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Orientalist Painting Exhibition in Sharjah from Today

SHARJAH - Lady Mary Wortely Montagu (1667- 1745) clad in a gorgeous gold Turkish dress, with pearls and feathers adorning her hair, as an African Moor looks on holding an umbrella, is a painting by British artist Jonathan Richardson.

Lady Montagu’s portrait is only one among the 85 masterpieces that will adorn the walls of the Sharjah Art Museum for the ‘Lure of the East: British Orientalist Painting Exhibition’.

Scheduled to begin from today 18, the exhibition is billed as the biggest of its kind in the Middle East Region, and is organised by Tate Britain in partnership with the British Council- UAE; the Pera Museum- Istanbul and the Sharjah Art Museum. The touring exhibition was earlier held in the US, UK and Turkey.

Lure of the East is a showcase of works of art by Orientalist artists of international acclaim. The exhibition features paintings of the Orient by British artists ranging from the eighteenth to the nineteenth century.

It will include major works by celebrated British painters such as William Holman Hunt, Richard Dadd, Lord Leighton, John Frederick Lewis and David Roberts. It will also bring together several rarely seen works from private collections.

Manal Ataya, Director General, Sharjah Museums Department, said “The exhibition is part of Sharjah Museum Department’s efforts to maintain strategic partnerships with international institutions for promoting dialogue through art and culture”.

The exhibition will continue till April 30 at the Sharjah Art Museum. Timings are from 9 AM to 9 PM, and 4 PM to 9 PM on Fridays. Entry is free.

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com