Complexity Achieved with Simplicity
Avoiding the usage of figurative images, Islamic decorations frequently use geometric patterns that have gradually developed overtime. Though the exquisite patterns seem way too complicated, they are actually intrinsically very simple and can be constructed with only a compass and ruler. Many different shapes, such as triangles, squares, hexagons, and stars, can derive from simple curves and lines.
Geometric designs occurring in Islamic architecture and arts usually include overlapped and interlaced squares and circles in various contrasting colors. Other basic shapes are also used, combined, and reworked to form more complicated patterns, through different types of reflections and rotations. These include eight-pointed stars made from two squares and polygons - specifically pentagons and octagons.
Starting with several circles, which symbolize infinity, diversity, and unity, the seemingly complicated geometric patterns can be achieved by simply connecting the intersections of those circles. For example, from the combination of seven circles, hexagons, triangles, rectangles, and twelve-pointed stars can be made. Likewise, from the combination of five circles, many shapes, such as dodecagons, hexagrams, and squares can be made. Therefore the geometric patterns seen on buildings and objects are actually easy to be constructed.
Prohibited from using images and representations of people in sacred places to avoid idol worship, Islamic artists and craftsmen developed an aesthetic of their own based on repetition of various geometric shapes.
The first Islamic geometric patterns appeared in the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia, dating back to 836 CE, as individual and occasional geometric shapes such as rhombi and 8-pointed stars. Since then, the usage of Islamic geometric patterns, especially that of 6- and 8-pointed stars, has widespread throughout the Islamic world. More varieties of patterns gradually developed from the 11th century, such as triangles, heptagons, and irregular hexagons. The use of simple sixteen-point geometric patterns at the Hasan Sadaqah mausoleum in Cairo in early 14th century, and in the Alhambra in Spain in late 14th century mark the late stage of the development of Islamic geometric patterns.
“Islamic geometric patterns are a very important artistic and aesthetic element of decoration on objects and buildings.” so said Alaa Bouhadane, a Moroccan artist, photographer, and interior designer, “Even till this day, geometric patterns are still widely used in inner decorations and greatly appreciated.”
Sometimes combined with Arabic calligraphy, such patterns, which can extend indefinitely, can be seen on carpets, ceramics, glass, leather, tileworks, and wood and metal works. Meanwhile, geometric patterns used on different objects and for different purposes differ as well: radical stripes and circular motifs are used on ceramics; interlacing patterns on girih tiles in Persian architecture and decorative woodworks; and six-, eight-, and twelve-pointed stars on stained glass and windows.
There is also a form of art that is developed here in Morocco - the zellige.
“Zellige is specific to Morocco as one of the main characteristics of Berber and Moroccan architecture.” said Alaa, “It is an application geometry in art and decorations.”
Zelliges are made from individual geometric tiles set into plaster. They form geometrical, colorful mosaic patterns including regular and irregular geometric shapes. They can be used to decorate the indoors such as ceilings, floors, and walls, and as well as objects such as fountains, pools, and tables.
Zellige are made from a special type of clay - the Miocene grey clay of Fez, which makes the city still the production center of zellige tiles. The clay from this region mainly contains kaolinite and illite, which can make the tiles appear more vividly colored and preserved well and for a longer time, due to the low shrink-swell capacity and low carbon-exchange capacity of such minerals.
The marvelous Islamic geometric patterns have attracted not only artists and craftsmen to learn the skills and techniques, but also mathematicians and physicians to investigate the scientific aspect of the geometric patterns. In 2007, two physicists, Peter J. Lu and Paul Steinhardt, claimed that certain girih designs can create quasi-periodic tilings - tilings with pattern of recurrence with a component of unpredictability that does not lend itself to precise measurement. Some computer scientists have also proven the possibility of designing and producing Islamic geometric patterns through algorithms, effectively and economically.
Divriği Great Mosque
Located in Sivas, Turkey, this astonishing mosque was founded in 1228 by the Mengücekid emir, Ahmet Shah. In 1985, it was recognised the UNESCO and placed in the World Heritage List.
It has been discovered that, during the different hours of a day, four shadows appear on the carvings of the outside walls of the mosque facing different directions: the first three are the silhouettes of a man looking straight, reading a book and praying, respectively, and the last one is the silhouette of a praying woman.
These remarkable features could not have been designed without the combination of mathematics, astronomy and art, with careful observation and calculation of the position of the sun and stars that were applied in the construction of the walls and the carvings.
Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/science/alexs-adventures-in-numberland/2015/feb/10/muslim-rule-and-compass-the-magic-of-islamic-geometric-design
http://www.muslimheritage.com/article/new-discoveries-in-islamic-complex
http://islamic-arts.org/2014/aniconism-in-islamic-art/
http://artofislamicpattern.com/resources/educational-posters/
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095263513000216
Alaa Bouhadane. Personal Communication. 5 Feb. 2017
Image(s) source: http://www.muslimheritage.com/article/new-discoveries-in-islamic-complex
