What is arabesque definition. What is arabesque? Arabesque: description, history and interesting facts

Quite often people have a question: what is an arabesque? It would be simple enough to explain if there was only one definition. But that's not true. The same word contains different concepts from different areas. Of course, the main definition is related to the pattern. But what else is this? Let's take a look.

Ornament

In order to understand the traditions of a people, you need to get to know them cultural heritage. One of the most ancient traditions of man is decorating his home, household items, and his body with all kinds of images. At the same time, the widely used form ancient art is an ornament. It is inseparable from the object on which it is located.

Each beautiful ornament contains a certain motif, which consists of one or more elements. Thus, in Arab countries, its special calligraphic type, which consists of fragments of text and letters, has become widely developed. It arose with the advent of writing.

Arabesque is an ornament that appeared in the Middle Ages in those territories of the East where Islam was widespread. There, these patterns decorated absolutely all surfaces: from walls to mosque vaults. They were also placed on jewelry, dishes, and carpets. And after the conquest of the East, arabesque came to Europe. The most famous masters used this in their masterpieces.

Features of the pattern

Works of art created by Arab masters are distinguished by some special spirituality, a subtle sense of the sublime and beautiful, and expressiveness. Arabic patterns are unique and distinctive, despite their diversity. What are arabesques in Islam? These are ornaments that do not contain images of living beings.

They contain geometric shapes that are stunning in their gracefulness and immerse a person in dreams and aspirations to learn the secrets of life. They amaze with their simplicity, they expose inner world masters In addition, the ornament included plant elements. These are leaves, buds, and stems, which, intertwined, create a continuous pattern. A distinctive feature of art in Islam was the fear of emptiness, so the ornament covered the entire surface, leaving no space for a background.

Eastern arabesque as an art of geometry

Because of the ban on depicting living beings, the masters turned specifically to geometry. Thus, an arabesque is an ornament that consists of elements that are repeated and intertwined with each other. They can diverge in different directions. The patterns are characterized by a clear rhythm, which is verified with high precision. This is the real embodiment of mathematical science in art. Each individual element was a whole and complete pattern. The next one was very beautifully intertwined with the previous one. The ornament could end at any moment, but its integrity would not suffer.

Despite the accuracy, such a pattern cannot be called boring. The mathematical approach did not at all deprive the arabesque of artistic value.

Arabesque and its meditative properties

This ornament is fascinating and rhythmic. When contemplating repeating elements, it is very easy to drown in an ocean of intertwining patterns. That is why arabesque can be called an excellent meditative tool. She is in a special way capable of dispersing attention, thereby making you forget about the external vanity and immerse yourself in the inner world. That is why in many mosques the arabesque was part of the decoration. Its meditative function helped to concentrate on prayer and forget about other matters.

Term in ballet

But the named word designates only an element of fine art. What is an arabesque in ballet? It can be considered one of the main poses in modern classical dance. This is a very important element of choreography, which is found not only in ballet, but also in belly dancing. Classic arabesques are divided into four main types.

Allongee

This is the first and basic pose, also called ouverte. The back plays the most important role here. To perform this element correctly, you need to stand on one leg, and raise the other, extended and straight, back to such a height that the angle is 90 degrees. The arm opposite the raised leg is extended forward, and the other is moved to the side. At this time, the hands should be extended and palms facing down. Thus, it appears as if they are supported by air.

Second position

The legs and body are in exactly the same position as in the first option. The only difference is that the arm that corresponds to the outstretched leg is extended forward. The other leg is pulled back so that it can be seen behind the body, while the head is turned towards the viewer.

Third and fourth positions

The next element must be performed facing the viewer. The body leans forward and extends in the back. The arm and leg that are extended correspond to each other. The second leg is moved to the side. The face is turned towards the outstretched arm. The fourth position involves turning the body half-turn with your back to the viewer. The legs are in third position and the extended arm is opposite the raised leg. The body turns with a strong arch in the back.

It must be said that the dance masters perform arabesques very beautifully and gracefully. This is the true aesthetics of ballet art.

Term in music

There is another area where this word is used. Arabesque in music is a genre of instrumental piece. This term was first used in the musical field by R. Schumann, who named his piece for piano that way. It was in the form of a rondo, and the rhythms had contrasting sections. Since then, the term “arabesque” has been used many times by composers to define small piano pieces that have a graceful, patterned texture. And their melodic pattern is richly ornamented.

Term in vogue

In clothing, oriental motifs have long captured the hearts of lovers of unusual clothing. After all, an interesting ornament and bright colors always attract attention. What is an arabesque print? This is a pattern on clothing that belongs to the East and represents plant, animal and geometric patterns. Arabic calligraphy is sometimes used. All this endlessly intertwines and repeats, replacing the entire background.

Very often you can trace symmetry and rhythm in a pattern. It should be clarified that in some European countries an arabesque is a pattern that consists exclusively of plant elements. But in a broad sense, this term refers to all ornate, intricate patterns with an oriental motif. It may look like an endlessly repeating fragment. This is a feature of the pattern. It is connected into one whole and it is impossible to find either the beginning or the end.

Drawings can be contrasting, multi-colored, or monochromatic. Different fabric textures can be used, which only adds to the intricacy of the pattern.

Results

So what is arabesque? The definition, as you can see, has many meanings. It must be said that these days this ornament is very popular. It can be seen on carpets, wallpaper and in the works of artisans. Jewelers, fashion designers, and interior designers are inspired by arabesque. And the emergence of such trends as doodling is associated precisely with oriental ornaments. So, what is an arabesque? This is an ornament that has become an integral part of world art.

Arabesque

(French arabesque, from Italian arabesco - Arabic) - a genre of instrumental play. The term "A." in architecture and painting it denotes complex patterns in Arabic. style. The term was first applied to music by R. Schumann, who called his piece for piano A. op. 18 (1839) in the form of a rondo with contrasting sections in different. rhythms. Since then the term "A." repeatedly used by composers as a title. short play, ch. arr. for fp., as a rule, of an elegant character, with a patterned texture and a richly ornamented, “lacey” melodic. drawing. A. or. 4 A.K. Lyadova (1878), like Schumann’s, are kept in different. rhythms. K. Debussy gave the melodies of his A. (1888) a whimsical figured character. A. was written for orchestra by E. Wolf-Ferrari.

Musical encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, Soviet composer. Ed. Yu. V. Keldysh. 1973-1982 .

See what "Arabesque" is in other dictionaries:

ARABESQUE, arabesque, m., and (more often) ARABESQUE, arabesque, g. [fr. arabesque]. 1. Patterned ornament of stylized leaves, flowers, geometric shapes etc. (which arose in imitation of the Arabic style). 2. only plural. Collection of small works... ... Dictionary foreign words Russian language

- (French arabesque, literally Arabic), 1) a type of ornament that developed in Muslim countries and is built on the principle of endless development of repeating groups (rapports) of geometric, floral or epigraphic motifs, which ... ... Modern encyclopedia

A musical piece, mainly for piano, with a whimsical, richly ornamented melodic pattern. Authors of arabesques: R. Schumann, A.K. Lyadov, C. Debussy and others ...

The European name for an ornament that has developed in the art of Muslim countries. It is built on the principle of endless development and rhythmic repetition of geometric, plant or epigraphic motifs. Characterized by multiple rhythmic... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

ARABESQUE, and, b. pl. juice, female 1. Complex patterned ornament of geometric shapes, stylized leaves [original. in Arabic style] (special). 2. pl. Collection of small literary or musical works(book). | adj. arabesque, oh... Dictionary Ozhegova

Women sometimes arabesque husband. more common pl., ·art. molded or written decoration, with a belt, border, from broken and curved patterned features, flowers, leaves, animals, etc. Arabic numerals, numerical signs, now accepted throughout Europe: 1, 2, 3, etc.... ... Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary

- (French arabesque, lit. Arabic), the European name for an ornament that has developed in the art of Muslim countries. Built on the principle of endless development of repeating groups (see Rapport) geometric, plant or... ... Art encyclopedia

I is the European name for an ornament that has developed in the art of Muslim countries. It is built on the principle of endless development and rhythmic repetition of geometric, plant or epigraphic motifs. Characterized by multiple rhythmic... Encyclopedic Dictionary

History of the development of arabesque in Europe

Muslim arabesque

What is the meaning of the word "arabesque"? In life we ​​often come across this concept. This word is often used in accordance with its traditional characteristics, but is used as a figure of speech, as a common noun or in a figurative meaning, when it means something cleverly intertwined or intricately ornate, in another version - highly crushed and mixed or very delicate , light.

What is arabesque?

The word is of Italian origin. Translated, the term arabesque - arabesco - means "Arabic". However, this ornamental style is used in cultures different countries and in different types of art. There is no exact and uniform definition of arabesque. We are faced with seemingly completely different uses of the concept. There are several meanings for what an arabesque is.

Initially, arabesque was a type of oriental (Arabic) ornament. Later this term began to be used as the name of a certain type of musical piece.

There is another way to use the word - in masculine. What is “arabesque” in this case? In this case, we are talking about dance movement or a form of dance.

Let's look at each use case of the concept separately.

Arabic pattern in Europe

It is this variant of the use of the term that is truly connected with its Arabic meaning, since it is a type of ornament that arose in the medieval era in the culture of nomadic Arabs.

What is arabesque in art? Initially, the structure of the pattern included both geometric and floral motifs, but later only geometric ones began to be included.

At a later time, textual components began to be introduced into the plant pattern. That is why such a concept as “Arabic script” arose - a bizarrely ornate type of writing, similar in appearance to arabesque.

During the heyday of the Middle Ages, the arabesque ornament was used to decorate handwritten books, and in Byzantium and Italy - in majolica and engraving. At this stage of development of the arabesque, she carried, first of all, symbolic meaning and was the main element of architectural structures.

The “arabesque” type of ornament became most in demand during the Renaissance. Thanks to Giovanni da Udine, the pattern becomes the basis and connecting thread of the semantic component of fresco paintings and decorative and symbolic elements in architecture.

In the era of classicism, the “arabesque” ornament was designated as an independent decorative element, abstracted from the semantic component.

Arabic pattern in the countries of the Muslim world

In the Arab world, over time, the “arabesque” ornament became an entire science at the service of the church. After all, Arabic arabesque patterns served as a connecting thread between Heaven - the abode of God and Paradise - and Man as a representative of the Earthly House. If you think about it, then the Underworld, which, according to Muslims, consists of two parts: the grave as the threshold of Heaven or Hell and Hell itself. Thus, one can put forward the version that the Muslim arabesque may be an image of the “World Tree”. Arabesque ornaments can completely cover the walls of the mosque. In the intertwining of their elements you will never find animals, birds, fish, humans and other living beings, since no one can compete with God - their creator.

Arabesque in the arts and crafts of the East

There is also a way of using the arabesque ornament in Eastern cultures that is not related to religion. One of the most common is the Arabic patterned carpet. In this case, creating a pattern involves greater creative freedom: you can use images of animals and people as elements, weaving them into a ligature of stems, petals and leaves.

Based on the Arab traditional ornament, a special direction has emerged in the art of carpet weaving - Islami - a decorative ornament consisting only of bindweed and spiral elements. In addition, there are six more additional types Islami: "shekasti" - with open ornaments; “bandi” or “vagire” - the elements of the pattern are repeated both horizontally and vertically, and are intertwined with each other; "dakhane azhdar", whose arabesques resemble the mouth of a dragon; “toranjdar”, in it, along with traditional patterns, an element such as a medallion is used; "lochak-toranj", where a composition of medallions in triangles is placed in the corners of the carpet; "Mari" - with spiral-shaped arabesques.

Arabesques in the "Bandi" style also have a number of subtypes: "Islimi" - in the form of fastened arabesques; "pichak" - in the form of connected weaves; "shekaste" - in the form of untied arabesques; "Katibei" - in the form of a connected inscription; "varamin"; "caleb-kheshti" in the form of connected square frames; "derakhti" - in the form of intertwining trees; "sarvi" - the main element is cypress; "adamaki" - in the form of a pattern of human figures; "bakhtiyari"; "hushe-anguri" made from intertwined bunches of grapes; “shahae gavazne heyvandar” made of interlocking deer figurines; "khatame shirazi", reminiscent of inlays; "dastegul" of intertwined bouquets.

In addition to creating unique carpet products, the arabesque motif is used to create models of clothing, tableware, interiors and even in landscape design.

Pattern creation technology

When creating an "arabesque" ornament, an ideal mathematical calculation is required, which is used to form absolutely accurate compositional solution its elements and their alternation in the ornamental chain. The elements of the pattern are very complex in composition and often fit into each other. In this case, it is also necessary to use mathematical knowledge, because the elements of arabesques are difficult to combine variants of various geometric shapes - circles, ovals, rectangles, hexagons and octagons, trapezoids, triangles, rhombuses, etc. Moreover, each type of element has its own color. With such a mathematical pattern, a background is never used for it.

Musical piece

In music, the term “arabesque” was first introduced in relation to the proper name for his work by the famous composer Robert Schumann. Subsequently, the concept of “arabesque” began to be applied to a specific genre. instrumental music, as a rule, a small work, but very diverse, light, with an openwork interweaving of elements, rhythms, intonations, tempo, and fragments of melody. The intertwining melody of the arabesque was used in the work of the amazing French impressionist and symbolist composer Claude Debussy. Of the domestic composers, Alexandra Lyadova turned to this genre.

dance movement

What is "arabesque" in dance art? Arabesque, or rather arabesque, is one of the main movements in classical choreography. In the classification of Agrippina Yakovlevna Vaganova we find four types of arabesque, and the Italian choreographer Enrico Cecchetti has five. These movements have a similar position of the body and head, but differ in the position of the raised and abducted arms and legs.

From classical choreography, the modified arabesque was transferred to sports ballroom dancing and in figure skating. It has quite a long tradition of use in Indian belly dance.

Ornamentation. Arabesque

In the art of Islam, which is least oriented towards the depiction of specific images, an important function belongs to ornaments and patterns, which concentrate in a unique form the enormous possibilities of expressing ideological values.

The most typical creation of Islam in this regard is the arabesque, which reflects geometric genius and nomadic mentality. Arabesque (it. arabesco, fr. arabesque- Arabic) is the European name for a complex oriental medieval ornament, consisting mainly of geometric, calligraphic and floral elements and created on the basis of precise mathematical calculations. An arabesque covers an architectural building or product with its ligature applied arts, pages of handwritten books. The very idea of ​​an arabesque is consonant with Muslim ideas about the “eternally continuing fabric of the Universe.”

The arabesque should be considered as an example of ornament in which the logic of constructing a geometric pattern enters into an alliance with the living continuity of rhythm. It is based on the repetition and multiplication of one or several fragments of an ornament. The endless movement of the pattern, flowing in a given rhythm, can be stopped or continued at any point without violating the integrity of the pattern. Such an ornament eliminates the background, since one pattern fits into another, covering the surface. Europeans called this “fear of space.” The arabesque contains two main elements: interlacing and a floral leitmotif. The first, in essence, is the result of geometric speculation, which is reminiscent of a kind of geometrization of the doctrinal system of Buddhism (Chapter 2). While the second is a type of graphic rhythm, expressed in spiral patterns, which, according to experts, may have their origin not so much from plant forms, but from the symbolism of line. Thus, both themes in the arabesque have, as it were, a single source of inspiration ( rice. 37).

Rice. 37. Window grill. Sidi Sayyid Mosque.

In general, it is customary to talk about several types of ornament. A geometric pattern consists of dots, lines (straight, broken, zigzag, intersecting mesh) and figures (circles, rhombuses, polyhedra, stars, crosses, spirals, etc.). A plant ornament is made up of stylized leaves, flowers, fruits, branches, etc. A zoomorphic ornament includes stylized images of real or fantastic animals. Sometimes such an ornament is called “animal style”. Anthropomorphic ornament uses male and female stylized figures or individual parts of the human body as motifs. The art of Islam knows many brilliant examples of the simultaneous use of all types of ornament. But it was in the arabesque that the art of ornament was brought to the highest degree of perfection.

Vahid Tabrizi, a Persian poet and theorist, likened such ornamentation to figures of poetic speech: the pictorial decoration of the plane is natural to the decoration of speech. Moreover, the unifying element here is undoubtedly rhythm. It is known that pre-Islamic poetry, which created outstanding examples and its own poetic meters, significantly influenced the entire culture and art of Islam. Moreover, this poetry has always been surrounded by special reverence among Muslims.

The geometric ornamentation of Islam included archaic motifs of ancient nomadic peoples; Thus, Islamic designs have very ancient roots. Of course, in the system of new ideological values, these motives, as well as all assimilated elements, underwent a significant transformation.

The ethical and aesthetic awareness of ornamental motifs in the culture of Islam was established practically along with the emergence of high art as such, that is, from the moment of the appearance of calligraphy, ornament and architecture in the context of a single statement of the culture of Islam. The Muslim arabesque, according to Sh. M. Shukurov, “is not just an ornament, but that level of abstraction, that stream of consciousness that requires certain preparation for its understanding. That is why the European reader and viewer remain alien and incomprehensible to both the Koranic discourse and the poems of Persian poets, and fine arts Islam. All this requires commentary and interpretation" ( rice. 38).

Rice. 38. Panel with carved inscription

The decisive role in this process of understanding ornament as an ordered and ordering phenomenon was played by Arabic graphics and the graphic style of thinking in the culture of Islam. Graphics and ornament in Islamic art interact extremely productively with other art forms. (This is generally characteristic of all the art of the East, as we will see, in particular, in the examples of the art of China and Japan.) Evidence of this is the first monument of high art of Islam - the reliquary of Qubbat al-Sakhra (Dome of the Rock) in Jerusalem. In the reliquary, calligraphic inscriptions and ornamental decoration composed of plant motifs are found for the first time in an architectural context, determining the iconographic future of the entire program of Muslim art ( rice. 39).

Rice. 39. Qubbat al-Sakhra.

The entire course of the history of art and architecture of Islam shows the existence of a connection between architecture, calligraphy and ornament; the clearly expressed orientation of the Muslim temple consciousness is the most important point of reference here. It is in the temple and in the “field of vision” of the temple that the panorama of the vision of Being as a person unfolds. According to the French philosopher and Islamic scholar A. Corbin, “the temple is a place, a source of contemplation.”

Floral ornaments themselves are very interesting topic, forming an important part of the Muslim vision. The theme of plant motifs is found in the Quran; in the last verse In the Al-Fath suras, the faithful are likened to a strong shoot, a stem. This is an image masala. An interesting motif is the likening of the faithful to plants, demonstrating the unity of Being. It is characteristic that there are parallels to this image in the Christian and Judaic traditions. Thus, the gospel motif of likening the faithful to the “good seed” (Matthew 13:38) is rooted in Old Testament antiquity. The 1st Book of Kings states that all the walls of the Temple “within and without” should be covered with palm trees and budding flowers (6:18, 29, 32, 35). All this is especially significant in the context of Old Testament eschatology, according to which the Heavenly Temple will be established among the people of the new Israel, like a tree among vegetation. In this regard, it is worth recalling some correlations in the symbolism of the cross, in which man and plant correspond to the vertical, in contrast to the animal, which is connected to the horizontal.

In Islam and Islamic art, plant motifs have found their footing as metaphors for paradise, salvation and the ideal community of believers. The Koran says: “Have you not seen how God brings the likeness ( masala); a good word is like a good tree, its root is firm and its branches are in heaven?” (14:29). According to the Islamic concept, the key to the salvation of the Muslim community and each person is Good Word and the Good Tree, figurative image (masala) which naturally unfolds in the House of God ( Bayt Allah).

The arabesque is a metaphorical image, a figure in one or another context of a statement. It is believed that in an arabesque a Muslim foresees a well-known and extremely ethical image of his future, realizing the transcendental reality of this image - since, first of all, the Temple, the eternal tree of culture, the stem of which always remains the true believer, is real. Thus, the arabesque is one of the most important manifestations of the style of a culture oriented rather towards graphic ways of seeing and expressing.

The word as such cannot be fully pronounced; the arabesque-metaphor script must remain fundamentally unfinished. eternal life true believer.

Calligraphic, plant, and then geometric configurations create various combinations of the integral spiritual geometry of the universe. "The Science of Decoration" ( ilm al-badi) poetic speech, formed in literature in the 9th century, and the “ornamentation” of an artistically crafted “thing” are phenomena of the same order. They are united by ligature and rhythm.

Ornaments with spiral patterns - heraldic animals and vines - are also found in the art of Asian nomads, a remarkable example of which is the art of the Scythians with its famous “animal style”. Elements of Islamic decorative art are drawn from the rich archaic heritage that was common to the peoples of the Middle East and Northern Europe. Some archaic elements included in Islamic art, such as the spiral, zigzag lines, circles, stylized animals, etc., connect the ornamentation of Islam with extreme antiquity ( rice. 40).

Rice. 40. Islamic ornaments.

This common heritage, as T. Burckhardt believes, resurfaced as soon as Hellenism with its essentially anthropomorphic art retreated. Christian medieval art also adopted it through the folklore of the Asian migrants and through the isolated art of both the Celts and the Saxons, which became one of the most amazing syntheses of prehistoric motifs. However, this heritage was soon obscured and emasculated in the Christian world under the influence of Greco-Roman models assimilated by Christianity.

According to researchers, the Islamic spirit has a much closer affinity with the boundless stream archaic forms, since they (these forms) are in full correlation with the conscious appeal of Islam to the original order, to the “primordial religion” ( din al-fitra). He assimilates these archaic elements and reduces them to their most abstract and most general formulations, "geometricizing" them, endowing the ancient symbols with new intellectual clarity and spiritual grace.

It is no coincidence that Arabesque has peculiar analogies in Arabic rhetoric and poetry. The rhythmic flow of thought gains clarity thanks to strictly interconnected parallels, inversions, and contrasts. The Muslim arabesque is not just the possibility of art without the creation of images; it is a direct means of gradually disappearing, dissolving images or that which corresponds to them on the mental plane, just as the rhythmic repetition of a certain Quranic formula dissolves the fixation of the mind on the object of desire. Moreover, the arabesque is an amazing means used by Islamic art, with the help of which the believer seems to be immersed in rhythmic waves, in a special, ecstatic state that brings him closer to the perception of God. In the arabesque, every hint of individual form is dissolved in the vastness of continuous weaving; the repetition of identical motifs, the “florid” movement of lines and the decorative transparency of forms protruding in relief and carved in the same way “back analogous” all contribute to this effect.

Thus, in the arabesque we see a synthesis of archaic symbolism with the mental sophistication and grace of Islamic art - in order to solve spiritual problems, and not for purely decorative purposes. The walls of some mosques are covered with glazed ceramic mosaics or weaving of graceful arabesques, which is an excellent illustration of the content of the famous saying of the Prophet Muhammad, according to which God hides himself behind 70,000 veils of light and darkness; if they were all removed, everything that His Gaze reaches would be incinerated from His Face. Veils that are created from light veil the Divine Light.