Seeing Orientalist Art as an Aid to East-West Dialogue

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By Robin Pogrebin

“The Philosopher” by Ludwig Deutsch (1905) from the collection of Shafik Gabr.

NEW YORK---One of the world’s leading collectors of Orientalist art believes the genre can teach the diplomatic world much about East-West relations. Shafik Gabr, an Egyptian businessman and philanthropist, says the sort of immersion that Western painters had in the Middle East in the 19th century is the sort of personal interaction that can lead to better understanding between cultures. So he’s holding a symposium on diplomatic relations based on the concept of Orientalist painting on Monday to be followed by a big party at the Metropolitan Museum’s Temple of Dendur.[link]