, elaborate tin-glazed earthenware, intricately designed spice containers, copper cauldrons, and delicate drinking flasks. Each artwork and object serves as a testament to the artistry and cultural significance of dining traditions across Islamic lands.
From the practicality of a 12th-century Iranian handwashing ewer to the aesthetics of a 15th-century Andalusian glazed ceramic dish, the exhibit skillfully connects visitors to both the intimate and grand gestures of communal dining. These artifacts preserve an evolving narrative of hospitalities unique to different regions yet resonant across their shared histories.
### Food Stories and Rituals: More Than Nutritional Sustenance
Perhaps the exhibit’s most compelling feature is its storytelling capacity. Illustrated manuscripts, including medieval banquet scenes and works from the *Shahnama* (Persian *Book of Kings*), depict feasts, picnics, and moments of communal joy. These scenes underscore the social importance of hospitality, where food is a conduit for fostering relationships and showcasing wealth or political power.
One standout section invites visitors to a *sufra* (floor spread) meal via an interactive digital table that projects historical recipes. Culinary enthusiasts will be enchanted by glimpses into Islamic kitchens with displays of ancient cookbooks, wellness handbooks, and cooking utensils, alongside live screens showing how some of these dishes are recreated today.
The exhibition also incorporates contemporary reflections on food and memory, exemplified by Sadik Kwaish Alfraji’s multimedia installation, *A Thread of Light Between My Mother’s Fingers and Heaven*. The artist evokes the intimate nostalgia of familial dining experiences in Baghdad, unraveling the universal intertwining of food and personal legacy.
### Interconnections and Complexities in Dining Culture
One of the most remarkable aspects of *The Art of Dining* is its acknowledgment of the many influences that enriched the region’s food culture. The DIA highlights intercultural connections fostered through trade and migration, including the use of Chinese porcelain and Italian pottery in Islamic tableware. This emphasis on shared artistry reinforces the idea that food culture transcended religious and ethnic boundaries.
However, the exhibit does not uniformly address the contributions of non-Islamic communities, such as Greek, Armenian, and Jewish populations, who also occupied these historical regions. These groups undoubtedly influenced and were influenced by the Islamic traditions around them. By expanding its lens to include these interactions, the exhibition could offer a deeper exploration of the ways diverse communities shaped the interconnected food heritage of the SWANA region.
The curators’ effort to adopt a multicultural nuance — revising aspects of the original LACMA exhibition — is welcome, though the perspectives might benefit further from the concept of “Islamicate” (a term coined by historian Marshall Hodgson). This term acknowledges Islam’s cultural influence on non-Muslim communities across this vast region, celebrating the complexity and inclusiveness of these historical relationships.
### The Unity of Food and Art in Practice
Beyond showcasing historical artifacts, the exhibit invites self-reflection. A participatory component asks attendees to contribute their own stories about how food has connected them to people and places. This unassuming yet poignant element of the exhibit underscores the universal appeal of food as a medium that bridges gaps between generations, geographies, and cultures.
Paired with musical artifacts such as an Indian *taus* (peacock-shaped string instrument) and the oud (a precursor to the