Papers presented at the 2nd International Conference on Islamic Heritage Architecture and Art are contained in this volume. The conference attracted important research highlighting the significance of Islamic heritage architecture and art to the world and its influence across different regions. The papers deal with the design of many types of buildings in Islamic countries, including not only the better known public buildings like mosques, mausolea, citadels and forts, but also houses and gardens, engineering works such as bridges and dams, irrigation systems and many others which have also had a profound impact on society. Traditional architecture and urban environment in most Islamic countries is now being eroded by overemphasis on a global type of architecture and city planning. As a consequence, many regions are losing their identity. The included studies review these developments in the light of what classical Islamic urban design and architecture has to offer modern society. Research contained in this book provides an analysis of the materials employed and the types of structural elements used, particularly those unique to Islamic architecture. Associated topics covered include music, textiles and ceramics, which are essential parts of the architectural fabric. Also looked at are construction materials, including not only stone and brick but also more perishable materials like adobe, wood and reeds. The preservation of heritage features also requires the development of appropriate conservation techniques in response to the different materials used and the ways structural forms work, including under extreme conditions, such as earthquakes. Academics, researchers, practitioners and government employees actively involved in the topic of Islamic heritage architecture and art will find this publication of interest.
For many people, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia evokes images of deserts, camels, and oil, along with rich sheikh in white robes, oppressed women in black veils, and terrorists. But when Loring Danforth traveled through the country in 2012, he found a world much more complex and inspiring than he could have ever imagined. With vivid descriptions and moving personal narratives, Danforth takes us across the Kingdom, from the headquarters of Saudi Aramco, the country’s national oil company on the Persian Gulf, to the centuries-old city of Jeddah on the Red Sea coast with its population of undocumented immigrants from all over the Muslim world. He presents detailed portraits of a young woman jailed for protesting the ban on women driving, a Sufi scholar encouraging Muslims and Christians to struggle together with love to know God, and an artist citing the Quran and using metal gears and chains to celebrate the diversity of the pilgrims who come to Mecca. Crossing the Kingdom paints a lucid portrait of contemporary Saudi culture and the lives of individuals, who like us all grapple with modernity at the dawn of the twenty-first century.
Since the dawn of the oil era, cities in Saudi Arabia have witnessed rapid growth and profound societal changes. As a response to foreign architectural solutions and the increasing popularity of Western lifestyles, a distinct style of architecture and urban planning has emerged. Characterised by an emphasis on privacy, expressed through high enclosures, gates, blinds, and tinted windows, ‘New Islamic Urbanism’ constitutes for some an important element of piety. For others, it enables alternative ways of life, indulgence in banned social practices, and the formation of both publics and counterpublics. Tracing the emergence of ‘New Islamic Urbanism’, this book sheds light on the changing conceptions of public and private space, in the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, in the Saudi city of Jeddah. It challenges the widespread assumption that the public sphere is exclusively male in Muslim contexts such as Saudi Arabia, where women’s public visibility is limited by the veil and strict rules of gender segregation. Showing that the rigid segregation regime for which the country is known serves to constrain the movements of men and women alike, Stefan Maneval provides a nuanced account of the negotiation of public and private spaces in Saudi Arabia.
Islamic architecture has enriched design with a wide variety of structural shapes, including among others, unique arches, a wide variety of vaults and domes which allow for new forms to be developed. The influence that these structural forms have in non-Islamic countries was one of the themes of the 3rd International Conference on Islamic Heritage Architecture and Art, at which the included papers were presented. There is much to learn from past experiences to arrive at solutions which are environmentally sound and sustainable in the long term. As conventional energy resources become scarce, the Islamic design heritage can offer invaluable lessons on how to deal in an efficient manner with cases of hard and extreme environments. Traditional architecture and urban environments in most Islamic countries are now being eroded by overemphasis on a global type of architecture and city planning. As a consequence, many regions are losing their identity. It will become increasingly important for new developments to take light of what the classical Islamic urban designs and architectures have to offer modern society. An equally important aspect covered is the analysis of the materials employed and the types of structural elements, particularly those unique to Islamic architecture. Preserving this heritage requires the development of appropriate conservation techniques in response to the different materials used and the ways structural forms work, including under extreme conditions, such as earthquakes. These papers deal with the design of many types of buildings in Islamic countries, including not only the better known public buildings like mosques, mausolea, citadels and forts, but also houses and gardens, engineering works such as bridges and dams, irrigation systems and many others which have also had a profound impact on society.
A National Book Award Finalist, a New York Times bestseller and one of the most highly-acclaimed books of the year, A Hologram for the King is a sprawling novel about the decline of American industry from one of the most important, socially-aware novelists of our time. In a rising Saudi Arabian city, far from weary, recession-scarred America, a struggling businessman named Alan Clay pursues a last-ditch attempt to stave off foreclosure, pay his daughter's college tuition, and finally do something great. In A Hologram for the King, Dave Eggers takes us around the world to show how one man fights to hold himself and his splintering family together in the face of the global economy's gale-force winds. This taut, richly layered, and elegiac novel is a powerful evocation of our contemporary moment--and a moving story of how we got here.
This book contains papers presented at the 1st International Conference on Islamic Heritage Architecture and Art. The papers deal with the design of many types of buildings in Islamic countries and the influence that these structural forms have had in non-Islamic countries. Coverage will also include construction materials. There is much to learn from past experiences to arrive at solutions that are environmentally sound and sustainable in the long term. As conventional energy resources become scarce, the Islamic design heritage can offer invaluable lessons on how to deal with difficult and extreme environments in an efficient manner. Traditional architecture and urban environment in most Islamic countries is now being eroded by overemphasis on global type of architecture and city planning. Consequently, many regions are losing their identity. The Conference will aim to review these developments in the light of what the classical Islamic urban designs and architectures have to offer modern society. There will also be coverage of conservation techniques appropriate to the materials and structural forms used. The papers in this book cover such topics as: Architectural conservation; Architectural heritage; Architecture in Malaysia and Indonesia; Climate adaptability; Conservation and restoration; Historical aspects; Houses and gardens; Islamic art and globalisation; Mosques and minarets; Ottoman Istanbul; Schools; The African Coast; The Islamic urban environment; The Mediterranean region; The use of light; Vernacular architecture; Wood and wooden roofs. The contents will be of interest to all researchers, practitioners and government employees actively involved with Islamic Heritage Architecture.