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Creswell's
Cairo home page
Prof.
Zahi Hawass’s Statement
Creswell's
Cairo: Then and Now
Ahram
Weekly, Creswell's Cairo
Sir
Archibald Creswell: Biographical Notes
Creswell
and the AUC Rare Books and Special Collections Library
Sony
Gallery main page
Adham
Center home page
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This article originally appeared in the
Sony Gallery catalog for the exhibit and the Islamic Art Network.
For more information on Creswell's Cairo go to www.islamic-art.org.
Creswell’s
Cairo: Then and Now
The
recent photographs exhibited in Creswell’s Cairo: Then and Now were
commissioned by the Islamic Art Network of the Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation
as part of its attempt to record all the extant treasures of Islamic Cairo
and to stress the urgent need for the conservation and preservation of
the Islamic City.
The
exhibition was conceived to honor one of the founders of the discipline
of Islamic Art and Architecture History, Professor Sir Keppel Archibald
Cameron Creswell, and to commemorate his efforts in documenting Islamic
buildings not only in Cairo but all over the Muslim world. Professor Creswell’s
search for perfection is apparent in all his photographs, each of which
is thoroughly thought through. According to Professor Christel Kessler,
the renowned art historian who served as Professor Creswell’s assistant,
Sir Archibald invested considerable time in each photograph and used the
best equipment. She has described the current show as “a most interestingly
conceived exhibition honouring the memory of Professor (Sir Archibald)
Creswell and an often underrated part of his historic documentation.”
The
Professor Creswell’s library, now at the American University in Cairo,
contains approximately 11,000 photographs, a product of his diligent fieldwork,
which began in 1920 and continued up until the mid-1960s. As the Creswell
Collection records the details of all the important Islamic monuments
throughout the Muslim world, some of which are no longer in existence
or have been drastically altered, it is indispensable to all students,
scholars, and researchers of Islamic art and architecture. For obvious
reasons, the photographs are also of fundamental importance for any work
concerning the preservation and restoration of Islamic monuments. Most
of the photographs, which are currently stored in fifty albums, have never
been published before.
Islamic
Art Network has selected a limited number of photographs from the Creswell
Collection to be re-photographed.
Living
the Exhibition
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Undertaking
a project to re-photograph locations taken anywhere from forty to eighty
years ago was more difficult than initially envisaged. However, as we
embarked on it we faced several problems, which in some cases prevented
the re-photographing of some very interesting shots. The main problem
was the existence of structures built since Creswell’s time which
blocked his original perspective, as well as the planting of trees which
now impair his original view. This was the problem faced while shooting
the dome of the zawiya of Zayn al-Din Yusuf No. 172 and the eastern façade
of the mosque of Sultan Hasan No. 133. The second major problem was that
heaps of rubbish have been thrown into monuments or in front of them,
as at the hamam of Bishtak No. 244. Indeed some of the architectural jewels
embellishing the crown of Cairo have become dumpsites. Solving this problem
does not just involve cleaning up the sites, but probably would mean putting
an end to the practice with an educational program directed at the neighborhoods
as well as enforcing penalties for littering. The third problem is pollution,
which has damaged the structures, eroding some of the finest details.
Pollution is also responsible for an almost permanent smog which reduces
the vividness of the color photographs. Last but not least was the chaotic
development of some areas in Cairo. To the southeast of the celebrated
Fatimid mausolea of al-Saba‘ Banat a late twentieth century slum
has evolved that encroaches on the mausolea. Basically the Cairo that
Creswell knew is very different from the Cairo we know now. Creswell’s
Cairo, needless to say, was far more beautiful.
While
taking the photographs for the Exhibition the IAN team also took the opportunity
to thoroughly document photographically each of the buildings visited,
these photographs will be added to the Photo Archive on IAN’s website
at www.islamic-art.org
The
Photographers
The
Venezuelan couple Chemane Arias and Jenny Marquez studied Art History
at the University of Los Andes in Merida. The beauty of Merida inspired
their passion for photography and their training has mostly been in photographing
historic buildings in Venezuela for the past two years. Their recently
acquired interest in Islamic Art led to their being commissioned by the
Islamic Art Network to stay in Cairo for a minimum of one year to document
the Islamic City. This interest and appreciation has deepened since they
have begun following in the footsteps of Professor Creswell.
Acknowledgements
The
Network would like to thank Professor Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of
the Supreme Council of Antiquities, for his great help and support, without
which re-shooting the Creswell photographs would have been impossible.
We would also like to thank Professor Christel Kessler for her help with
information about Professor Creswell and his Collection and Dr. Teresa
Fitzherbert, archivist, Creswell Photographic Archive, Department of Eastern
Art, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford University, for her help with acquiring
Creswell’s personal photographs.
Noha
Abou-Khatwa
Director of the Islamic Art Network
Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation
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