Introduction
Sachiko Murata’s book “The Vision of Islam” offers an insightful view of the Islamic world. Thus, this assignment aims to explore the influence of Islamic principles on contemporary art, using the works of American artist Nsenga Knight as an example. Knight’s work exemplifies how Islamic principles and ideals may be incorporated into contemporary art and how one can use art to investigate spirituality and religion.
The Central Topic of “The Vision of Islam”
An attempt is made to consider the Islamic world and its principles in the book “The Vision of Islam.” The author’s main areas of concentration are the four facets of Islam, such as practice, religion, spirituality, and the Islamic understanding of history. The writer describes how Muslims see everything in the cosmos as a manifestation of God. Additionally, they should pay attention to their souls’ nudges and see God’s beauty in fictitious forms (Murata, 1994, p. 29).
The author underlines that creativity and aesthetics have always been crucial to faith, even though this aspect of Islam has been underappreciated (Murata, 1994, p. 47). This provides a better grasp of the Qur’anic underpinnings and the world realities of the Prophet Muhammad. “The Vision of Islam” does a great job of explaining the Qur’anic approach to many intellectual problems individuals in contemporary society encounter while looking for the truth, such as predestination, God’s omnipotence, and his proximity.
The Virtual Scavenger Hunt: Illustrating Islamic Values in a Painting
As for the Virtual Scavenger Hunt, I selected the works of American multi-disciplinary artist Nsenga Knight. The Book of Sufi Healing, a treatise that describes the healing powers of plants, served as the main inspiration for Knight’s most recent work, the watercolor painting “Fitra: Amber” (Munu, 2023). Since the idea of abstraction is ingrained in Islamic philosophy, Knight employs abstract art to investigate the soul. Knight’s artwork perfectly illustrates how Islamic values and beliefs can be blended into contemporary art and how art can be utilized to study spirituality and religion.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the book “The Vision of Islam” provides an insightful view of Islamic principles, emphasizing the importance of creativity and aesthetics. The author Sachiko Murata highlights how Muslims perceive the universe as a reflection of God, showing how creativity and aesthetics have always been important to the Islamic faith. Knight offers a new perspective on the relationship between religion and art through her abstract art inspired by Islamic cosmology.
References
Murata, S. (1994). The vision of Islam. Tauris.
Munu, A. J. (2023). How a Muslim artist uses abstract art to illustrate the soul. Amaliah. Web.