To celebrate the September 2012 inauguration of new exhibition spaces for the Department of Islamic Art, the Louvre has invited artist Walid Raad and given him carte blanche for a project over three consecutive years. Raad's exhibition, "Preface to the First Edition", and the accompanying publication entitled "Preface to the Third Edition", produced with the artist, are the first chapter of this collaboration. The Louvre project is Raad's first approach into the concept of "Islamic art", which dates to the 19th century when the public collections of Islamic art were created. Through an exhibition, a publishing project and a series of debates, he addresses the various aspects at play in the reopening of the department: the history of the collections and their scientific documentation, the architectural and museum display design, and the institutional component of the project. Raad designed the accompanying book Preface to the Third Edition as an element of his artistic project in its own right, focusing on the artworks of the Department of Islamic Art recently shot by photographer Hughes Dubois. Drawing from this body of images, Raad creates his own, derivative visions, like a personal inventory of objects from the collection. This artist's edition is presented in the form of 28 plates (20 x 27 cm) assembled in a portfolio with flaps, designed by the artist.

25 plates (20 x 27 cm) assembled in a portfolio with flaps, designed by the artist.
Illustrations reproduced on glossy 250 g/m² paper
Text: French/English/Arabic