Virginia Commonwealth University & VCU School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUQ) successfully hosted the Second Biennial Symposium on Islamic Art.


November 4–6, 2007 in Doha, Qatar

Program Book
Symposium Photos
Speaker Presentations

Twelve international speakers explored the theme of water in Islamic
lands from southern Europe to South Asia. Topics ranged from water
supply and distribution to its role in religion and popular culture.

Organizers
Sheila S. Blair and Jonathan M. Bloom, shared holders of the Hamad bin
Khalifa Endowed Chair of Islamic Art at VCU and the Norma Jean Calderwood
University Chair of Islamic and Asian Art at Boston College, convened the conference and edited the proceedings.

Keynote speaker
Carole Hillenbrand, Professor, Islamic History and Head of Islamic and
Middle Eastern Studies, University of Edinburgh, and recent recipient of
the King Faisal Prize for Islamic Studies, spoke on the roles of water
in the Qur’an, Islamic history and literature.