MONUMENTAL: The Dome of the Rock by Ziyah Gafić and Notre-Dame de Paris by Tomas van Houtryve

MONUMENTAL: The Dome of the Rock by Ziyah Gafić and Notre-Dame de Paris by Tomas van Houtryve at the National Museum of BiH, in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Production & Curation: Yonola Viguerie / Gary Knight / James B. Wellford

Opens on April 26, 2024

Visiting hours:
Tuesday to Friday: 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Weekends: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
The museum is closed on Mondays

National Museum of BiH
Zmaja od Bosne 3
71000 Sarajevo
Bosnia and Herzegovina

A project of The VII Foundation, MONUMENTAL is an exhibition that fosters discussions on faith, national identity, power politics, social cohesion, colonization, division, and political violence through the symbolism of two of the world’s most important and iconic religious buildings: The Dome of the Rock, in Jerusalem, and Notre-Dame de Paris.

Tomas van Houtryve and Ziyah Gafić had unprecedented access to these iconic religious structures between 2019 and 2023.

The Dome of the Rock was completed in 691 and is the world’s oldest surviving example of Islamic architecture. Today, it is a political lightning rod between Israel, the Palestinians, and the Muslim world.

Since its completion in 1260, Notre Dame has been the stage for grand political statements and expressions of divine-human authority. The cathedral has a presence in French cultural and political life that reaches far beyond faith and exceeds that of any other architectural structure in the country.

This exhibition will also be part of this year’s Les Rencontres d’Arles Arles Associé program, opening on July 1, 2024. Further information about The VII Foundation events during the festival’s opening week is upcoming.

Text by: Gary Knight