Link to the video of the recorded conference on Fatimid culture in December 2021, Institute of Ismaili Studies (original) (raw)

"Fatimid Cosmopolitanism: History, Material Culture, Politics and Religion": Day 3/4, 2021

Abstract

https://youtu.be/W2SbcE4uDMg I am the sixth speaker in this line up. My presentation' s topic: ‘Reflecting on Ibn Al-Haytham’s Science and Aesthetics as Critical Tools for the Study of Islamic Art’ Abstract: This paper will discuss the relevance of Ibn al-Haytham’s famous scientific treatises such as the Kitab al-Manazir (Book of Optics) for the study of Islamic art. The product of the crossing of science and aesthetics in medieval Islam, these treatises, in particular those that expound the Fatimid polymath’s unprecedented method of probing the sensory experience akin to modern phenomenology of perception, have received much scholarly attention. However, like in the case of many other Islamic primary sources dealing with topics related to aesthetics and visual materiality such as the Brethren of Purity’s Epistles, the question remains open of the use of Ibn al-Haytham’s corpus as a critical tool for understanding the artworks, artistic processes and modalities of aesthetic reception themselves in both the particular context of Fatimid culture and the broader Muslim world. This discussion will indeed demonstrate that references to the Fatimid scientist’s findings in Islamic art historical investigations are problematic and revelatory of the actual difficulties posed by the use of these primary theoretical sources for the interpretation of the visual material. To what extent and in which sense do these findings enlighten specific artworks, and what exactly do they tell us about Islamic art making and reception? This interrogation will be addressed by examining some established arguments based on Ibn al-Haytham’s work in Islamic art studied.

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