Louvre Abu Dhabi | Wing 3 | Intersection: COSMOGRAPHY | Gallery 7 | Thinking the State.

Intersection: COSMOGRAPHY
At the end of the 15th century, navigators such as Ibn Majid, Zheng He and Christopher Columbus established direct contact between cultures and civilisations that up until then had been unknown to one another, establishing networks of exchanges on a truly global scale. Instruments used in navigation and cosmography developed rapidly, fostering an awareness of the magnitude of the world that prompted questions about the meaning of the universe. The first travelogues were published, recounting journeys to distant lands, while maps and globes charted the contours of this new world. The exotic materials and strangely-shaped works of art that filled “cabinets of curiosities” in Europe illustrated this fascination for distant and mysterious lands.
GALLERY 7
Thinking the State
Following the great voyages of exploration, territorial and commercial expansion between the 16th and 18th centuries brought radical change to the exercise of power and to modes of representation and communication. From Qing China to the conflicts in the Americas, from Mughal India to the Ottoman empire, the dividing up of territories required the creation of strong networks to ensure stable governance in the new empires.As the embodiment of a State, rulers were required to embark on ambitious programmes that amalgamated their religious, military and economic power in order to stabilise or enlarge their spheres of influence. Prompting a newfound concern with the symbolism and expression of prowess and power, the resulting objects and images were used by rulers to communicate with peers and subjects alike.
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