How is one to convey the history of Islamic images of Muhammad freed from today’s polarised politics? What are the challenges and pinch points of this particular academic endeavour?More

Under the steady hum of a ceiling fan, Ahmed Othman weaves golden threads through black fabric, creating Koranic verses, a century after his grandfather's work adorned the Kaaba in Mecca's Grand Mosque. A ceremonial hanging of the kiswah over the cubic structure symbolises the launch of the hajj annual pilgrimageMore

In her latest exhibition in Japan, Farzaneh Khademian depicts figures who seem detached from their surroundings. In interview with Qantara.de, the Iranian photographer and painter explains the impact of photography, migration and gender-based inequality on her paintings. By Changiz M. VarziMore

Afghanistan's first female street artist depicts Afghan women as they face renewed Taliban threats. Despite the danger, she pursues her work of resistance. By Cristina BurackMore

In August 1978, four men set fire to the Cinema Rex in the Iranian city of Abadan, killing more than four hundred people inside. The event is said to have started the Iranian Revolution to overthrow the Shah's regime. Forty years later, "Careless Crime" by Iranian filmmaker Shahram Mokri depicts four men planning to burn down a cinema in a contemporary Iran where ghosts of the past haunt the current society. Interview by Schayan RiazMore

How to talk about spiritual matters in a highly secularised, hyper-pragmatic society? This was the question artists exhibiting at the Stamford Art Centre in Singapore grappled with during the 2020 Singapore Art Week. By Naima MorelliMore

Archaeologists in Mertola have spent the last 40 years looking for traces of Portugalʹs Islamic past. What they found shows that Islam is not alien to Europe and has in fact deeply influenced Portuguese history and culture. By Marta VidalMore