‘Arts of the Islamic World’ at Asian Art Museum in San Francisco

Within a century of the prophet Muhammad’s death in AD 632, Islam had spread from its Arabian homeland to a wide swath, from Spain in the west to Pakistan in the east. The art that resulted in these places blended local traditions with the strictures of the faith. The hadith, or sayings of the prophet, for example, contained warnings against artists depicting people or animals (only God can create life), which in turn spurred great creativity in abstract design and calligraphy. But, as the show strives to make clear, many idioms of Islamic art embraced figurative painting, particularly in Persia and Mughal India.  >>>>>

UAE cities at odds over lifestyle, ties to Iran

At first, the differences between the United Arab Emirates two leading cities were merely cultural. Abu Dhabi built world-class museums as fast as Dubai put up extravagant shopping malls — one with a ski slope inside.  But the healthy competition that has helped transform them into two of the Middle East’s most vibrant and bustling cities has soured as the tiny emirates grow increasingly divided over their relations with two other rivals — Iran and the United States.  >>>>>