Islamic Art: Glorification of God

¶ … Islamic art: Glorification of God and the Qur'an

Islamic art is perhaps the most accessible expression of a complex civilization that often seems enigmatic to outsiders," writes Los Angeles museum curator Linda Komaroff (Komaroff, 2007, Introduction). The term 'Islamic art' is used broadly to refer to art produced in nations where Islam is the dominant cultural force, as well as art that is created in the service of Islam all over the world. "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" (the nature of Islamic art, 2001, October, Heilbrunn timeline of art history).

In Islamic art, more so than in other art traditions, calligraphy has a great and sacred significance. "It has always been considered the noblest form of art because of its association with the Qur'an, the Muslim holy book, which is written in Arabic," in contrast to Western art, in which painting and sculpture predominate in the cannons of what is considered great art (Komaroff, 2007, Introduction). Producing calligraphy was laden with spiritual significance -- producing the art was a religious act, not simply the creation of a religious artifact. Early Qur'ans, were generally written in black or dark brown ink, with short vowels indicated by red, green, or gold dots, and diacritical marks distinguishing certain consonants by diagonal strokes. "Gold illumination sometimes signaled the beginning of each chapter, and gold medallions were often used to denote groups of five or ten verses" on parchment, the preferred material for Qur'ans (Komaroff, 2007, Early Islamic art). The artistic significance of the word cannot be underestimated in Islam: "Qur'anic verses embellish mosques, palaces and homes, businesses, and, in some places, public areas" (Siddiqui 2009).

Illuminated manuscripts, textiles, metalwork, glass, ceramics, and carved wood and stone have equal importance as painting and sculpture in early Islamic art. This means that sometimes Western scholars have had difficulty appreciating Islamic art in its cultural context. Additionally, most of the textiles that are now extant come from graves, given the fragility of this type of art, and useful handicrafts often do not weather time and mishandling. The emphasis on handicrafts also means that Islamic art does not have a focus on the output of individual artists like Western art. Prophetic sayings like "God likes that when you do anything, you do it excellently," have "provided the impetus for Muslims' embellishment and beautification of their places of worship, homes, and even of articles in common use in everyday life. The emphasis in Islamic art is on ornamentation rather than on art for art's sake; while the names of the producers of the finest works of Islamic art may not have survived, their works have become prototypes and models on which other artists and craftsmen patterned their works, or from which they derived the impetus for related work" (Siddiqui 2009).