![]() A parable of His light is then presented in a breathtaking style. In it, God declares that He is the Light of the heavens and the earth ( Al-Nur 24:35). God has likened Himself to light in a Qur'anic chapter called al-Nur, which means Light. The notion of light (nur) is very important in Islam. Light viewed directly is blinding it is through the harmony of colors that we divine its true nature, which bears every visual phenomenon within itself." Colors reveal the interior richness of light. Muqarnas also serve to trap light and diffuse it with the most subtle gradations. It is for the same purpose that the artist transforms other surfaces into perforated reliefs to filter the light. This lining is often confined to the lower part of the walls, as if to dispel their heaviness. It is to this end that he covers the interior surfaces of a mosque or palace - and occasionally the outer ones - with mosaics in ceramic tiles. For this reason, the Muslim artist seeks to transform the very stuff he is fashioning into a vibration of light. However, Titus Burckhardt continued, "there is no more perfect symbol of the Divine Unity than light. Titus Burckhardt wrote that an artist who wishes to express the Islamic ideals, in particular the idea of the 'unity in existence' or the 'unity of the real' has "three means at his disposal: geometry, which translates unity into the spatial order, rhythm, which reveals it in the temporal order and also indirectly in space, and light which is to visible forms what Being is to limited existence." Apart from richly illuminating the interior of buildings, thus promoting, among other things, the notion of energy efficient buildings, light is often maximized for the purpose of enhancing the performances of a building's decorative schemes. The performance of Islamic decorative arts is enhanced by ingeniously manipulating light, which is normally admitted in abundance into Islamic buildings through diverse media. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |