By Adam Pincus
The billionaire London resident and Queens College graduate has spent his life amassing what many think is the largest private collection of Islamic art, which he believes can be used to bring people together.”I am hoping that by being a Jew and collecting Islamic art I can play a role, because I consider Muslims to be my cousins,” he said. But he added later, “I stay away from politics in every form and shape. My contribution is cultural,” he said in a telephone interview last week.Khalili delivered a lecture entitled “The Art of the Possible,” Tuesday at the LeFrak Concert Hall at 65-30 Kissena Blvd. at Queens College in Flushing. Using projected images of lustrous illuminated Qurans, he discussed the variety and creativity of Arabic calligraphy created in Morocco, Iraq, Iran, China and elsewhere.”In Islam what we see in the culture and in the art, and the amount of their contribution, is something the West has to understand and respect,” he told the 200 people attending the lecture.His was one of four presentations that also included Muslim and Jewish musicians; an interfaith dialog between a rabbi and a sheikh; and a discussion on Jewish and Muslim dietary restrictions.The events were marking the opening of the show “Grandeur of Islamic Art in Image and Object” at the Godwin-Ternbach Museum, which is displaying 35 photographs of images from Khalili's collection.The religious and cultural discussions were part of a broader initiative funded by the Ford Foundation called Difficult Dialogs.Khalili, now 61, came to the United States in 1967 and graduated from Queens College in 1974 with a degree in computer science.He said art can be a unifying factor.”Religion and politics have their own language, but the language of art is universal,” he said.He said his experience at the college formed the seeds to his success in amassing his $1 billion fortune, much of it developed from trading in art.”It was an experience to see democracy in full swing,” he said.The museum is located in Klapper Hall at 65-30 Kissena Blvd. and is open Monday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and for this exhibition Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The show runs through May 31. For more information go to www.qc.edu.Reach reporter Adam Pincus by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
