Two Decades of Islamic Art: Celebrating 20 Years of The Jameel Gallery at the V&A

This July, the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in South Kensington reached a significant milestone, marking two decades since the inauguration of The Jameel Gallery of Islamic Art. Since its opening in 2006, the gallery has served as a cornerstone of the museum’s mission to showcase the depth, beauty, and historical significance of the arts of the Islamic Middle East. To commemorate this twentieth anniversary, the museum has spent the year hosting a series of vibrant displays, live craft demonstrations, and academic conversations, all while looking toward the future of how these historic collections interact with contemporary practice.

The Jameel Gallery acts as a global stage for approximately 400 objects, with a geographic scope stretching from the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the vast reaches of Central Asia. The collection is remarkably diverse, featuring ceramics, intricate carpets, masterful metalwork, woodwork, glass, and delicate manuscripts. Spanning from the 8th century to the present day, the gallery offers an immersive experience that remains accessible to all, as it continues to be free for the public to visit.

The creation of the gallery was made possible through the enduring support of the Jameel family, a partnership that has since become a hallmark of the V&A’s commitment to Islamic art. This relationship has deepened over the years, most notably with the 2009 launch of the Jameel Prize. This international award has become a vital platform, bridging the gap between traditional Islamic craftsmanship and the dynamic world of contemporary art. Throughout this anniversary year, the museum has collaborated closely with Community Jameel to produce a year-long program of events, ensuring that the legacy of the gallery is celebrated not just through its permanent collection, but through active, living engagement.

A Year of Craft and Connection

A central theme of the anniversary celebrations has been the emphasis on "living traditions." By inviting contemporary artists to demonstrate their skills within the gallery walls, the V&A has fostered a unique dialogue between the historic objects in the display cases and the living masters who continue to practice these ancient techniques today.

In May, the museum embraced this ethos during London Craft Week with a focus on the art of khayamiyya, or Egyptian cotton appliqué. The gallery hosted Hany Abd El-Kader, a master of this intricate textile art. The event included a sold-out talk introduced by Seif El Rashidi of the Barakat Trust, which provided context for the craft, followed by a hands-on workshop that allowed participants to learn the labor-intensive techniques of appliqué firsthand.

The momentum continued into July, the month of the gallery’s official twentieth anniversary. On July 17, the museum hosted a landmark conference titled The Islamic Art Museumscape. The event served as a forum for curators and scholars to take the pulse of how institutions worldwide are currently stewarding Islamic collections. Participants reflected on how the landscape of museum curation has evolved since 2006, discussing shifting trends in provenance research, exhibition design, and the ethical responsibilities of housing cultural heritage from the Islamic world. Later that month, the museum’s Friday Late program, held in collaboration with Shubbak, explored the theme "Body as a Vessel," highlighting contemporary creativity emerging from the Arab world and the broader SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) region.

The celebrations remained active into September, aligning with the London Design Festival. A new installation by Aziza Kadyri was unveiled, designed to weave through the gallery’s historic arches. Kadyri collaborated with Uzbek embroidery artist Yulduz Mukhiddinova, who traveled to London to lead workshops on the traditional art of suzani embroidery. These sessions, held both within the gallery and at the Awakenings Friday Late event, saw roughly 80 participants learn the traditional stitches, accompanied by a musical performance from Uzbek singer-songwriter Laylo.

Two Decades of Curatorial Evolution

Mariam Rosser-Owen, Curator of the Middle East at the V&A’s Asia Department, notes that the anniversary is as much about the history of the collection as it is about the modern gallery space. "As curators of Middle Eastern art, we are so fortunate to be able to work with one of the best collections of Islamic art in the world," Rosser-Owen explains. The origins of this collection date back to the 1850s, when the museum was founded with the explicit goal of improving British design. Over the ensuing century, the V&A’s holdings expanded to include world-famous treasures that have inspired generations of artists, including figures as influential as William Morris.

The physical space that the gallery occupies today has a history of its own. It was first opened in 1950 as a dedicated venue to display the best of the collection. While the gallery underwent a refresh in the 1970s, it required a more substantial overhaul by the time the Middle East curatorial section was established in 2002. The support of the Jameel family in 2006 was, therefore, transformative. It allowed the museum to create an environment that was not only aesthetically appropriate but also technically superior for the conservation and exhibition of such delicate materials.

Fady Jameel, Family Ambassador of Community Jameel and Chairman and Founder of Art Jameel, echoes the sentiment that the gallery is a living institution. "The Jameel Gallery at the V&A anchors the Jameel family’s long-standing commitment to supporting and celebrating Islamic art," he says. "Over the past 20 years, the gallery has become a platform for research, public engagement, and contemporary creative practice, showing how historic artistic traditions continue to evolve." For the Jameel family, the partnership is a way to ensure that traditional arts are not merely preserved in silence, but are actively shared with new, diverse audiences.

Iconic Objects in the Collection

For those visiting the gallery, the experience is defined by several standout pieces that anchor the collection. Among the most famous is the Ardabil Carpet. Created in 1539–40 for the shrine of Shaykh Safi al-Din in Ardabil, Iran, it is recognized as the world’s oldest dated carpet. To protect the fibers and colors of this masterpiece, the gallery features a specialized, climate-controlled case that allows the carpet to be viewed from above, as it was originally intended. Visitors are advised to time their arrival for the top or bottom of the hour, when the carpet is illuminated for ten minutes to preserve its delicate dyes.

Other highlights include the rock crystal ewer, carved in Cairo during the 11th century for the Fatimid treasuries, and the towering minbar made for Sultan Qaitbay between 1468 and 1496. The minbar, a masterpiece of geometric wood and ivory inlay, stands as a testament to the mathematical precision of Islamic craftsmanship. Near the entrance, visitors are greeted by a 15th-century lustreware bowl from Málaga, Spain, whose shimmering glaze captures the light in a way that continues to fascinate viewers centuries after its creation.

Finally, the gallery remains committed to updating its narrative, as seen in the recent addition of 20th-century Iranian prints. Acquired in 2023 as a gift from Tarlan Rafiee and Yashar Samimi Mofakham, these works represent the modern art movement in Iran between the 1950s and 1970s, featuring pieces by artists such as Nasser Ovissi, a key figure in the Saqqakhaneh movement.

As the anniversary year draws to a close, the V&A is looking ahead to further public engagement. In November 2026, during Islamic Art Week, artist Mariam Ashraf will demonstrate the technique of plaster carving—the method used to create the decorative windows found in the gallery’s Cairo collection. This demonstration will also be live-streamed, ensuring that the gallery’s reach extends far beyond South Kensington. Two decades after its doors first opened, The Jameel Gallery continues to act as a bridge, linking the extraordinary artifacts of the past with the voices of the present.