Islamic illumination is a decorative art, that uses gold pigments to beautify the Qur’an & manuscripts, creating a spiritual awe & connection
Today, the art of Islamic illumination continues
For #Ramadan here are 18 women artists specialising in Islamic illumination
A thread…
1/ Artist & illustrator @AyeshaGamiet is based in the South East of England. Her work is inspired by the traditional arts & the beauty of nature. She was awarded an ijaza in Islamic manuscript illumination under Master illuminators in Istanbul:
2/ Japanese artist Yukiko Futamura has a passion for Islamic art & illumination. She studied Western calligraphy & manuscript illumination under artist Miwako Kawaminami for nearly 2 decades. Her work is influenced by Islamic cultures:
3/ Artist @RaanazShahid is from the U.K. Her work is influenced by her British, Asian & Islamic roots which have allowed her to create a unique aesthetic. She is studying the art of illumination with her Master hocam based in Istanbul:
4/ Maryam Souza is a Brazilian Muslim Islamic artist. She lives in São Bernardo do Campo, where one of the largest Muslim communities in Brazil is located. Her work is inspired by her Brazillian heritage, Islamic illumination & Qur'anic verses:
5/ Shafina Ali is a versatile creative Islamic artist whose paintings are inspired by masterpieces from Islamic history. She specialises in traditional Islamic art, writing verses from the Qur’an and Islamic illumination:
6/ South Indian artist Shadiya Mohammed is based in Kerala. Since childhood, she has been inspired by nature, which led to a passion for Islamic art. She trained in the art of Islamic illumination & is passionate about preserving tradition:
7/ Tehreem Pasha was born in Karachi & lives in Dubai. A geometer, trained calligrapher and specialist in Islamic illumination, she believes it is important to continue traditional arts for the future:
8/ Artist Rayhana K Haque trained as a counsellor, which she considers a privilege & an honour. However, her love for art began early on her childhood, and as an adult she found a connection to Islamic art, particularly Islamic illumination:
9/ Iranian artist, Anahita Alavi specialises in Persian Miniature & Islamic Illumination. She trained in the art of traditional painting under the supervision of a number of great masters in Iran:
10/ Whilst studying mathematics at university, artist @em_3190 found inspiration in Islamic geometry. After learning more about Islamic illumination, she developed a unique style bringing a contemporary twist to this traditional art-form:
11/ Bosnian artist Ailin Karić Plakalo has a passion for Islamic geometry, mandalas & illumination. The harmony, the beauty of the patterns, and the feeling that it evokes in her are the reasons why she started practicing Islamic art:
12/ Known for her ingenious use of colour & mastery of Islamic, biomorphic patterns & illumination, @EsraAlhamalArt is an artist & researcher based in London. Her work experiments & reinterprets traditional practices in contemporary ways:
13/ Canadian artist @oalanqar is inspired by Islamic illumination & indigenous art. She believes it is important for people to connect with their roots, & makes references to culture & heritage through her approach to traditional art:
14/ Saudi Artist Doa Bugis’s work is a poetic result of experimentation. Her art is influenced by painting traditions of China, Japan & South East Asia. A specialist in Islamic illumination, she is redefining this traditional artform:
15/ London based artist Mobeen Akhtar, specialises in the traditional arts. Her work takes you through a journey of colour and meticulous detail heavily inspired by traditional Islamic illumination:
16/ Artist Maram Ata’s Jordanian cultural heritage has inspired her practice. She has studied the traditional art of Islamic illumination & miniature painting and shares her thoughts on the future of Islamic art and culture:
17/ U.K based artist @fzhassan is an expert miniature painter trained in traditional Indo-Islamic, Mughal & Persian painting. Taking a modern twist on this tradition, she teaches & exhibits her work in galleries & museums:
18/ Originally from the Hejaz in Saudi, artist @saralabdali views herself as a caretaker of the region’s culture, preserving it against 4 decades of rapid transformation. She is committed to continuing traditional arts for the future:
In Islam, Hajj is the annual pilgrimage made to the Kaaba, the ‘House of God’ in the city of Mecca. The Kaaba is covered in a Kiswah — a black silk cloth, exquisitely embroidered in gold
Every year, artisans work on creating a new Kiswah
A thread on the art of making the Kiswah
1/ The Kiswah is the cloth that covers the Kaaba. The term Kiswah means ‘robe’ & is also known as the ‘Ghilaf’. Hanging the Kiswah, a huge piece of black silk embroidered with gold patterns & verses from the Quran, over the Kaaba symbolises the start of the Hajj pilgrimage season
2/ Meaning cube in Arabic, the Kaaba is a square building unlike almost any other religious structure. It is fifteen meters tall and ten and a half meters on each side; its corners roughly align with the cardinal directions.
‘Traveling leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller’
- Ibn Battuta
The most famous explorer in the Muslim World, Ibn Battuta, travelled more than any other explorer in pre-modern history - around 117,000 km!
A thread on the 14th century explorer Ibn Battuta…
1/ Ibn Battuta was born in 1304 CE in Tangier, Morocco. His travelogue the Rihla is his most important work. His journeys in the Rihla lasted for a period of almost thirty years, covering nearly the whole of the known Islamic world & beyond.
2/ Ibn Battuta travelled more than any other explorer in pre-modern history, surpassing Zheng He with 50,000 km (31,000 mi) and Marco Polo with 24,000 km. His total distance travelled was approximately 117,000 km (73,000 mi) (15,000 mi).
The Qur’an was first revealed during the month of Ramadan. This blessed month is also known by Muslims as the month of Fasting
To celebrate the arrival of #Ramadan here are 24 beautiful Qur’anic manuscripts found in museum collections across the world #RamadanMubarak
A thread…
1/ Folio from a Manuscript of the Qur'an
Iran, Shiraz, 1550-1575
Ink, colors and gold on paper
@LACMA #Ramadan
@LACMA 2/ Double Folio from a Qur'an
c. 1330-1350, Central Asian or Turkish
Early Muslim settlers from central and western Asia carried Islamic book traditions into India, especially in the form of Qur'ans, such as the one from which these pages come
Shah-i-Zinda is one Samarkand’s most beloved sites, which contains some of the richest tile work in the world. The magnificent architecture draws inspiration from multiple periods & styles, taking you back through time & across cultures
A thread on the beauty of Shah-i-Zinda…
1/ The Shah-i-Zinda ensemble includes mausoleums, mosques & other ritual buildings of 11-15th & 19th centuries. The name Shah-i-Zinda (meaning The living king) is connected with the legend that Qutham ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH is buried here
📷 Ash Diler
2/ Shah-i-Zinda is a world-famous example of a continuously constructed historical site. Over 1,000 years ago, it was founded with a single religious monument. Between the 11th & 19th centuries, mosques & mausoleums were continuously added
From Spain to Azerbaijan, to Germany to Bosnia, Europe has some of the finest mosques.
The presence of Islam in Europe is not a new phenomenon, with Muslims residing in the continent as early as the 8th century.
Here are 24 mosques across Europe #JummahMubarak
A thread…
1/ Koski Mehmed-Pasha Mosque, Mostar, Bosnia
Dates back to 1617 & features numerous multicolored windows, a minaret with a lookout spot & a courtyard with several tombs. Although the original Ottoman mosque was heavily damaged during the attacks of the 1990s it has been restored
2/ The Shah Jahan Mosque, Woking, England
This is the first purpose built mosque that was built in the UK.
It was built in 1889 by Dr Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner, an orientalist of Jewish descent from Hungary. Money was donated by Begum Shah Jahan, the Nawab Begum of Bhopal.
Welcome to Al-Mutanabbi Street the ‘Book Market of Baghdad’, where books remain in the street at night because Iraqis say:
“The reader does not steal and the thief does not read.”
A thread on the rich heritage of the historic book market on Al-Mutanabbi Street…
1/ Al-Mutanabbi Street is the historic center of Baghdad bookselling, that dates back to the time of the Abbasids. Located near the old quarter of Baghdad, Al-Mutanabbi Street was Baghdad’s first book traders’ market.
2/ Al-Mutanabbi Street has been, since time immemorial, the historic heart and soul of the Baghdad literary and intellectual community.