The Middle East was at the forefront of global culture in the 17th century, and now?

David Belcher, Skip the Vatican Museum. Go to the National Museum of Qatar. NYTimes, 1.7,20:

The cities of the Gulf region — the modern-day, sun-draped Gothams with their skyscrapers that have sprouted up like weeds — are home to some of the world’s newest and newly appreciated museums, visual arts scenes and even opera houses. By being thrust forward in time at warp speed over the last few decades — fueled by seriously cranked-up air-conditioning and the bountiful oil production from beneath their deserts that began ramping up in the 1950s — these traffic- and heat-fueled metropolises have the space, desire and revenue to help create the new frontier for arts and culture.

And what feels futuristic is the way in which museums are being conceived and curated, particularly through impressive technological advances. Galleries are embracing not only pre-Islamic art and culture where it was forbidden for centuries, but also contemporary global art, creating an array of works to take in.

That mash-up of sensibilities also lies at the core of global criticism surrounding human rights violations in the region, from the exploitation of laborers from Asian and African countries to discrimination against gays and women. Those issues are at the heart of the region’s growing pains: Who dictates how countries should change, and at what speed? And do we avoid those countries, or do we support their emergence as global arts and tourism centers and therefore help instigate change?