What is an Arabesque?

The term arabesque refers to a style of artistic expression relating to design and decor. It is

based on a linear, geometric, and recurring pattern that is ornate and intricate in detail,
involving displays of nature such as plants, flowers, sometimes animals, or geometric shapes.

Arabesque art and architectural design.

The origins of the arabesque style date back to the Hellenistic period, where simple motifs
were used, often including leaves, birds, and flowers. The present form emerged around 1000
CE, when the Islamic empire refined the ability to visually display balance, illumination, and
nature with ornate detail. Arabic calligraphy had emerged to focus Islamic art to reflect and
express the oneness of God, according to the foundational belief of the religion of Islam. This
style led Muslim artists to remove the animal or human figures in art and instead represent the
continual perfection and infinite nature and balance of God, according to the Islamic view.
This geometric harmony and symmetry are found in the intricate designs of the style popular
today.
 
Arabesque architecture is a style of architectural design that uses arabesque patterns and
themes within the structure and design of the building. The design of windows and doorways,
roofs, and overall layout of the building or structure are usually symmetrical to display
balance and harmony to complement the decorative details of the arabesque patterns used to
decorate the walls, crown moldings, ceilings, structural pillar carvings and molds, and other
architectural elements of the structure.

Arabesque Design
Arabesque design is also called biomorphic art or is referenced as Islimi, or Islamic
arabesque. Biomorphic art includes a variety of styles that all follow the same archetypal
principles which include:
  The Eternal Spiral
 Symmetry and Structure
 Rhythm and Balance

The sub-families of biomorphic art display different characteristics which reflect the purpose,
time, and location in which the style emerged.

Islamic Arabesque Designs

The Islamic arabesque designs are the original and most popular designs, as they are the
signature style and origin of the biomorphic art form.
The Islimi style is said to have originated in Baghdad at a time when Islamic art and culture
flourished in the 10th century and continued to spread during the height of the Ottoman
Islamic Empire around 1000 CE. This was the foundational ornate style that focused on leaf
and floral motifs. As the Islamic Empire spread east into Persia and west into Europe, the
Islamic arabesque style also was incorporated as part of the artistic design of buildings and
materials that were used.
The three main styles of Islamic art during this era include:

 Calligraphy—A style of writing in the Arabic script in which the design and rule in
which the letters and characters and stylized reflect Islamic influence of artistic focus
on the beauty of the words of the Quran.
 Geometric Patterns—An artistic design focused on the use of geometric shapes
arranged in balanced arrays reflecting the Islamic influence of the focus on the
oneness and harmony of God according to the Quran. Geometric patterns are
displayed as full artworks to fill ceilings, walls as frescoes, or smaller works.
 Arabesques—Arabesques are repetitive patterns in which the motifs are used to add
ornamentation within buildings, or on materials such as papers, books, carvings,
entryways, woven into rugs, or sculpted using influences of nature such as plants,
leaves, and geometric shapes, again reflecting the Islamic influence on the centering of
artistic expression to reflect the balance and implications of their faith.

The arabesque or biomorphic sub-styles also include two structure types: the spiral and the
kapali. Each exists as a structural linear foundation where the motif, such as a floral or
vegetation, would be attached. The spiral design is a continuous pattern across the entire
design. The kapali, which means closed in Turkish, is a structure of versatile shapes that
aligns on a geometric grid. The kapali works with the spiral as well as alone due to its
architectural properties.
Each of these styles may also be incorporated into a piece of artistic expression and visual
design. For example, a mosque may include calligraphy on the inside where a verse from the
Quran is artistically written according to a specific calligraphy style, while also having an
arabesque motif to border the walls or entryways. A geometric pattern may also be a focal
point on the ceiling or dome of the mosque. Through the overall design, the entire design and
architectural structure of the mosque would incorporate all three styles of Islamic artistic
expression to focus on the harmony in creation.
Western Arabesque Designs
Through the expansion of the Islamic Empire, arabesque designs spread from the Near and
Middle East to Europe. Once Islam reached Spain during the Umayyad dynasty, Islamic
beliefs and, thus, culture and art solidified into the European fold. The region of Al-Andalus,
or what was known as "Muslim Spain," extended through the Iberian Peninsula. The term
"Moor" was used to describe the Muslim population of Al-Andalus in Spain, Portugal, and
even those in Italy, and from it the term Moresque developed to describe the style of
architecture and influence, as established by the Muslims. The "gilt" process—or using metals
such as gold to spread over the surface of an object, such as book covers, for ornamental and
decorative purposes—was also incorporated into the arabesque style and design, appearing
first in the Umayyad rule. These types of displays were often unique commissioned pieces
that were of great value and indicated prestige.
Western arabesque designs emerged after the Islamic rule and influence had spread into
Europe. While the original designs removed human and animal figures to reflect Islamic
principles, western arabesque incorporated back human and animal forms. From the European
Renaissance until the early 19th century, arabesques were heavily used in the western world.
The Italian Renaissance of the mid-15th century incorporates arabesque designs into
paintings, plaster models, tapestries, and manuscripts illuminated with gilded silver. The 18th-
century Baroque period again displayed the use of the arabesque styles and motifs in Italy and
France.

Arabesque Architecture
The most common examples of such arabesque architecture are mosques, which demonstrate
the arabesque representation of communicating the calm repetition and everlasting presence
and perfection of God, in accordance with the Islamic view. Famous works of arabesque
architecture include:

 The Taj Mahal—built during the Mugal period in the Agra District of India
 The Great Mosque of Cordoba—built during the Andalusian period in Spain.
 The Dome of the Rock—built in the 7th century by the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik
ibn Marwan in Jerusalem, Palestine.
The Taj Mahal designed in the arabesque style.

The interior of The Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain shows the arabesque design.
The Dome of the Rock Mosque designed in the arabesque style in Jerusalem, Palestine.