FA 210 Art of the World Review of Islamic calligraphy, types and uses of the elegant writing styles of the Islamic world

1. Islamic Calligraphy

2. Islamic Calligraphy
Most
important
and
fundamental
aspect
of
Islamic
art
:
WHY?

3. Islamic Calligraphy
Most
important
and
fundamental
aspect
of
Islamic
art
:
WHY?
• Ornament
• Connec:on
to
sacred
words
of
Qur’an
• Talismanic
connota:on
(talisman:
object
embued
with
protec:ve
powers)
• In
architecture,
reminds
visitors
of
the
purpose
of
the
building:
to
worship
God
• Unites
Muslims
in
reading
Arabic
language

4. Islamic Calligraphy
Many
different
scripts
evolved
over
:me;
some
of
the
main
ones
are:
• Kufi
ca.
200
–
300
AD
(Arabia)
• Maghribi
ca.
900
AD
(Africa)
• Thuluth
ca.
900
AD;
refined
1400s
(Abbasid)
• Naskh
ca.
900
AD
(Turkey)
• Ta’liq
ca.
1000
AD;
standardized
1200s
• Nasta’liq
ca.
1400s,
perfected
1500s
(Persia)
• Divani
ca.
1500s
(Turkey)
• Riq’a
ca.
1750
AD
(Turkey)

5. Early
examples
of
Islamic
calligraphy:
Umayyad
caliphate
• Kufic
script
• Dome
of
the
Rock
ca.
691
AD
Byzan:ne-­‐style
mosaic
wri:ng
of
all
the
verses
in
the
Qur’an
that
contain
references
to
Chris:anity.
• Perhaps
the
first
instance
of
calligraphy
used
as
both
decora:on
and
meaning.
• Page
from
the
“Blue
Qur’an”
ca.
850
AD,
Tunisia;
gold
and
silver/indigo-­‐dyed
parchment

6. Kufi
Script
• Developed
in
200
–
300
AD,
first
wrijen
form
of
Arabic.
• Developed
originally
for
wri:ng
on
stone
• Adopted
for
use
in
religious
texts
because
of
its
formality.
• Angular
lejer
shapes
• Short
ver:cal
strokes
and
long,
extended
horizontals
• Mostly
obsolete
because
of
difficulty
in
wri:ng

8. “Blue
Qur’an”
(Kufic
Script)
ca.
850
AD

9. Maghribi
script
• Maghribi
means
“western”,
referring
to
its
development
ca.
900
AD
in
westernmost
reaches
of
Islamic
empire:
northern
Africa
and
Spain
• Used
for
wri:ng
Qur’an
as
well
as
secular
documents
• Descending
strokes
have
large
bowls
with
sweeping
curves
or
loops
• S:ll
used
although
in
decline

10. “Nurse’s
Qur’an”,
Tunisia,
1019
–
20

11. Qur’an
manuscript,
late
1200s,
Spain

12. Thuluth
and
Naskh
script
• Thuluth
is
a
larger,
more
formal
script
olen
used
for
:tles
• Found
in
combina:on
with
Naskh,
a
smaller,
highly
legible
script
• Both
were
developed
ca.
900
AD
and
refined
by
the
legendary
calligrapher
Seyh
Hamdullah
of
Turkey,
along
with
4
other
scripts.
• “Experts
say
you’re
not
a
calligrapher
un:l
you
can
write
thuluth.”

13. Album
of
Hadith
(tradi:ons),
ca.
1500
Ojoman

16. Tal’iq
script
• Tal’iq
means
“hanging
together”,
referring
to
the
connectedness
of
lejers
unique
to
this
script
• Used
for
official
correspondence
and
other
secular
uses,
such
as
lejers
or
transcrip:ons
• Formed
ca.
1000
AD,
standardized
by
1200s
• S:ll
in
use
today
• Descending
lejers
appear
as
loops
• Lines
ascend
upwards
as
they
move
from
right
to
lel.

17. Ta’liq
script,
Ilkhanid
period,
1292

19. Nasta’liq
script
• Developed
in
15th
century
to
write
the
Persian
language.
• Secular
usage,
including
poetry
and
other
literary
works
• Hybrid
of
naskh
and
tal’iq
styles
• Ver:cal
strokes
are
short,
while
horizontal
strokes
are
sweeping
• Lejers
appear
to
“float”,
especially
when
wrijen
diagonally
• Overall
impression
of
fluidity
and
speed
–
most
expressive
script
• S:ll
in
use
today

20. Nasta’liq
script
(Persian)
• Developed
out
of
a
hybrid
of
Nasth
and
Ta’liq
scripts
(former
for
prose
and
lajer
for
administra:ve
documents)

21. Calligrapher
Mir
al
Haravi
1500s

22. Sultan
Ali
Mashhadi
+
3
students
Nasta’liq
script
Safavid
period,
Persia,
1500s
AD
hjp://www.asia.si.edu/explore/
nastaliq/video.asp

23. Divani
script
• Developed
in
1500s
during
rule
of
Ojoman
Empire
in
Turkey
• S:ll
in
use
today
• Used
for
official
business:
scrolls,
edicts,
appointments,
court
documents,
etc.
• Wide
spaces
between
lines,
which
ascend
from
right
to
lel
• Extreme
styliza:on
makes
Divani
hard
to
read

24. Divani
script,
Ojoman
empire,
Cipher
of
Suleyman
the
Magnificent

26. Calligraphic
composi:on
in
shape
of
peacock,
Divani
script
ca.
1600
Ojoman
Period

27. Riq’a
script
• Developed
to
write
the
Turkish
language
for
the
late
Ojoman
bureaucracy
ca.
1750
AD
• “Riq’a”
means
“patch
of
cloth”
because
it
was
olen
wrijen
on
small
scraps
of
paper
• Easier
to
learn
and
write
than
other
scripts
• S:ll
in
use
today
• Used
widely
for
personal
correspondence

28. Riq’a
script
chapter
headings,
chapter
111
and
chapter
112