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Jewels of Muslim Calligraphy: Book Review of “Female Calligraphers: Past & Present by Hilal Kazan” |
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By: Dr. Betül Ipsirli Argit and Dr. Salim Ayduz, Fri 06 April, 2012 |
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Dr. Betül Ipsirli Argit and Dr. Salim Ayduz This is a review of the book prepared by Hilal Kazan for the Istanbul Greater City Council Cultural Foundation in order to provide a useful and important bio-bibliographic resource on the history of calligraphy of the Muslim Civilization. Written in Turkish and English, the book consists of notices of past and present Muslim female calligraphers, with many priceless examples of masterpieces of calligraphy. It emphasises also the importance of the activities of female calligraphers in the Muslim civilization at various places. The book reviewed in the following article is a unique work on the subject.
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Introduction to Islamic Art |
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By: FSTC Limited, Wed 24 February, 2010 |
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Rabah Saoud One area where the genius of the Muslim civilisation has been recognised worldwide is that of art. The artists of the Islamic world adapted their creativity to evoke their inner beliefs in a series of abstract forms, producing some amazing works of art. Rejecting the depiction of living forms, these artists progressively established a new style substantially deviating from the Roman and Byzantine art of their time. In the mind of these artists, works of art are very much connected to ways of transmitting the message of Islam rather than the material form used in other cultures. This article briefly examines the meaning and character of art in Islamic culture and explores its main decorative forms-floral, geometrical, and calligraphic. Finally, it looks at the influence of the art developed in the world of Islam on the art of other cultures, particularly that of Europe.
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Beauty and Aesthetics in Islam |
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By: FSTC Limited, Thu 25 January, 2007 |
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HRH Princess Wijdan Ali The Islamic civilisation allowed the development of autonomous norms of beauty that were inspired by the faith of Islam. The Islamic artistic tradition viewed the beauty of the universe, emphasized in the Quran, and the literary qualities of the Quranic text itself, as compelling evidence for the divine hand. In this fascinating article, HRH Princess Wijdan Ali investigates the unique philosophy that underpins and guides Islamic art and the Muslim artist-artisan and developed the elements of a real and original philosophy of art, beauty and aesthetics in the Islamic culture.
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The Art of Calligraphy in the Ottoman Empire |
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By: FSTC Limited, Wed 10 January, 2007 |
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Ottoman Turks produced and perfected several varieties of Arabic script. All the various branches of the art of calligraphy, an art greatly loved and respected by the Ottoman Turks, were flourished particularly in the city of Istanbul.
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Islamic Art as a Means of Cultural Exchange |
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By: FSTC Ltd, Tue 28 November, 2006 |
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With the expansion of Islam over a vast area of land, Muslim artists started to develop the traits they had borrowed from other civilizations, and created their own styles, motifs and fashion which conformed to the teachings of their own religion, thus shaping their own aesthetics.
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Andalusia’s New Golden Pottery |
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By: Tor Eigeland, Mon 27 February, 2006 |
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In times past, Granada was a hub of artistic flair, imagination, and creativity, to the extent that the architecture of Muslim Spain exists as amongst the proudest Spanish monuments to this day. Such passion and dedication permeated many other realms of artistic endeavour such as calligraphy and perhaps not as well known, pottery.
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Cosmic Motifs & Elements in Seljuk and Ottoman Architecture |
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By: Nakis Akgul, Thu 29 September, 2005 |
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The structure of Mosques and other buildings draw inspiration from descriptions in the Qur'an as well as pre-Islamic motifs. Here we look at how some of the resulting motifs and elements reflect the idea of the ordered cosmos.
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Ebru: The Art of Paper Marbling |
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By: FSTC Research Team, Wed 01 February, 2006 |
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FSTC Research Team Marbling is an art form developed in the Muslim world, possibly with Chinese origins. Often it has been used to create colourful book binding inside covers. Here is a little history of this art.
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Decoding and Demystifying Da Vinci |
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By: Dr Zohor Shanan Idrisi , Thu 27 January, 2005 |
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This article traces some of the religious symbolism connected to ideas in the book "The Davinci Code" and used from ancient Mesopotamia through to the current day and looks at the ways in which the mathematics involved developed through Muslim contributions.
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Origins of the Fountain Pen |
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By: FSTC Limited, Thu 22 May, 2003 |
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Al-Mu'izz commissioned the construction of world's first fountain pen... "We wish to construct a pen... for writing without having recourse to an ink-holder and whose ink will be contained inside it... The writer can put it in his sleeve... and it will not stain..."
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