ABSTRACT
Traditional Islamic architecture originates in the hot and sunny countries of the Middle East. In such climates, shadows are an important element in making spaces comfortable for inhabitation. Islamic artists have created intricately carved low relief panels of scripture, verse and of complex tessellated geometric patterns, all of which enlist shadow to achieve their effect. The wall surfaces of great Islamic buildings are often highly decorated with colourful geometric tile work and intricate low relief carving, the latter using shadow to draw. Avoiding depiction of human and animal form, these carvings, which involve much hand labour, have various themes. In Islamic houses and palaces courtyards are often supplemented with shady rooms or alcoves around their periphery. In 2014, the artist Anila Quayyum Agha exhibited an installation at the Grand Rapids Art Museum in Michigan. It was entitled ‘Intersections’, one of a series of similar shadow pieces.
