Mawlawi complex, tomb of Rumi, Konya, Turkey, photo John Renard

Rumi – A Life in Pictures

In this interview, John Renard, author of Rumi: A Life in Pictures (out now from the Edinburgh Studies in Islamic Art series), discusses his new book, which studies illustrated 16th-century Ottoman manuscripts of a major hagiography of Rumi and his…

A fur rug is draped over a globe

The dignity of pointing

by Hilan Bensusan Pointing is a thoroughly situated activity. One points at what is somehow around – even when one needs complex language devices for the exercise. Maybe because thinking often aims to be indifferent to where one is, pointing…

What embroidery can tell us about sustainable fashion

By Marta Kargól Some years ago, I discovered an extraordinary collection of embroidery samples preserved in The Museum Rotterdam. The collection consists of more than 250 embroidery samples, patterns and fashion drawings. These objects bear witness to the great yet…