_Islamic Art and Byzantium

Book chapter from Early Islamic Art, 650-1100

Part One: Origins and Context

Chapter I: Islamic Art and Byzantium

“Constructing the Study of Islamic Art is a set of four volumes of studies by Oleg Grabar. Between them they bring together more than eighty articles, studies and essays, work spanning half a century. Each volume takes a particular section of the topic, the four volumes being entitled: Early Islamic Art, 650-1100; Islamic Visual Culture, 1100-1800; Islamic Art and Beyond; and Jerusalem. Reflecting the many incidents of a long academic life, they illustrate one scholar’s attempt at making order and sense of 1400 years of artistic growth. They deal with architecture, painting, objects, iconography, theories of art, aesthetics and ornament, and they seek to integrate our knowledge of Islamic art with Islamic culture and history as well as with the global concerns of the History of Art. In addition to the articles selected, each volume contains an introduction which describes, often in highly personal ways, the context in which Grabar’s scholarship developed and the people who directed and mentored his efforts.”