Download Free Introduction To Islamic Calligraphy Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Introduction To Islamic Calligraphy and write the review.

"For centuries, Islamic calligraphy has mesmerized viewers with its beauty, sophistication, and seemingly endless variety of styles. How to Read Islamic Calligraphy offers new perspectives on this distinctive art form, using examples from The Met's superlative collections to explore the enduring preeminence of the written word as a means of creative expression throughout the Islamic world. Combining engaging, accessible texts with stunning new photography, How to Read Islamic Calligraphy introduces readers to the major Islamic script types and explains the various contexts, whether secular or sacred, in which each one came to be used. Beauty and brilliance emerge in equal measure from works of every medium, from lavishly illuminated Qur'an manuscripts, to glassware etched with poetic verses, to ceramic tiles brushed with benedictions. The sheer breadth of objects illustrated in these pages exemplifies the ubiquity of calligraphy, and provides a compelling introduction to this unique art form"--Publisher's description
With a photo-rich teaching method that's welcoming to everyone, this introduction helps you use ink and a qalam a traditional reed pen to create flowing, timelessly decorative lines of Arabic script. The book begins with the history behind this art that decorates writings and architecture worldwide. Master calligrapher Alani next shows you how to choose the materials and prepare your tools. After a quick introduction to how the Arabic language works, he guides you through exercises to help you successfully write the 28 Arabic letters, join them together, and finally assemble them into phrases. Once you have mastered the basics, explore creating graphic compositions in each of seven major styles (Kufic, Thuluth, Naskh, Persian, Turkish, Riqaa and Maghrebi). Sometimes it takes years to be able to decipher a composition, but meanwhile, you can enjoy its aesthetic beauty. This guide helps beginners, like centuries of people before them, create graceful, meaningful art from words."
Beautifully illustrated, this is an essential reference work for students and connoisseurs of calligraphy alike.
Joint Winner of the 2007 British-Kuwait Friendship Society Prize for Middle Eastern StudiesThis stunning book is an important contribution to a key area of non-western art, being the first reference work on the art of beautiful writing in Arabic script.The extensive use of writing is a hallmark of Islamic civilization. Calligraphy, the art of beautiful writing, became one of the main methods of artistic expression from the seventh century to the present in almost all regions from the far Maghrib, or Islamic West, to India and beyond. Arabic script was adopted for other languages from Persian and Turkish to Kanembu and Malay. Sheila S. Blair's groundbreaking book explains this art form to modern readers and shows them how to identify, understand and appreciate its varied styles and modes. The book is designed to offer a standardized terminology for identifying and describing various styles of Islamic calligraphy and to help Westerners appreciate why calligraphy has long been so important in Islamic civilization.The argument is enhanced by the inclusion of more than 150 colour illustrations, as well as over a hundred black-and-white details that highlight the salient features of the individual scripts and hands. Examples are chosen from dated or datable examples with secure provenance, for the problem of forgeries and copies (both medieval and modern) is rampant. The illustrations are accompanied by detailed analyses telling the reader what to look for in determining both style and quality of script.This beautiful new book is an ideal reference for anyone with an interest in Islamic art.Key Features* Written by the world's leading expert on Islamic calligraphy* Includes c.150 colour illustrations* Comprehensive: covers the art of calligraphy throughout Islamic civilisation, from the 7thc. to the present* The first volume to explain this art form to modern readers, guiding them in the identification, understanding and appreciation of its varied style
Muthanna, also known as mirror writing, is a compelling style of Islamic calligraphy composed of a source text and its mirror image placed symmetrically on a horizontal or vertical axis. This style elaborates on various scripts such as Kufic, naskh, and muhaqqaq through compositional arrangements, including doubling, superimposing, and stacking. Muthanna is found in diverse media, ranging from architecture, textiles, and tiles to paper, metalwork, and woodwork. Yet despite its centuries-old history and popularity in countries from Iran to Spain, scholarship on the form has remained limited and flawed. Muthanna / Mirror Writing in Islamic Calligraphy provides a comprehensive study of the text and its forms, beginning with an explanation of the visual principles and techniques used in its creation. Author Esra Akın-Kıvanc explores muthanna's relationship to similar forms of writing in Judaic and Christian contexts, as well as the specifically Islamic contexts within which symmetrically mirrored compositions reached full fruition, were assigned new meanings, and transformed into more complex visual forms. Throughout, Akın-Kıvanc imaginatively plays on the implicit relationship between subject and object in muthanna by examining the point of view of the artist, the viewer, and the work of art. In doing so, this study elaborates on the vital links between outward form and inner meaning in Islamic calligraphy.
A fantastically fun book for those who love classic Arabic calligraphy, This islamic coloring book contains 50 designs to colour in and enjoy, with each design made up of Arabic lettering surrounded by beautiful Islamic themed and old-school wild-style, graffiti art flavors. In expressing art there is no right way or wrong. Everything that you deem beautiful is art. Art is soul-food. This colouring book is another step to reach out to those who have a yearning to combine innate artistic talents with the spiritual.This book combines both art-forms with style, funk, flow and finesse. Kick your feet, up relax and unwind with this fun stress-relieving book today!
This volume deals with the formative period of Islamic art (to c. 950), and the different approaches to studying it. Individual essays deal with architecture, ceramics, coins, textiles, and manuscripts, as well as with such broad questions as the supposed prohibition of images, and the relationships between sacred and secular art. An introductory essay sets each work in context; it is complemented by a bibliography for further reading.
This introduction to Islamic art and architecture reveals the essential history, culture, and religious philosophy from pre-Islamic foundations through modernity. The easily approachable text contextualizes all major art forms in the contemporary events, beliefs, and cultural developments. While providing an understanding of religious doctrine, its interpretations, and its influence on the arts, the book encourages critical thinking by introducing analytic issues, for example, defining the problematic term "Islamic." Scholar and artist Shadieh Mirmobiny engages readers with the scientific achievements, cultural exchanges, and religious doctrines that shaped Islamic art. The result of five years of research and teaching, "Introduction to Islamic Art "presents Islam s rich influences in art worked through all materials, art, and architecture, both sacred and secular. Islam s message brought many cultures together, helped enable patrons to sponsor art, and influenced art around the world. Highlights of the text include a study of mysticism, its pre-Islamic history in the Middle East, and understanding it as an alternative perspective in Islam. The important role of women in Islamic art is also explored. Readers see how Islam's wide-ranging interactions with both Western and Far-Eastern civilizations shaped all arts and crafts, from the literary arts to glazed tiles, calligraphy, and painting. The West's reaction to Islamic art is examined with the theory of Orientalism, and the theory's application is demonstrated in the study of nineteenth-century European painting. Later, modernized influences from North Africa, Russia, and America are revealed in twentieth-century Islamic sacred architecture. And similarly, throughout modern history, European and American art has been enriched by Islamic influence. The survey concludes with the present status of Islamic art, including art in Diaspora. Appropriate for art history, history, and various humanities, "Introduction to Islamic""Art "stimulates interest, furthers scholarly research in Islamic art, and encourages critical thinking. The well organized and highly readable chapters provide a complete survey to a broad audience.
This volume showcases a variety of innovative approaches to the study of Muslim societies and cultures, inspired by and honouring Gudrun Krämer and her role in transforming the landscape of Islamic Studies. With contributions from scholars from around the world, the articles cover an extraordinarily wide geographical scope across a broad timeline, with transdisciplinary perspectives and a historically informed focus on contemporary phenomena. The wide-ranging subjects covered include among others a “men in headscarves” campaign in Iran, an Islamic call-in radio programme in Mombassa, a refugee-related court case in Germany, the Arab revolutions and aftermath from various theoretical perspectives, Ottoman family photos, Qurʾān translation in South Asia, and words that can’t be read.
This major reference work covers all aspects of architectural inscriptions in the Muslim world: the artists and their patrons, what inscriptions add to architectural design, what materials were used, what their purpose was and how they infuse buildings with meaning. From Spain to China, and from the Middle Ages to our own lifetime, Islamic architecture and calligraphy are inexorably intertwined. Mosques, dervish lodges, mausolea, libraries, even baths and market places bear masterpieces of calligraphy that rival the most refined of books and scrolls.