art in islamic period

1. ART IN ISLAMIC
PERIOD
A Brief Overview

2. INTRODUCTION
As it is not only a religion but a way of life, Islam
fostered the development of a distinctive culture
with its own unique artistic language that is reflected
in art and architecture throughout the Muslim
world.

3. THE NATURE OF ART
 Typically, though not entirely, Islamic art has focused on the
depiction of patterns and Arabic calligraphy, rather than on
figures, because it is feared by many Muslims that the
depiction of the human form is idolatry and thereby a sin
against God, forbidden in the Qur'an.

4. THE NATURE OF ART
 Human portrayals can be found in all eras of Islamic art,
above all in the more private form of miniatures, where their
absence is rare. Human representation for the purpose of
worship is considered idolatry and is duly forbidden in Islamic
law, known as Sharia law. This includes depictions of god. So
how does one depict the divine.

5. PATTERN OVER PICTURES
 Geometric patterns make up one of the three nonfigural
types of decoration in Islamic art, which also include
calligraphy and vegetal patterns. Whether isolated or used in
combination with nonfigural ornamentation or figural
representation, geometric patterns are popularly associated
with Islamic art, largely due to their aniconic quality.

9. CALLIGRAPHY
 Calligraphy is the most highly regarded and most
fundamental element of Islamic art. It is significant that the
Qur’an, the book of God's revelations to the Prophet
Muhammad, was transmitted in Arabic, and that inherent
within the Arabic script is the potential for developing a
variety of ornamental forms.

12. VEGETAL PATTERNS
 Vegetal patterns employed alone or in combination with the
other major types of ornament- calligraphy, geometric pattern,
and figural representation - adorn a vast number of buildings,
manuscripts, objects, and textiles, produced throughout the
Islamic world.

14. MAKING ART

19. FAMOUS ARTIST
 ABED ABDI

20. Abed Abdi, as an artist and educator, has been
consistently promoting Arab culture for over 40 years.
His contribution to the visual culture of the
Palestinian minority is unprecedented.

21.  In 1964 he went to study in Dresden and on his return to Haifa in 1971
was appointed chief graphic designer and illustrator of the Al-Ittihad
newspaper and the Al-Jadid literary journal, which at the time were the main
platforms of Arab culture and society. It was then that Abdi created hundreds
of illustrations and prints – images of refugees, exile and homeland – the
majority of which illustrated the literary works of Emile Habibi, Salman
Natour, Samih al-Qasim, and others.

22.  It is these images that shaped Arab visual memory of historical
events like the Nakba, the refugee camps, destroyed villages, and the
events of Land Day, hence the works’ significant influence on the
collective memory of the Palestinian minority.

23. THE LAST WORK FORM THE
TRILOGY “NAKBA, 22-4-1948” – 2018
• “This work is one of the
paintings under the name
“The expulsion from our
city Haifa on 22 April
1948″. It is the last work
from a trilogy I painted
last year in Haifa. It is
my own Nakba which I
experienced with my
family while fleeing to
Libanon and Syria.”