Islamic Art

Islamic Art650 CE - present dayMain IdeasHighest art form is calligraphyTextiles are especially valuedMost works lack figural representations, with the exception of artwork heavily influenced by the ChineseMosque is the primary religious building, often with minarets (for muezzins), always with a mihrab marking the qiblah (niche that orients one towards Mecca). Mosque follows either hypostyle or open designArabesques and tessellations incorporatedPatronage rulers and social eliteIslamic belief that there is unity in multiplicityGreat mathematic thinkers! Art is intellectual, refined and DECORATIVEMecca, Saudi Arabia

arabesques

Tessellations (repeating geometric patterns)

Frieze from Mshatta, Jordan, c. 750, State Museum, Berlin. From 16 high palace wall; carved stone with vegetal designs animals on secular side of palace, none on the other; triangle pattern with rosettes

Islamic Textiles

9Dome of the Rock, c. 690, Jerusalem, IsraelWooden dome on octagonal building; columns are from Roman buildings; influenced by Byzantine architecture; central ly placed on the temple mount; built for pilgrims

Adams burial placeWhere Abraham nearly sacrificed IsaacLocation of the Temple of JerusalemLocation of the first Christian church built for the mother of ConstantineSite of Mohammeds ascension to heavenDome of the Rock, Jerusalem

Interior, Dome of the Rock

Great Mosque of Cordoba, Spain, 8th-10th CenturiesHypostyle mosque not meant for congregational meetings; horseshow double-arched columns (recycled from Roman buildings); light interior; original ceiling was wooden, but now vaulted

Sinan, Mosque of Selim II, 1570, Edirne, TurkeyVery tall and thin minarets; lots of light inside from windows; decorative tile and mosaics; dome on square, then octagon

Interior of Sinan, Mosque of Selim II

Court of the Lions, Palace of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain, 1354-91. Sumptuous palace and gardens like paradise on Earth;

Muqarnas dome, Hall of the Abenacerrajes, Palace of the Lions

Illuminated tugra of Sultan Suleyman, Istanbul, 1555, ink , paint and gold on paper

Page from Koran

Persian ManuscriptTabriz School, Pandj Gandj, Amir Dehlavi

Heavily influenced by Chinese via the Mongols invasionsDoll-like figures in brilliant colorsFigural representation was accepted in PersiaShadowlessSumptuous dressFlat planes

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