Professor Anna Contadini takes us through an evocative journey to discover the fascination and curiosity that Islamic art and intellectual thought inspired in the pre-modern European thinkers and scholars, and how that fascination—led by wonder and awe—resulted in the creation of some of the most beautiful cultural dialogues in the history of mankind.

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.

 Archaeologist and professor Scott Redford opens our eyes to better understand the Crusades, a period which is usually seen a bloodshed, but that meant much more than that to the vibrant cultural development of the Mediterranean even to our days. 

Gardens have had a special place in mankind's history, from the Garden of Eden to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, humans have always attempted to surround themselves with nature. Gardens in Islam have also been a popular design device that was present in many houses or palaces. 
The Palestinian Museum Gardens are an exploration of landscape as an expression of identity at the intersection of nature and culture. The gardens represent the dominant role of the natural landscape in Palestinian life, and tell the story of its people through the various plants that sustain it, both physically and culturally. Lara Zureikat talks about the challenges and virtues of this epic project in Palestine and that joined the sweet smell of rosemary and the fragrance of thyme.

Edhem Eldem reflects on the past, multiculturalism and Orientalism taking the Ottoman Empire as a case study. 

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.

Doris Abouseif shares her research on concepts of beauty and objects from the Islamic past.

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.

This week's podcast brings you a story of loss, but also of hope. Layla S. Diba narrates her experiences directing the Negarestan Museum in Tehran—and how it was erased from history. She also reflects on the importance of culture in protecting our identity.

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.

By expanding our experience to the lives of men and women in different times and places, history teaches us valuable things both about others and ourselves. With the current threat of COVID-19, the world seems to navigate towards the unknown. However, we might be able to learn from history? MIT Professor Nasseer O. Rabbat gives his view on the currect socio-economic situation.

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.

Venetia Porter walks us through her experience curating the Albukhary Foundation Islamic galleries of the British Museum, how the collection grew bigger with contemporary art, how institutions are reacting to the coronavirus threat and what is making the young further engage with heritage and culture.

This podcast is part of Asia House Arts in Isolation Series and Converging Paths, an initiative organised in partnership with the Barakat Trust that promotes the arts and cultures of the Islamic World.