Culture & The Arts
The Aga Khan Award for Architecture and the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat in Portugal present a lecture by H.E. Sheikha Mai Bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, member of the Steering Committee of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2020-2022 Cycle. Sheikha Mai is President of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities.
Get a close look at the Aga Khan Museum's "IMAGE? The Power of the Visual" exhibition and go behind the scenes to watch the team as they bring the exhibition to life. Join the Museum's Head of Performing Arts, Amirali Alibhai as he sits down with world-renowned performer of Northern Indian classical music, Steve Oda, enjoy special performances by Kune, an intercultural band made up of Toronto-based artists, and hear about all the exciting ways in which the Museum's education team is engaging and shaping young minds.
The Aga Khan Museum, the Consulate General of the Republic of France in Toronto, and the French Institute present an evening filled with a diverse line-up of artists, activists, and leaders that challenge and explore our relationship with the natural world and how we can preserve our planet for generations to come.
A reflective collection of performances celebrating music from around the world. RUHI is a group of musicians who wanted to demonstrate the strength and harmony that is possible through the medium of music despite differences in geography and culture.
A reflective collection of performances celebrating music from around the world. RUHI is a group of musicians who wanted to demonstrate the strength and harmony that is possible through the medium of music despite differences in geography and culture.
A reflective collection of performances celebrating music from around the world. RUHI is a group of musicians who wanted to demonstrate the strength and harmony that is possible through the medium of music despite differences in geography and culture.
Learn the ancient art of Kufic Calligraphy from Jalal Gilani. The Kufic script has long been used as a preferred calligraphy style for Quranic transcription and architectural decoration. It is characterized by angular, rectilinear letterforms and their horizontal orientation. Re-create basic structural forms of Arabic and Urdu letters into geometric designs, a technique that feels much like solving a puzzle.
Celebrate National Poetry Month with a lyrical interpretation of an Arabic folk tale from "One Thousand and One Nights" performed by storyteller Dawne McFarlane and Juno nominee Maryem Toller. Also featured is the 'Great Poet Series: Reflections of Hafez' with a stellar lineup of musical artists, animated by the mystical whirling dance of Farzad AttarJafari and translations by Sheniz Janmohamed. Hussein Jadavji & Celine George then take us on a journey of spoken word that might challenge our perceptions.
In a one-time-only concert, four electrifying vocalists with roots in the African continent honour the role of women and mothers in carrying on musical traditions.
Explore the art and the science behind the Aga Khan Museum exhibition Hidden Stories: Books Along the Silk Roads with this illuminating talk featuring the University of Toronto’s Dr. Alexandra Gillespie.
The final episode in our three-part docu-series grapples with the question of how to carry on and preserve a centuries-old oral and musical tradition. We meet Lakha Khan’s son, Dane, who not long ago was driving a truck and showed little interest in following in his father’s footsteps. Now, Dane has joined forces with his father and an inspiring collection of artists, craftspeople, and other culture lovers striving to keep Rajasthani musical traditions alive.
Enter the Rajasthan home of Sindhi master musician Lakha Khan and experience him sing songs and perform instrumentals that speak to the worldly and sacred nature of his music. Fluent in five languages, he sings in Seraiki, Sindhi, Marwari, Punjabi, and Hindi.
Journey Beyond with the Aga Khan Museum’s 2021 Lapis Digital Benefit. This year’s online gala features mesmerizing performances from Mi'gmaq singer-songwriter Darlene Gijuminag, Pakistani singer Ali Sethi, Flamenco troupe Compañia Carmen Romero, and more. Hosted by journalist, teacher, and advocate Abdul-Rehman Malik.
Ankur and Ashutosh, long-time friends and founders of Amarrass Records, set out on a desert odyssey to film and record a dying culture of traditional Indian music. Driving through the remote villages of Rajasthan in northwest India, they meet master musicians including Lakha Khan, a passionate and energetic Sindhi sarangi maestro who is concerned that the next generation will not carry on the tradition.
Focus on the importance of Islamic architecture and how it has evolved over the years. Additionally, discuss how Islamic architecture interacts with culture and society and stress the role of human agency in shaping that interplay on 12 November 2020.
This episode celebrates the contributions of Indigenous artists during June - Canada's Indigenous People's month. A moving piece by Indigenous performers Cris Derksen and Moe Clark, 'Refuge in Truth' is a piece that looks at notions of displacement and alienation and how memory can help reclaim the space of belonging and connection. It is inspired by our Sanctuary Exhibition and performed in the gallery. An excerpt by Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate George Elliot Clarke discusses the diversity within the Indigenous Turtle Island Community. Juno award-winning Jeremy Dutcher's artist residency presentation and interview with the CBC's Sook-Yin Lee are featured to close the episode, his music video 'Mehcinut.
Celebrate spring and Navroz as Dr. Ulrike Al-Khamis, curator at the Aga Khan Museum talks about how the world is coming alive this time of year, experience the uplifting performances of Montreal artists Kiya Tabassian and Hamin Honari, and hear a warm conversation between Dr. Filiz Cakir Phillip and Marianne Fenton on the fascination with tulips, a favorite springtime flower.
Explore the exchange and connectivity between different Asian cultures with The Aga Khan Museum. Beginning in South Asia, a pocket performance on the bansuri by Hasheel showcases this unique cultural tradition followed by a discussion between curator Dr. Marika Sardar and Dr. Katherine Anne Paul on one of the most eye-catching pieces in the Museum's collection. Learn how a magnificent object made in China in the 15th century ended up at a court in India in the 17th century. Museum volunteer Jane Liu reflects on the beauty of the work's colorful clouds and mists and how they remind her of a motif in Chinese art. The episode closes with a glorious performance on the pipa from renowned artist Wen Zhao presenting traditional music from China.
In recognition of International Museum Day, the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center USA in collaboration with the High Museum of Art-Atlanta, Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University, and the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto presents a discussion on the role of museums in bridging cultures and developing solutions for the social, economic and environmental challenges of the present.
Host Rahim Ladhani sits down with Dr. Ulrike Al-Khamis, Interim Director and CEO of the Aga Khan Museum, to explore how the Museum has fared through the pandemic, what lies ahead, and how the Museum continues to offer new insights and perspectives that connect cultures and bring communities together. We then journey through the Museum with a guided tour of the newest exhibition, taking performances in the auditorium and making a final stop at the Museum shop.
A film by Dr. Farzin Rezaeian, an award-winning documentary, and educational producer, which explores the richness and diversity of the ancient tradition of Nowruz (New Year). This colorful and joyous festival is celebrated across cultures by over 300,000 people in various countries around the world.