Visual Varieties in The Islamic Art

Abstract

Islam came as rahmatan lilalamin, meaning mercy to all in the universe. The Islamic view applies in all contexts and content. This means that any context in the world can’t escape from the Islamic point of view. For example the art context, trade, marriage, life, social, and others can’t be separated from the study of Islam. In the art context, it has a study inside Islamic view, especially named Islamic Art.  If we discuss about Islamic art, it can’t be separated from Islamic law itself. Islamic law governs all things, one of which governs also the arts (visual). Visual form of expression can be seen as works of Islamic art that represent the Islamic law  itself.  The  creator  of  the  work  of  Islamic  art  can  be  called  a  Muslim  artist,  although  this  remains controversial.  The diversity of the visual manifestation of the work of Islamic art is the result of diversity of interpretation of oral traditions from the prophet (hadith) and verses contained in the Qur’an. These are the cause  of  the  diverse  looks  of  the  works  of  Islamic  art  thousands  of  centuries  ago  to  the  present  day,  for example,  calligraphy,  arabesque  ornaments,  mosque  architecture,  abstract  painting,  stylized  painting  and others.    This  paper  attempts  to  explore  and  examine  the  question  of  "why"  the  form  of  Islamic  art  is  very diverse? What is the conceptual behind the works of Islamic art that are so diverse in the first period to the present day. 

 Keywords: Diversity, Law, Visual art, Islam.