Islamic Decorative Arts & Arabic Calligraphy (By Kevin Benoy)
Islamic Decorative Arts & Arabic Calligraphy (By Kevin Benoy)
Islamic Decorative Arts & Arabic Calligraphy (By Kevin Benoy)
Kevin J. Benoy
The Basics
• Muslims believe in a world
in which everything is pre-
ordained by Allah.
• Allah is not
anthropomorphic – so he is
never presented in art.
• Most Muslims also do not
show the images of man –
though this ban was not
accepted everywhere and in
all periods.
The Basics
• “The Prophet
Mohammed –
peace and
blessings be
upon him.”
Farsi
• "In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful
Say: "I seek refuge with (Allah) the Lord of the day-break,
"From the evil of what he has created; And from the evil of
the darkening (night) as it comes with its darkness; (or the
moon as it sets or goes away), And from the evil of the
witchcrafts when they blow in the knots, And from the evil of
the envier when he envies."
(From the Holy Qur'an, Surah: 113, Al-Falaq (The Day
Break)
Naskh
• Say (O Muhammad):
"He is Allah, (the) One.
"Allah As-Samad (The
Self-Sufficient Master,
Whom all creatures
need, He neither eats nor
drinks). "He begets not,
nor was He begotten;
"And there is none co-
equal or comparable
unto Him."
• Calligraphic
verses decorate
palaces, homes,
businesses and
public
buildings.
• In addition to
geometrical
forms, floral
decoration also
serve to decorate
any kind of
surface.
Figurative Art
• As noted earlier,
carpet weaving was an
important art form in
Islam, and remains
important in the
Islamic world today.
Muslim Carpets
• Carpets were
important among the
nomadic people of the
Middle East even
before Islam arrived.
• Their prominence in
the Muslim world is
probably due to the
habit of Muslims to go
barefoot indoors.
Muslim Carpets
• Two traditions of
carpet weaving are
most important in the
Muslim world.
– Persian
– Turkish
Muslim Carpets