"Links in the Chain...:" Charles Lang Freer and Arts of the Middle East

Detroit industrialist Charles Lang Freer (1854–1919), founder of the Freer Gallery of Art at the Smithsonian, is best known for his collection of James McNeill Whistler’s etchings, ancient Chinese jades and bronzes, and Japanese paintings. 

His fascination with Middle Eastern ceramics and manuscripts, which began around 1902, has received relatively little scholarly attention. Although small in number at the time of Freer’s death, these works laid the foundation for one of the finest collections of their kind in the West. 

This presentation from Massumeh Farhad will explore Charles Lang Freer’s interest in the arts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Egypt, offering a deeper understanding of his overall vision for his Asian art holdings and his museum on the National Mall.

This lecture is cosponsored by the Friends of Asian Arts and Cultures and The Freer House, Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University.

Image: Tile, Iran, Seljuq period, early 13th century, stone-paste painted over glaze with luster, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian, Gift of Charles Lang Freer, F1909.118