Islamic Art
Zoomorphic
animal-shaped; having the form of an animal
calligraphy
art of beautiful writing
Applied Art
art that is engraved or incised onto functional objects
Codex
manuscript books made of vellum or parchment
Tesserae
the small piece of stone, glass, or other object that is pieced together with many others to create a mosaic
Aniconic
"no images," meaning traditions that do not encourage visual imagery in religion
Patronage and Artistic Life
-Monasteries were principal center of learning in age when Emperor Charlemagne could era but no write his name -artists who could write and draw were honored for manuscript creation
Muhammad iba al-Zain, Basin or Baptistere de St. Louis
-1320-1340 -from Egypt and Syria -doesn't have large bands of calligraphy (person it was for was probably illiterate) -brass inlaid with gold and silver -originally meant for washing hands in ceremonies or before dinner, then was used for baptisms (even though this is Islamic art, it isn't necessarily Muslim and therefore other religions can employ this style of art in their pieces) -fleur de lys: it's French -medallions, on empty spaces -artist's signature 6 times -sea creatures inside: eel, crabs, frogs, crocodiles -hammered with gold and silver
Folio from the Qur'an Page
-9th or early 10th century -ink and gold on vellum -Kufic
Ottoman Turkish Art
-9th-11th centuries Turkish people converted to Islam, moved to Iran and Near East -13th Century- different dynasties established selves in Anatolia (Ottomans among them, founded by Osman 1281-1326) -under his successors, Ottoman state expanded for period of 2 1/2 centuries throughout Asia, Europe, North Africa -by mid 15th Century, it became one of great world powers
Great Mosque of Cordoba
-Cordoba, Spain -subject of conquering: started as church, then was mosque when Muslims took over, then a church again -rare b/c 2 combined cultures -famous for giant arches and mihrab (shrine of mosaics) -building expanded over period of 220 years -hypostyle prayer hall, courtyard with fountain in middle, minaret, -spolia: recycled ancient Roman columns -double horseshoe arch make hypostyle hall: -maqsara- -keystone-striped part on arch -lobes- round cut off parts ...Compared to Santa Sabina: -Santa Sabina was basilica for diverse functions like law court then as house of worship, but the Mosque of Cordoba was only a house of worship -Mosque of Cordoba has hypostyle hall and Santa Sabina doesn't -both have lots of columns and arches -arabesque tiles in ceiling
Persian Manuscripts
-Mongolian rulers who conquered Iran in 1258 introduced exotic Chinese painting to the Iranian court in the late Middle ages -Diverse schools of manuscript painting cultivated throughout Persia under spell of Chinese painting -centuries after Mongols, Chinese elements survive in Asiatic appearance of figures and Chinese rocks and clouds, and appearance of motifs like chrysanthemums and dragons
Mosque of Selim II
-Edirne, Turkey -centrally planned -very large -octagonal interior -inspired by Hagia Sophia -has madrasas -designed by Sinan -lots of windows -muqarnas -4 minarets lead to home -geometric volumes in exterior ...Compared to Hagia Sophia: -created for Muslim faith and centrall planned -Hagia Sophia is centrally and axially planned and was for Christian faith
Merovingian Frankish Looped Fibula
-France -6th-7th Centuries -eagle is Christian symbolism for St. John -cloisonné -worn by soldiers/wealthy people -zoomorphic
Viking Art
-Inspired by prehistoric models that emphasized animals and spirals in elaborate interlacing patterns
Key Ideas Islamic Art
-Islamic art dominates from West Asia to South Europe (Southern Spain) -Islamic architecture includes mosques, tombs, and monuments -Islamic art is spread through pilgrimages -Religious art contains not figures, but uses tessellation, calligraphy, and arabesque -Islamic art specialized in ceramics, book illuminate, textiles, and metal work -Islamic art tends to avoid perspectives -Carpets and tapestries are particularly prized examples of Islamic textiles (Iran) -Islamic art excels in manuscript decoration
Dome of the Rock
-Jerusalem, Israel -octagonal shape and central plan -dome on top -exterior covered in mosaics -lunette in mosaic design -a shrine to Islamic faith ...vs the Hagia Sophia -Hagia Sophia is Christian -Dome of the Rock more geometric bc people can't be shown, while Hagia Sophia has people -Hagia Sophia has more details inside than outside, Dome of the Rock is more detailed outside than inside
Symbols for 4 Evangelists
-Luke: calf/ox (Christ's sacrifice on Cross0 -Matthew: a man (human aspect of Christ) -Mark: lion (triumphant over death and divine Christ of the Resurrection) -John: eagle (Christ's second coming)
Pyxis of al-Mughira
-Madinat al-Zahra, Al-Andalus (Islamic Spain) 357 and 968 -ivory -al-Mughira: son of a caliph, perhaps given this as a coming-of-age gift -decoration: 4 eight-lobed medallion surrounded by figures (unreligious ones, but can have royalty) and animals like falconers, wrestlers, griffons, peacocks, birds, goats, and animals; east medallion has princely iconography. they're hunting, shows activities of royal court, and doing falconry and sports and musicians -on the pyxis, there's Arabic calligraphy that tells who its for (al-Mughira), what its purpose is (vessel for aromas and cosmetics/jewelry), and Allah's (God's) blessings -low-relief -lions symbolic
Aradbil Carpet
-Maqaud of Kashan -1539-1540 -silk on wool -purpose: prayer carpet -one lantern larger than other bc when pray where smaller one is, other one will look same size bc it's far away
St. Matthew Cross Page from Book of Lindisfarne
-Northumbria, England -698-721 -complementary colors (opposite on color wheel) -tempera on vellum -written by Eadritrh bishop of Lindisfarne -zoomorphic
Book of Kings
-Persian epic poem -by Firdawsi -Tell ancient history of Persia -258 illustrated pages -first king: Gayumars
Hibernio-Saxon Art History
-Refers to the art of the British Isles in the Early Medieval Period; Hibernia-Ancient name of Ireland -The main artistic expression is Illuminated manuscripts-(manu scriptus= written by hand)-Most distinctive products of Ireland during 7th & 8th centuries -Hiberno-Saxon art relies on complicated interlace patterns in a frenzy of horror vacui
Saint Luke Portrait from Lindisfarne Gospels
-Saint Luke with halo (means holiness) -calf or ox represents Luke -classical aspects: Latin -nonclassical aspects: butterflies in corners
Book of Matthew from Lindisfarne Gospels
-Saint Matthew (halo bc Saint) -like Saint Luke's page: halo above head, seated, reading, red borders with butterflies -different from Saint Luke's: possibly Moses or Prophet Isaiah peeking through curtain; Moses has closed book symbolizes Old Testament bc he made 10 commandments, whereas Matthew has open book symbol for New Testament bc he wrote about Jesus' life
The Court of Guyumars
-by Sultan Muhammad -Book of Kigs -1522-1525 -ink, opaque watercolor, gold paper -shows first king, Gayumars, -on left- son, right- grandson -court appears below in semicircle, all wearing leopard skins -king in middle and people floating, family (son and grandson) below -abstract background- resembles dripping paint, swirling clouds and trees on top
Bahram Gur Fights the Karg
-c. 1310-1340 -ink and watercolor, gold, silver paper -from Book of Kings -painted area -Areas of flat color- no shading (one tone) -spatial recession indicated by overlapping planes -atmospheric perspective seen in the light bluish background (blur background to make it realistic) -Bahram Gur was ancient Iranian king from The Sassanian dynasty -represents ideal king: wears crown and golden halo -common thing of king being one with nature (similar to Chinese paintings bc background diminished and person small compared to nature, landscape paintings popular in Chinese art, reflects Taoist theory of yin and yang, some parts empty and barren while others crowded, reflect philosophical idea not just a mountain/tree)
Merovingians
-dynasty of Frankish kings -power solidified under Clovis who ruled what is now France and Germany -Court life and art production included spending lavishly -royal burials supply almost all knowledge of this art
Early Medieval History
-everything that was known was old- great technological breakthroughs of Romans lost to history or beyond capabilities of migratory people of 7th Century -age of MASS MIGRATIONS sweeping across eUROPE -viKINGS FROM Scandinavia flew across North Sea and invaded BritishIsles and colonized parts of fRANCE -so desperate was this era that it was called th "Dark Ages" -However, stability in Europe was reached at the end of the eight century when a group a Frankish kings, most notably Charlemagne, built an empire with a capital in Aachen, GERMANY
Luxury Arts
-excelled in smaller, private artwork: manuscript paintings, ceramics, tiles, metalwork -most respected/esteemed in Islamic world: calligraphy; seen as sacred bc used to transmit the texts reveled from God to Muhammad
Arrival of a precious Persian book video- the book is_____
-it's detailed and realistic, but the background/tiles are abstract w/ arabesques and tessellations -background: flowers and gold and horror vacui (no empty space bc fear of it) -designs/patterns: tessellations, arabesuqes -people look Asian/Japanese bc Iran close to Asia and Mongols ruled that area, so lots of Chinese influence in these paintings -calligraphy in different places/random spaces -common theme: lots of people praying -prominent color: red, gold, blue
What is Islamic art?
-modern concept created by art historians in 19th Century to categorize and study material first produced under Islamic people (art made in land where Islam is dominant in the area, not necessarily art that is used to describe religious art/architecture...applies all art forms produced in Islamic world) -examples: Dome of the Rock, Taj Mahal, silk carpets, and Qu'ran
Carpet
-most fundamental of Islamic arts -portable, typically made of silk and wools, traded and sold across Islamic lands and beyond its boundaries to Europe and China -Those from IRAN were highly prized -Carpets decorated the floors of mosques, shrines, and homes, but they could also be hung on walls of houses to preserve warmth in the winter
Alhambra
-palace in Granada, Spain -built on top of a hill -made of whitewashed adobe stucco -means "red house -palaces, water pools, gardens, small, low fountains in each room -walls 1,700m in length and 30 towers enclose the city -ornate interior contrats plain exterior -resembles a fortress -Court of Lions: heavy roofs, lions in the middle holding up fountain to protect place, walls chiseled to make light patterns -Hall of Two Sisters- ornate and has 5,000 muqarnas on ceiling ....vs Santa Sabina -Santa Sabina much smaller and main purpose was just a church, Alhambra was more of a decoration -both have columns holding up ceilings
kaaba
-rededicated by Muhammad in 631-632 CE; multiple renovations -Mecca, Saudi Arabia -"Cube" in Arabic -granite masonry, covered with silk curtains and calligraphy in gold and silver-wrapped thread -Muslims pray 5 times a day facing the kaaba in Mecca -built by Abraham and son Ishmael -they don't worship the kaaba but it's a focal point for unifying them in worship and symbolizing common belief -inside of kaaba is empty but there's a piece of fabric with Arabic draped over it -when Muslims there, they circumambulate the kaaba
Five Pillars of Islam
1. Faith- there is no God but Allah; Muhammad is his messenger 2. Prayer- salat- obligatory prayers said 5 times daily 3. Charity- zakat- purification or growth 4. Fasting-during month of Ramadan 5. Pilgrimage- hajj to Mecca once in a lifetime (some go yearly during Ramadan)
Gospels
Four books in the New Testament that tell the story of Christ's life and teachings (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)
Year Muhammad is born and place
570; Mecca (6th century)
Early Medieval Art times (Merovingian)
5th-8th Centuries 9481-714) France
Muhammad's 1st Revelation
610 (7th century)
Muhammad's flight to Medina
622 (7th century), (hijra)
Time frame
630 AD -The Present
Year Muhammad dies and place
632 (7th century); Medina
Early Medieval Art times (Hiberno-Saxon)
6th-8th Centuries British Isles
Scriptorium
A room in a monastery for writing or copying manuscripts
Clerestory
A row of windows in the upper part of a wall
Vellum
Calfskin or antelope hide prepared as a surface for writing or painting
Fibulae
a clasp or brooch worn by military and prominent people (emperors) (appears on Emperor Justinian in the mosaic in San Vitale)
Lunette
a crescent-shaped space, sometimes over a doorway, that contains sculpture or painting
Muqarna
a decorative architectural detail in Muslim/Persian art, honeycomb-shaped spaces resembling stalactites
Hypostyle Hall
a hall with a roof supported by columns
Animal style
a medieval art form in which animals are depicted in a stylized and often complicated pattern, usually seen fighting with one another
mihrab
a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the direction of Mecca
3 types of fine art patterns:
calligraphy, tessellation, arabesque
Carpet vs. Rug
carpet- wall to wall; rug- can pick up and just place anywhere
pyxis
cylindrical box used for cosmetics
tessellation
decoration with polygonal shapes and no gaps
Kufic
early form of Arabic script, characterized by angularity, with the uprights forming almost right angles with the baseline
Horror vacui
fear of empty space (during Medieval times)
arabesque
flowing, intricate, and symmetrical pattern deriving from floral techniques
Maqsura
in some mosques, a screened area in front of the mihrab reserved for a ruler
How do you show depth?
overlapping and smaller things= farther way/larger things= closer
Vegetal and geometric motifs
plant and geometric motifs
Spolia
re-use of earlier building material or decorative sculpture on new monuments
Parchment
sheep or goat hide
Mecca
spiritual center for Islam in Saudi Arabia
Cloisonné
technique in which colored areas are separated by thin bands of metal, usually by gold or bronze (means "partitions" in French)
