What is Islamic Art?Slide 21. Problems of DefinitionIslamic art and the museumThe challenge of the specific meaning of geometryCalligraphic meditations on the ProphetA double hilya (Rasheed Butt, Pakistan)Religious subjects in illustrated manuscriptsSocial meanings of Islamic art?Orientalist paintingInternational modern art created by Muslims“Islamicate” (M. Hodgson)Iconoclasm in modern IslamMore iconoclasmSlide 15CalligraphyThe work of Sultan `Ali, master of nasta`liq calligraphy (Safavid Iran)Baba Shah on the highest stage of calligraphyThe word as the image of GodGod in the heartWhat is Islamic Art?Carl W. ErnstIntroduction to Islamic CivilizationWhat is Islamic Art?1. Problems of Definition2. The case of calligraphy1. Problems of DefinitionWhere does the term “Islamic art” come from?Possible meanings based on use and interpr eta tion:Beautiful objects used for sacred purposes (Qur’ans, mosques) -> “sacred art”Forms of design (“arabesque” floral designs, geometry, calligraphy) that some people consider symbolic of religious themesIslamic art and the museumMajor collections (Smithsonian/Sackler, Metropolitan) include everything made or used by Muslims as “Islamic art,” but there is no equivalent category of “Christian art”Why would Europeans/Americans consider religion as the basis for everything among Muslims?The challenge of the specific meaning of geometryUnusual example of Sura 106 on the divine unity, inscribed over geometric tile (Granada, Tower of the Captive): “He, God is One; God is eternal, neither born nor begotten…”Calligraphic meditations on the Prophet“We only sent you [Muhammad] as a mercy for creation” (Qur'an 21:107)A double hilya (Rasheed Butt, Pakistan)Religious subjects in illustrated manuscriptsCreated for elite patrons by skilled craftsmenUsed as diplomatic giftsPossible use in religious instruction?Social meanings of Islamic art?Art created for Muslim patrons (often by non-Muslim artisans): Dome of the RockArt created by Muslim artisans (frequently for non-Muslim patrons: Mudejar art in Spain19th-century European Orientalist Art depicting an imaginary Middle East (based on 1001 Nights, etc.)International modern art created by MuslimsOrientalist painting harem fantasies and romantic depictions of heroic Arab horsemenComparable to nostalgic art of the American WestInternational modern art created by Muslims Shirin Neshat, 1996 (text on hand is from a Persian poem)“Islamicate” (M. Hodgson)“Islamic”  related to central religious texts and authorities“Islamicate” [double adjective like “Italianate”]  larger cultural framework related to society where Islam is a major factor; participated in by Muslims and non-Muslims (includes literature, art, etc.)Iconoclasm in modern IslamThe Jannat al-Baqi` cemetery in Medina, before 1925 destructionAs it looks todayMore iconoclasmBamiyan, Afghanistan: Buddhas destroyed by TalibanCalligraphyThe Qur’an and the word of GodAn aesthetic of inner knowledgeGeometric reform of the Arabic script on the basis of the dot produced by the reed penMultiple scripts for secular and religious purposesThe work of Sultan `Ali, master of nasta`liq calligraphy (Safavid Iran)"His alifs (ا ) were like the tall sapling-figures that give peace to the soul, and the eye of his sad (ص) was like the eye of the youthful sweethearts. His dal (د) and lam (ل) were like the tresses of heart-ravishing beloveds, and the circles of the nun (ن) were like the eyebrows of devastating beauties. Every one of his dots was like the pupil of the dark-eyed, and every one of his strokes was like the water of life in the darkness of running ink.”--Baba Shah IsfahaniBaba Shah on the highest stage of calligraphy"Authority" is that condition in which the scribe becomes enraptured from its display when it is found in writing, and he has done with egotism. When the scribe's pen possesses "authority," heedless of the pleasures of the world, he turns his heart toward practice (mashq), and the luminous sparks of the real beloved's beauty appear in his vision. (Verse:) Everywhere the sparks of the beloved's face are found.And it is fitting, when such a scribe sets his hand to a white page and writes a letter on it in his practice, that he reddens that paper with bloody tears from the extremity of his love for that letter. This characteristic, with the aid of the praiseworthy attributes, becomes the face (`ariz) of the human soul (nafs), and by the power of the pen its form is drawn on the paper page. Not everyone can comprehend this quality in writing, although he may be looking at it. Likewise, even if everyone saw Layla, Majnun saw something that others did not see.The word as the image of God “The word of your face is gazing at the sacred mosque”God in the heart“Do not disfigure the face, for God created man [Adam, humanity] in His form”