Reframing the Alhambra

An interdisciplinary study of one of the most important monuments in Islamic art.

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An interdisciplinary study of one of the most important monuments in Islamic art Finalist for the 2019 Charles Rufus Morey Book Award The Nasrid builders of the Alhambra - the best-preserved medieval Muslim palatial city - were so exacting that some of their work could not be fully explained until the invention of fractal geometry. Their design principles have been obscured, however, by the loss of all archival material. This book resolves that impasse by investigating the neglected, interdisciplinary contexts of medieval poetics and optics and through comparative study of Islamic court ceremonials. This reframing enables the reconstruction of the underlying, integrated aesthetic, focusing on the harmonious interrelationship between diverse artistic media - architecture, poetry and textiles - in the experience of the beholder, resulting in a new understanding of the Alhambra.

Key Features

Illustrated in colour throughout
Takes an inter-medial approach integrating the study of poetic inscriptions, textiles and court ceremonial into the discussion of architecture
Inter-disciplinary, combining art history, optics and literary studies
Case studies explore specific, relatively neglected spaces within the Alhambra
Informed by both medieval and contemporary theory
Considers the most recent technical analyses to distinguish clearly original elements