Islamic Geometric Design

Combines wide-ranging research with the author's artistic skills to reveal the techniques used to create the patterns adorning buildings in the Islamic world

Featuring new patterns with detailed explanatory texts, this revised edition is an inspirational guide for craftspeople and artists alike. The marvels of Islamic patterns—the most recognizable visual expression of Islamic art and architecture—are not just a beautiful accident. The ancient practitioners of this craft used traditional methods of measurement to create dazzling geometric compositions, often based on the repetition of a single pattern. The results are magnificent in their beauty and awe-inspiring in their execution. Now, with the aid of this book, everyone can learn how to master this ancient art and create their own intricate patterns or re-create classic examples. All that is needed is a pencil, a ruler, a compass, and a steady hand. Technical tips demonstrate the geometric basics such as how to create designs from one of the foundational “family” shapes: a square, hexagon, or pentagon. This is followed by step-by-step instructions for reproducing some of the best examples of geometric patterns. Islamic Geometric Patterns contains twenty-three geometric patterns and brief histories of some of the most famous and beautiful Islamic art and architecture from around the world. This revised edition features seven new patterns from locations including: Ak Medrese in Nigde, Turkey; Chellah necropolis in Rabat, Morocco; Shah Jahan Mosque in Thatta, Pakistan; the Tomb of I’timad-ud-Daulah in Agra, India; the Alcazar in Seville, Spain; Zaouia Moulay Idriss II in Fes, Morocco; and Darwish Pasha Mosque in Damascus, Syria.

The main focus of this unique book is an in-depth examination of the polygonal technique; the primary method used by master artists of the past in creating Islamic geometric patterns. The author details the design methodology responsible for this all-but-lost art form and presents evidence for its use from the historical record, both of which are vital contributions to the understanding of this ornamental tradition. Additionally, the author examines the historical development of Islamic geometric patterns, the significance of geometric design within the broader context of Islamic ornament as a whole, the formative role that geometry plays throughout the Islamic ornamental arts (including calligraphy, the floral idiom, dome decoration, geometric patterns, and more), and the underexamined question of pattern classification. Featuring over 600 beautiful color images, Islamic Geometric Patterns: Their Historical Development and Traditional Methods of Con struction is a valuable addition to the literature of Islamic art, architecture and geometric patterns. This book is ideal for students and scholars of geometry, the history of mathematics, and the history of Islamic art, architecture, and culture. In addition, artists, designers, craftspeople, and architects will all find this book an exceptionally informative and useful asset in their fields. Jay Bonner is an architectural ornamentalist and unaffiliated scholar of Islamic geometric design. He received his MDes from the Royal College of Art in London (1983). He has contributed ornamental designs for many international architectural projects, including the expansion of both the al-Masjid al-Haram (Grand Mosque) in Mecca, and the al-Masjid an Nawabi (Prophet’s Mosque) in Medina, as well the Tomb of Sheikh Hujwiri in Lahore, and the Ismaili Centre in London – to name but a few. He is committed to the revitalization of Islamic geometric design through the teaching of traditional methodological practices. To this end, in addition to publishing, Jay Bonner has lectured and taught design seminars at many universities and conferences in North America, Europe, North Africa and Asia.

Nearly 200 examples exhibit the wide range of Islamic art, including hexagon and octagon designs, combinations of stars and rosettes, and many variations on other geometric patterns. Twenty-eight examples from traditional sources in Cairo and Damascus include sanctuary doors, openwork windows, and inlaid marble pavements and ceilings.

Across the Islamic world, illuminating Korans from Morocco to Malaysia, and adorning mosques, mausoleums and palaces, are hidden some of the most exquisite geometrical devices ever conceived by man. In this excellent little book, geometer Daud Sutton unravels the mystery of Islamic patterns, explaining where they come from, how to draw them, and hinting at the Divine messages they encode. WOODEN BOOKS are small but packed with information. "e;Fascinating"e; FINANCIAL TIMES. "e;Beautiful"e; LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS. "e;Rich and Artful"e; THE LANCET. "e;Genuinely mind-expanding"e; FORTEAN TIMES. "e;Excellent"e; NEW SCIENTIST. "e;Stunning"e; NEW YORK TIMES. Small books, big ideas.

Issam El-Said pinpoints the rules of composition that form the basis of the geometric concepts of Islamic art. He then shows how intricate patterns are based on these basic principles. Fully illustrated in three colors to show the development of the patterns, this book offers an insight into how craftsmen and designers in the Muslim world achieved monumental feats of artistic expression using the simplest of tools. Chapter I presents graphical analyses of numerous complex patterns, to reveal the numerical rationale behind them. In Chapter II, the author analyses the system of measure used in ancient Egypt, before the use of numbers for calculating measurements. He shows how measuring cords and a geometric method based on a grid-pattern originating from the circle were employed by master craftsmen in the design of Islamic art and architecture. The book offers an insight into how craftsmen and designers in the Muslim world have achieved monumental feats of artistic expression with harmony and precision, using the simplest of tools such as a ruler, a string and templates, together with a system of measure that is both simple and sophisticated.

"Examine the principles of geometric design that are the basis for the beautiful and intricate patterns in the art of the Islamic world. Includes a brief overview of Islamic art, an introduction to related works in the Museum, and a series of pattern-making activities (including reproducible grids) for use in the classroom. Teachers can readily adapt these materials to create exciting lessons in art, culture, math, and geometry"--Metropolitan Museum of Art website.