Themes of the Forum

Bridging times and geographies

  • How can we define Islamic art and heritage? what do we value as Islamic art? and what factors play a role in the making of Islamic heritages?
  • What is unique about Islamic art?
  • How the Islamic arts/architecture in different timeframes and spaces borrowed from the existing built and natural environments?
  • How these borrowings contributed in the shaping of Islamic arts/architecture?
  • How did the Islamic arts/architecture inspire artistic creativities throughout history? What are the reflections in contemporary world?
  • Are the Islamic arts and artistic traditions timeless?

Converging cultures

  • What is the role of Islamic arts and heritage in bridging the gap and converging cultures?
  • How was this manifested then and now?
  • What is the Islamic Art’s influence across the world’s major cities?
  • What aspects of the Islamic arts/architecture creates a source of inspiration for contemporary artistic creativity?
  • How the various forms of cultural interpretations influenced the evolution and diversification of arts/architecture over the wider Islamic world?

Promoting inter-cultural dialogue

  • How Islamic arts and heritage contributes in promoting inter-cultural dialogue? what are the potentialities?
  • What is the role of state and non-state actors in advocating and promoting the inter-cultural dialogue via Islamic arts and heritage?
  • What are the potentialities of Islamic heritage in ethnic/religiously conflicted zones to create an inter-communal nexus of unification?