Islamic art has always had the greatest impact on Western art during the Middle Ages, as several Islamic artistic elements entered Western art through trade, conquests, and even during the Crusades.
For example, but not limited to, the design of the dome, mosaics, and Arabic and Persian decorations were transmitted to the West after European artists and architects transferred Islamic designs and techniques through various channels.
Islamic art has always retained its essential quality and unique identity. Just as the religion of Islam embodies a way of life and acts as a cohesive force among ethnically and culturally diverse peoples, the art produced by Islamic societies has specific and unifying basic characteristics.
Many decorative and architectural styles also made their way into Western architecture, such as the pointed arch or “bastard”, which allowed for greater height and larger, wider open spaces. We see this clearly, for example, in the Palatine Chapel of the Royal Palace in Palermo (Sicily, Italy), the Islamic “Fatimid” arches, the Byzantine dome decorated with mosaics and the ceiling decorated with Arabic calligraphy from the Middle Ages.
The Europeans were deeply influenced by Islamic arts because European architects were impressed by the elegance and structural efficiency of Islamic architecture. Islamic wall decorations, particularly complex geometric patterns and arabesques, also left a lasting impact on Western art. Islamic artists demonstrated mastery in creating complex designs covering entire walls, using geometric shapes and floral elements.
European artists, especially during the Renaissance, were fascinated by these decorative patterns. They adopted Islamic patterns in their works and adapted and incorporated the visual language of Islamic art into their paintings and even into textiles, ceramics and book illustrations. This fusion led to the development of the arabesque style in Western art, characterized by intricate foliage, interlaced patterns, and delicate ornamentation inspired by Islamic aesthetics.
Napoleon and Arabesque
The term arabesque itself was coined in the early 19th century following Napoleon’s famous campaign in Egypt. The word arabesque simply means “Arabic style.” Arabesque is essentially decorating surfaces using geometric decorative shapes consisting of lines, circles, and repeating patterns.
The art of the arabesque – which is used to decorate walls, ceilings, columns and domes – is considered the most expressive of the Islamic arts of complexity and beauty. It was transferred in the Middle Ages to Europe and appeared in many temples, mosques and palaces, such as the Alhambra Palace in Granada, which was built during the Islamic rule of Spain in the 13th century. And the 14th, its walls, ceilings and fountains are decorated with complex arabesque patterns.
The influence of arabesque art can also be seen in many Gothic cathedrals throughout Europe, such as Burgos Cathedral in Spain, which features intricate decorations on its facades and vaults reminiscent of the arabesque patterns found in the Alhambra.
The extent of the spread of this style of Islamic decoration in Europe reached the point where the ceilings of the Vatican Library were decorated in the Renaissance era by the artist Domenico Fontana, by order of Pope Sixtus V at the end of the 16th century.
Marie Antoinette’s boudoir at the Palace of Fontainebleau in France was decorated with arabesques in the Pompeian style by the Rousseau brothers in 1785.
Aesthetics of Arabic calligraphy
Islamic calligraphy is also one of the most influential Islamic artistic elements in Western art. Because Islamic culture attaches great importance to the written word, Arabic calligraphy was and remains an important art form throughout Islamic times. The elegance and expressive qualities of Arabic calligraphy fascinated European artists, who began to incorporate elements of calligraphy into their own works.
The integration of Arabic script into Western illuminated manuscripts began during the Crusades, after it reached the “Old Continent” via trade routes between Europe and the Middle East and the Crusades, at a time when Latin books were written in a style known as “black letter.”
Europeans moved to use Arabic calligraphy styles during the Gothic era, and also introduced complex floral designs and geometric shapes to decorate manuscripts and textiles. This tradition continued even into the Renaissance, contributing to a greater appreciation of the visual beauty and expressive potential of calligraphic forms in the Western artistic tradition.
The Arabic written word has been used to create some of the most beautiful and sophisticated works of art in the world.
To this day, Spain still enjoys a rich Arab-Islamic heritage of calligraphy that developed in Andalusia, including archaeological inscriptions in landmarks such as the Mosque of Cordoba and the Alhambra Palace in Granada. José Miguel Puerta Vilchez, a specialist in Arabic history and professor of art history at the University of Granada, believes that “the heritage of Arabic calligraphy in Andalusia is great and incomparable.”
These decorations not only added a distinctive aesthetic dimension, but also pushed the boundaries of creativity and technical excellence in Western artistic traditions, and the cultural exchange that arose as a result of this influence enriched the European and Western artistic heritage as a whole.
