What is 'Islamic' Art?: Between Religion and Perception

by Wendy M.K. Shaw

Revealing what is 'Islamic' in Islamic art, Shaw explores the perception of arts, including painting, music, and geometry through the discursive sphere of historical Islam including the Qur'an, Hadith, Sufism, ancient philosophy, and poetry. Emphasis on the experience of reception over the context of production enables a new approach, not only to Islam and its arts, but also as a decolonizing model for global approaches to art history. Shaw combines a concise introduction to Islamic intellectual history with a critique of the modern, secular, and European premises of disciplinary art history. Her meticulous interpretations of intertextual themes span antique philosophies, core religious and theological texts, and prominent prose and poetry in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Urdu that circulated across regions of Islamic hegemony from the eleventh century to the colonial and post-colonial contexts of the modern Middle East.

Genres: Islam, Art, History, Art History

380 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 10, 2019

Reviews

[Hanan Muzaffar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it as part of a book club. It’s ok I guess. Maybe this is just not my interest. I liked the historical parts of it but the reading itself was t very enjoyable

[Nadeem Kashif Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

The concept that Islam was not even part of Islamic history and how the author truly encapsulated it in form book was truly enlightening. It was more of a product of patronage, materialism and fusion of cultures and traditions. I would acknowledge I havent read the whole book and through mere coincidence I have this book now. But the way Miss Shaw has delved into the subject, I am definitely going to absorb most of the book in coming time