Martina Rugiadi, Associate Curator of Islamic Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, will present a talk entitled Expanding the Field, Disrupting Canons: Iranian Ceramics, Trade, and Collecting Practices. Kept in storage until recently, the Minassian collection of Iranian ceramics defies expectations of what Iranian art is supposed to be. In this lecture, Martina Rugiadi will explore how trade and collecting patterns from the late nineteenth century onwards have shaped canons and (literally) fashioned objects visible in museums. Immersing ourselves in this often dismissed past is critical for expanding the field and disrupting received notions of history and art.

Co-sponsored by History of Art & Architecture, John Hay Library, Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology, and Middle East Studies.