The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East

International Journal of Language, Literature and Culture 2017; 4(1):1-5 http://www.openscienceonline.com/journal/ijllc ISSN: 2381-3733 (Print); ISSN: 2381-3725 (Online) The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East Jamila Hashimova Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Philosophy, Baku, Azerbaijan Email address art_jamilya@mail.ru To cite this article Jamila Hashimova. The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East. International Journal of Language, Literature and Culture. Vol. 4, No. 1, 2017, pp. 1-5. Received: April 11, 2017; Accepted: September 19, 2017; Published: November 7, 2017 Abstract Islamic culture, which has made great contributions to the development of world civilization, was formed within the Arab Caliphate in the Middle Ages. Islamic culture reflected the artistic unity of the cultures of many countries. The peoples of the Persian Empire, Hindu, Turks, Syriac, Greek and Jewish nations have united their own cultures in the name of a culture. All the subtleties of Turkish art have been moved to Islamic geography. One of the factors that created the potential of Islamic art was the translation of the previous scientific literature into Arabic. Translation Literature is one of the most important literary subjects of the 8 th century Islamic world. After the Arab Caliphate was established, a vast territory from the Pyrenees to North Africa and from the Middle Asia to India was united within one state. The achievements of other civilizations began to synthesize under the influence of Islamic culture; scientific, cultural and moral trends were initiated on the basis of new principles. The Present Article is aimed to approach the samples of decorative applied art in the Muslim East from ethical perspective and re-emphasize their integration into world culture. Being one of the most ancient types of fine art, decorative applied art has had a significant part in the development of world culture and transfer of items of material culture from generation to generation. Along with meeting the practical needs of human beings, this art has also been targeted at satisfying aesthetic demands. In the article, historical research and comparative analysis constitute the main methodology of the study which re-emphasizes by comparative analysis from the perspective of the common interests of the East and West, both the present and historical significance of the works of art existing or discovered as a result of historical researches. Keywords Islamic Art, Muslim East, Decorative Art, Arab Caliphate 1. Introduction Art has begun its origination and gradual formation since the earliest periods of the birth of humanity. Initially, graphic and applied arts were holding the primary places among the types of art generated primitively in caves and different settlements. Along with expressing themselves, their feeelings and anxieties, emotions and life styles, the primordial men were also guided by a number of practical purposes, especially made use of applied arts in the creation of household items and tools for everday life. It should be noted that the dawn of fine art history goes back to some 30 thousand years. Thenceforth people began to create the works of painting and sculpture. It was in these very forms that the primordial men s religious mind, everyday life, creative lust were materialized, whereas applied art owed its beginning to the practical needs of people when their decorative and aesthetic needs were also met. All through the development of civilization these types of art have also developed, and this development enjoyed its new stage in the Muslim East. From this point of view, the establishment of the Arab Caliphate and the fast development of fine art within this giant empire were especially important for the development of the above-mentioned arts. The Indian, Byzantine and Persian civilizations have had a significant role in the development of the graphic and applied decorative arts in the Muslim East. The modern period is also witnessing a specific way of development of applied and [2] graphic arts in the Muslim East [13].

2 Jamila Hashimova: The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East 2. The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East The formation of fine and applied arts in the Muslim East took place under the profound influence of Islam. The conquest of vast territories by the Arab Caliphate within a short period of time, the familiarization of the Arabs and other nations of the Near East with different ancient cultures, and the synthesis of these cultures by the principles of Islam resulted in the creation of a completely different and specific art phenomenon in human history. It is also essential to point out the influence of some principles of Islam on the development of graphic and applied decorative arts in the Muslim East. As it is known, Islam does not approve drawing the pictures of living beings, especially human beings. In this connection, one should also point out the diversity of opinions among religious scholars and those who study Islam. The absence of some particular prohibition related to the issue in the Muslims holy book the Qurani-Kareem, has stimulated the generation of these arguments and diversity of opinions. However, according to the common view, drawing the pictures of living beings and human beings is unapproved action [2]. It is seemingly due to this reason that for a long time pictures of living beings were not drawn in the Islamic world, hence there appeared some gap in the graphic art of the Muslim East. Unlike the civilizations of Ancient Persia, India, Egypt and Byzantium, one can encounter works of sculpture and drawing in the Muslims culture very seldom. However, these prohibitions did leave their traces, consequently, some applied decorative arts more poorly developed in other countries enjoyed the period of significant rise in Islamic countries [3]. The history of the formation of graphic and decorative arts in the Muslim East is directly associated with the establishment and rise of the Arab Caliphate. During the reign of the Umayyad dynasty the Arabs already succeeded in invading the Near East, North Africa, even Spain. And following the Abbasids seizure of the power, the capital of the Caliphate was moved from Damascus to Bagdad which was accompanied by the outset of complete realization of a process called the Islamic Renaissance [6]. Though different states and nations severed from the Arab Caliphate after it became relatively weaker, the process of cultural development of the Muslim East did not cease. Paradoxically, the devastating Mongol assaults also gave a new impetus to the Islamic culture of the East in the end. The Ottoman Empire led to the deep-set elements of the Islamic culture on the Balkan Penunsula and eastern territories of Europe. All these political and historical processes implied that the Muslim East had formed a great culture, the strengths of different civilizations developed in organic unity with the Islamic principles and the national and moral values of the Eastern nations [6]. The dissemination of Islam is very significant from the perspective of analysis of the formation and development of graphic and decorative applied arts in the Muslim East. Which elements served as the basis for the formation of Islamic culture? Which regions has influenced this process? These are among the major questions making up the circle of researchers interests. It should be taken into account that in the earliest period of the formation of Islam the cultural development of the Arabs was not sufficiently high, and the pieces of art created by them did not attract the attention. Hence, whenever they needed any type of art in the development process of the Arab Caliphate, they had to resort to the art created by the peoples under their rule. For instance, Syria s rich architectural traditions had no less significance in the construction of mosques. Though painting and scupture did not develop significantly enough, decorative applied arts had made a great path of development within a short span of time in unity with the cultures of the invaded nations instead. One of the preoccupying points is that the development of art in the Muslim East did not take place irrationally, it was formed on the basis of the most progressive principles of geometry which was enjoying its significant rise during the Arab Caliphate [3]. The use of mathematic and geometric calculations in graphic and decorative applied arts in the Muslim East very adroitly and with extreme precision is admired by modern researchers as well. It is well known that such principles of geometry as symmetry, proportionality, the change and adjustment of scaling have been applied with high precision and efficiently in the works of decorative applied art. The mass use of the geometric principles enables one to come to a conclusion that at that time almost all the jewellers, calligraphers, ornamentists, weavers, carpet-weavers and the people involved in other types of decorative applied art managed to master the basic laws and principles of geometry. The high level of development of Islamic architecure, the mosques, mausoleums, palaces, caravansarais and other monuments of architecture created in the period beginning from the Arab Caliphate to the last centuries indicate that the architects were well aware of mathematical and geometrical methods. The development of sciences in the Muslim world sequentially resulted also in the fast development of architecture on the mathematical principles. However, this geometrical and mathematical precision did not bare mere scientific goals, but also carried some aesthetic and decorative purposes. That is, while studying the monuments related to that period, one can see that they were created in extremely delicate and tender taste. Especially, the mosques, minarets and mausoleums common in the Muslim East were developed very delicately and constructed in great taste both architecturally and decoratively [2]. The same kind of words may also be ascribed to the graphic and decorative arts dominant in the Muslim East, mainly such types of art as calligraphy, ornamenting, embroidery, carpet-weaving, carving, chiselling on glass and metal, filigree. Following the Mongol invasion of the Muslim East, the graphic arts inherent to Chinese culture, which they had brought with them, further enriched the Islamic culture within a short period of time, developing in unity with the local fine art. Thus, the synthesis of the religious and cultural views of the

International Journal of Language, Literature and Culture 2017; 4(1): 1-5 3 peoples under the rule of Islam and the Arab Caliphate has given an impetus to the development of the graphic and applied arts of the Muslim East. 3. The Main Types of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East Despite the existence of many types of graphic and applied arts in the Muslim East, some of them have enjoyed more sympathy and received more support by the official ideology and the public. It is not inexplicable that applied decorative arts have been of prime significance in the Muslim East. It would be appropriate to briefly touch upon the main types of graphic and applied arts, which are considered the leading branches of art in the Muslim East, in the process of historical development. Calligraphy was attached special importance in Islamic art. Naturally, calligraphy, managed to develop much more, due to the prohibition imposed by Islam on the creation of paintings and sculptures of living beings. Replication of the Muslims holy book the Qurani-Kareem had an important part in the creation of calligraphy [4]. According to a belief common in the Islamic world, copying the letters of the Quran resulted in forgiving the human being. Owing to this very reason, there appeared artists with unusual skills in calligraphy who favoured basically for the following six famous styles more: naskh, muhaqqaq, suls, riqa, raihani and tauqi. Each of these styles had a special field of application [2]. Figure 1. Some examples of decorative ceramics belong to the art in the Muslim countries. When speaking about the well-known calligraphers in the Muslim East one can mention the following outstanding artists: Khalid Ibn al-hayyaj, al-farahidi (the 8th century), al-dahak, al-ishaq, Ahmad al-kalbi, Ahwal al Muharrir (the 9th century), Ibn Muqla, Ibrahim as-suli (the 10th century), Ibn al-bawwab (the 11th century), Yaqut al-musta simi (the 13th century), Al-Qalqashandi (the 15th century). It is amazing that there were also female calligraphers, among whom one can mention Fatima al-baghdadi, Shukhda bint al- Abnari. The dissemination of calligraphy was also due to the great esteem paid to the books in royal palaces [2]. Book miniature was considered one of the types of art relatively closer to calligraphy. Especially, not completely did Iran, Middle Asia, India follow the ban imposed on the description of living beings. One can encounter different miniatures in the books compiled in the Fatimid and Gaznavi royal palaces in the Middle Ages. Soon different types of graphic art brought from China during the Mongol invasion began to manifest themselves in the miniatures of the Muslim East. The city of Tabriz played the part of the most famous centre of miniatures of the East under the Elkhanis. Thus, the miniature schools of Shiraz and Tabriz earned fame in the whole world. At present, part of these miniatures are being kept in great museums of the world. Another example of decorative applied art was manufacturing of ceramics. The development of this type of art in the Muslim countries could be ascribed to the influence of trade conducted with China in the 7th-9th centuries. The technology of manufacturing and painting of shiny surfaces also appeared in those periods [10]. The 14th century saw the dissemination of this technology common in the Islamic world in Southern Spain and further in the entire Europe. The best ceramic items of the Muslim East were manufactured in the provinces of Iran, Nishapur and Samarkand. Gradually, this field gained great success, and after the 13th century Kashan produced ceramics with extremely complex compositions. The technology of producing ceramics subsequently gave an impetus to the art of chiselling on glass too. Already in the 8th-9th centuries different transparent items were manufactured in the Muslim East. The regions such as Syria and Lebanon had greater success in this field [2]. Figure 2. Decorations on ceramics.

4 Jamila Hashimova: The Dawn of Graphic and Applied Arts in the Muslim East Metalwork also owes its fast development to the rise of the Arab Caliphate. The Muslim blacksmiths soon outpaced the Indian craftsmen, and Cairo became the major arms market of the Near East. The tenderness, firmness and decorative patterns of different swords, spears and shields made in the Muslim East amaze those who see them even now. The 7th- 15th centuries witnessed great technological changes in melting and casting of metals all of which were directly associated with the Muslim East. The arms made for the Safawid elite and decorated with precious stones and expensive metals earned great popularity. Figure 3. Religious swords and other religious objects. Knitting art and carpet-weaving are also considered the achievements of decorative applied art of the Muslim East. The carpets used in many spheres of everyday life attracted attention for their patterns, use of geometric rules, bright colours. The compositions created on the carpets served as a seal indicating which school of carpet-weaving they belonged to. The carpets woven in Iran earned a great fame in the whole world as the highest quality samples of this art. Figure 4. Carpet examples. The architecture of the Muslim East is also known for its rich and multivarious nature. The Islamic architecture dominated by the religious monuments and religious symbols manifested itself most often in the form of mosques, mausoleums, shrines, minarets, caravansarais. The royal palaces in the Muslim countries are famous for their gentleness, delicate patterns and decorations, the symbols carved in stones. The Islamic architectural traditions are applied in unity with other architectural trends in modern times as well, and used in new technological and decorative arts. Figure 5. Mosque ornaments.

International Journal of Language, Literature and Culture 2017; 4(1): 1-5 5 Among the other examples of the graphic and decorative arts of the Muslim East one can point out jewelry boxes, trunks, embroidary items, carvings, items of jewellery and many other types of art. 4. Conclusion The dawn of graphic and applied decorative arts in the Muslim East is directly associated with the outset of dissemination of Islam. The establishment of the Arab Caliphate, the unification of the Near East, Middle Asia, Caucasus and North Africa within one state generated favourable conditions for the development of these types of art. The great states established in the Muslim East in the subsequent periods also gave an impetus to the development of different types of art. Calligraphy, filigree, Islamic architecture, miniature art, knitting, carpet-weaving, works of embroidery, pottery, carvings, metalworks can be cited as the main types of graphic and applied arts in the Muslim East. References [1] Akbar N. (2017), Myths Migration (Sheeps and Shepherds), Baku, Bashla, p. 218. [2] Baer, Eva (1983). Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art. State University of New York Press. pp. 58, 86, 143, 151, 176, 201, 226, 243, 292, 304. ISBN 0-87395-602-8. [3] Elmaz C. (2015), The Effect of Shamanism in Anatolian Ceramic Art. Sakarya University Institute of Social Sciences Press, Turkey, p. 45. [4] Haji A. H. (2003). Islamic Culture. Baku. [5] Imamutdinova Z. A. (2001), The Quran as the Stylistic Paradigm of Islamic Culture// Art and Ethnicity: New Paradigms. Kazan. [6] Islamic Art and Geometric Design. (2004), Activities for learning. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. [7] Kuhnel, E. (1962). Islamic Art & Architecture, London: G. Bell & Sons Ltd. [8] Kulizade Z. (2014). XXI Century. The choice of priorities in the study of the history of spiritual culture. Journal of Problems of Oriental Philosophy. Vol. 19, Issue 1., Baku, p.8-12. [9] Marua P. & Ceylan R. (2017). Muslim Community Organizations in the West: History, Developments and Future. Springer. Germany, 255 p. [10] Nejefov R. (2013). The Place and the Role of Philosophy of Islamic Region in the Evolution of Western (European) Philosophy, ASOS Journal: The Journal of Academic Social Science, Turkey, Vol: I, Issue: 1, p. 62-68. [11] Rice, D. T. (1975). Islamic Art, Thames & Hudson: London. [12] Stirlen A. Islamic Art. Translated from French by Netesova Y. V. (2003),- Italy, ACT Publishing House, 320 p. [13] Veymarn B. V., Kapteryeva T. P., Podolskiy A. G. (1960), The Art of Arabic Nations. Moscow, Iskusstvo, 199p. [14] Wijdan, Ali, The Arab Contribution to Islamic Art: From the Seventh to the Fifteenth Centuries, American Univ. in Cairo Press, December 10, 1999. [15] Stanley, Tim et al. (2006). Palace and Mosque. London and Washington, D. C.: Victoria and Albert Museum and the National Gallery of Art.