Transcript Islamic Artx

Islamic Art
Chapter 13 Lesson Two
The Koran (Qur’an)
 The holy scriptures of
Islam
 Read right to left
 Decorative script used to
record Muhammad’s
revelations, laws, and
moral stories
Mezquita in Cordoba, Spain
 Mosque: Muslim place of
worship
 Exterior features:
◦Sealed arch entries
◦ an attached Minaret
Used by Muezzin (prayer
caller) to summon people to
worship 5 times a day
◦ sunrise, noon, afternoon, sunset,
evening
Mezquita (cont.)
 Interior
(inside wall):
◦Courtyard named “Patio of the
Orange Trees” arranged in
rows leading to the building
entrance
◦Rows of marble columns
continue inside the building
The Mosque
 Interior
features of the
building, as you enter:
◦ Rows of polished marble
columns
◦ Arches decorated with yellow
and red bands are supported by
the columns
◦ Piers support second tier of
arches 3 ft above the first tier
◦ Aisles: arches guide worshipers
to the side facing Mecca
Mezquita interior features (cont.)
Walls and ceilings
decorated with
calligraphy, geometric
patterns (tessellations),
stylized plants and
flowers
Ornate dome covers the
area in front of the Mihrab
Mezquita interior features
(cont.)
 Mihrab:
niche in the wall
indicating direction of
Mecca
◦Most important feature
Decorated w/delicate
stucco reliefs incorporating
passages from the Koran
The Mosque
 Interior
features (cont.):
 Arches near Mihrab = more
ornate and in a creamy
white/dark brown color
The Alhambra - Granada, Spain
 Justice
Gate:
◦well-fortified entrance to
area where tribunals met to
deal with thieves
◦Keystone of outer arch
features a great open hand.
◦Keystone of inner arch
features a key
The Alhambra, cont.
 Court
of Lions
◦at the heart of the
Alhambra
◦Named for fountain at
the center decorated with
carved lions
Dome of
the
Alhambra
Illustrated Manuscripts
 Artists
free to depict
images not permitted in
Mosques
 Manuscripts featured
scenes from everyday life
◦Banquets, trysts, hunting
scenes, etc.
Illustrated Manuscripts (cont.)
 Decorative
patterns and
intense color are more
important than realism
 Delicate flowing lines used to
draw figures
 Lack of shading results in flat
figures
 Wide range of bright
contrasting colors balanced
with small areas of rich color
 The
Meeting of the
Theologians
◦By Abd Allah Musawwir
◦Depicts scenes from both
inside and outside the
mosque.