The British Museum...

I had prebooked tickets for the two exhibitions I was planning to visit today. Getting up to London quite late because the train was cancelled meant that I just about managed to get the timeslot to go in.

The British Museum in its glory. Exhibition banner displayed.

The exhibition space I was planning to see at The British Museum was all about the journey to Islam to give an experience of what It would be like to see the Hajj. It is one of the five pillars that Islam has and Muslims must go on a pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime. This applies to the people who are physically able, although many Muslims attempt and die trying. It is said to be a huge physical challenge for anyone. I am not Islamic myself, however I wanted to find out more about this religion and pay tribute to get a better understanding of why people do it and what it feels like to have or are going to go there.

Here Is the ticket I purchased for this exhibition

Once inside I noticed it was really trying to resemble reality and the whole space had been laid out as if you were circling the black stone. It was almost like a circle maze to get to the centre and this was interesting. The exhibition was mostly filled with history and information. This meant there was lots to look at, scaled down models and a short film, along with lots of old books. It was quite interesting and involved a lot of history as well as rugs , etc. Nevertheless I felt it was more like a museum visit and not such like an exhibition. I didn't feel as such that I got an experience of what it would be like to go. On the other hand there was some stuff that really appealed to me...

Photographic print of the Ka'ba

I liked the fact that there was of course a lot of photographic evidence being old and new. It showed a sense of time and how nothing has changed over the years, the religion and theory has been kept. The above picture dated back to over 60 years ago. It shows the Ka'ba in all its glory. I was personally fascinated how there were so many people praying that the streets were taken up as well. There still seemed to be huge rings as if it was a magnetic field. i was amazed to see that some of the photographs showed movement. What I meant by this was that someone had exposed a long shutter speed facing the Ka'ba and the people were blurred. It seemed to be quite a long shutter speed as well. Very similar and related to what I was producing. It was amazing to see that another person had thought of this technique to show the way in which people move around this sacred object instead of just using film media.

A modern take of the ka'ba. Magnet with iron filings.

This instillation and photograph was really what caught my eye in this exhibition. Someone would have had the courage to display the environment in a different way. As well as using photos and evidence here this person has used a modern approach that no one would have thought of. It is said that the experience of passing around this sacred object is magnetizing. The artist has used this word and literally placed a small magnet in the shape of the Ka'ba and thrown iron filings around it. The magnet has attracted them towards the middle but repels the filings from touching the sacred subject. I really like this idea because it is creative thinking and gives a real sense of how big the atmosphere and how easy it would be to get lost. This is because the metal filings combine and form one, similar to this circumstance when everyone prays at the exact same time.

Wall printing 2012 created by hand using phases to stamp

This piece of work was created by Idris Khan and involves lots of sentences placed together. The work had been created on site for this exhibition and was made up of a series of texts that were hand stamped onto the wall. The phases are listed below:

I was here for you and only you

Are you leaving as you had come?

Nothing is insurmountable and you will return

What do you do now?

Where are you going now?

Towards home?

Towards the world?

The journey you have taken has shown your devotion

As you leave remember what you have achieved a oneness with this earth and another

The texts are fragments of responses by pilgrims to the experience of performing the Hajj. The shape shows the representation of the sanctuary at Mecca with the Ka'ba at its heart. It was said that each word captures the flow of energy that the powerful movement of mass produces from people moving in sequence. I think this last piece of work summed up to me how strongly Muslims take this religion.