16th Century India vs. 16thCentury Europe

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Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Introduction

Islam
Muslim
A follower of Islam
"One who submits to God"
Begins in 622 CE with Muhammad's emigration to Medina
Quickly spread from Byzantine Empire
North Africa
Spain and other parts of Europe

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Introduction

Artistic traditions of Muslims
Allowed conquered peoples to retain religion and culture
Adaptation of extant traditions
Frown upon representation of human figures used in a religious context
Recreation of living things as competition with Allah (God), who created all
Muhammad prohibited from imagery

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Arab Lands

Early houses of worship
Mosques
Must be big enough to accommodate all male worshippers for Friday prayers
Include minarets (towers) that mark building's location
Great Mosque in Kairouan, Tunisia
Mihrab points to Mecca

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Great Mosque. Kairouan, Tunisia. 836–875.
Photograph: © Roger Wood/Corbis. [Fig. 19-1]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Arab Lands

Ceramic arts
Major advance through luster technique
Glaze that imparts a metallic sheen
Most difficult to control
Pitcher
Thin body indicates decorative purposes, not practical ones
Script expresses praise and good wishes to the owner

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Pitcher (Spouted Ewer). Early 13th century.
Luster over tin glaze. Height 6-4⁄5".
Kashan. Reproduced by permission of the Syndics of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, from the Ades Loan Collection. The Bridgeman Art Library. [Fig. 19-2]

Podcast: Interview with Jonathan Bloom

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Spain

First land to be conquered by Muslims
Distinct culture including important scientists, poets, philosophers, architects, and artists
Calligraphy
For higher learning
Used to enhance beauty of word of God
Qur'an, the sacred text of Islam

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Text of the Qur'an. 11th century.
Colors on paper.
North Africa or Spain. MS no. 1544. Reproduced by kind permission of the Trustees of the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin. [Fig. 19-3]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Spain

Architecture
Geometric and floral design motifs that complement calligraphy
Court of the Lions, Alhambra palace
Translucent webs of intricate decoration
Light comes through small openings
"There is no victor except God" in calligraphic script
Palace itself a contained city

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Court of the Lions, Alhambra. Granada, Spain. 1309–1354.
Photograph: SuperStock, Inc. [Fig. 19-4]

Architectural Panorama: Alhambra

Video: Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín, Granada

Court of the Lions, Alhambra. Granada, Spain. 1309–1354.
Photograph: SuperStock, Inc. [Fig. 19-4]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

The Islamic World.
[Fig. 19-5]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Persia

Carpet
Best-known Persian art in the West
Portable
Means for spreading design ideas
Tile art
Mihrab from Iran
Intricate designs satisfy urge for beauty
Aesthetically pleasing patterns
Tells story using script, not figures

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Mihrab. c. 1354.
Composite body, glazed, sawed to shape and assembled in mosaic. Height 11' 3".
Iran. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1939 (39.20). Image copyright The MoMA/Art Resource/Scala, Florence. [Fig. 20-6]

Closer Look: Tile Mosaic Mihrab

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Persia

Madrasa
Muslim theological school for history and interpretation of Qur'an and Islam
Mir-i-Arab Madrasa in Uzbekistan
Well-proportioned array of openings
Iwan, the large covered porch at center
Surfaces with floral, geometric, and epigraphic patterned tiles
Color integral to architecture

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Mir-i-Arab Madrasa, façade. 1535–1536.
Bukhara, Uzbekistan. Photograph: David Flack. [Fig. 19-7]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Persia

Paintings
Lavish illustrations of manuscripts
Most often produced in workshops with anonymous artists
Sultan Sanjar and the Old Woman
Sultan-Muhammad, revered painter of Safavid Persia
Allegory on vanity
Subtle gestures and detail
Rocks rendered in the Chinese style

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Attributed to Sultan-Muhammad. Sultan Sanjar and the Old Woman. From the Khamseh (Five Poems) of Nizami, folio 181. 1539–1543.
Gouache on paper. 14-1⁄2" × 10".
The British Library London © British Library Board/Robana. [Fig. 19-8]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Art Forms Us: Worship and Ritual

Contemplating pattern
Beautiful patterns uplift us in daily life
Used by modern Muslim artists in new ways
Usama Alshaibi, Allahu Akbar
Digital video moving patterns in new ways
Connection between visual delight and religious piety

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Usama Alshaibi. Allahu Akbar. 2003.
Still from digital video. PAL, black/white, sound. [Fig. 19-9]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Art Forms Us: Worship and Ritual

Contemplating pattern
Charles Hossein Zenderoudi
Large works consisting of Persian syllables repeated hundreds of times
Meditation exercise
VAV + HWE
Based on words that mean "by he," or God
Calligraphy constructs painting in concentric circles
Pilgrims around holy shrine in Mecca

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Charles Hossein Zenderoudi. VAV + HWE. 1972.
Acrylic on canvas. 78-3⁄4" × 78-3⁄4".
Private collection. Photo © Christie's Images/The Bridgeman Art Library © 2013 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris. [Fig. 19-10]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

India: The Mughal Empire

Only a minority were Muslim
Evolution of Islam farther from Arab roots
Higher level of tolerance
Akbar
Establishment of a religion to incorporate elements of all religions
Encouragement to depict figures in art

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

India: The Mughal Empire

Akbar
Throne room, Divan-iKhass
Ornate pillar with four passageways
Akbar sat at the center atop the pillar at the metaphor for intersection of religious systems.

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Divan-i-Khas, interior. 1570–1580.
Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh, India. Photo Jonathan M. Bloom and Sheila S. Blair. [Fig. 19-11]

Closer Look: Private Audience Hall, Fatehpur Sikri

Divan-i-Khas, interior. 1570–1580.
Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh, India. Photo Jonathan M. Bloom and Sheila S. Blair.
[Fig. 19-11]

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

India: The Mughal Empire

Shah Jahan
Last Mughal ruler
Taj Mahal
Built for favorite wife that died in childbirth
Central iwan fronted with a pointed arch
Beauty from expensive materials and poetic arrangement of mass
Paradise motif in the inscription surrounding the doorway arch

Prebles' Artforms, Eleventh Edition Patrick Frank

Taj Mahal, central iwan, upper portion. 1632–1648.
Agra, India. Gavin Hellier/Robert Harding. [Fig. 19-12]

Architectural Simulation: Taj Mahal

Web Resource: Taj Mahal

Closer Look: Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal, central iwan, upper portion. 1632–1648.
Agra, India. Gavin Hellier/Robert Harding. [Fig. 19-12]